The Phoenix City Council voted unanimously Wednesday to set new regulations and policies for sober living homes. They will include new licensing and a new zoning structure.
Many neighborhood activists were concerned with the quality of life both for people in the homes and those in areas around the homes.
Jeff Spellman, with Take Action Phoenix, said the goal is to limit the number of sober living homes in certain neighborhoods, for the good of both the recovering patients and their neighbors.
“If you have one on a block, they normalize off of their neighbors that are going about business in the way we all do," he said. "If you have five on a block, they normalize off of the other addicts.”
The new laws will go into effect next month.
