1. Proposed drug treatment center upsets some in north Tyler

Residents’ opinions surrounding an alcohol and drug treatment facility proposed for North Tyler continue to be varied, as the plan advances to city council.

Business owners, residents and various community members attended a public forum Tuesday to air concerns and show support for Cenikor Foundation, an inpatient drug and alcohol treatment center, set to move into the former BioLife Plasma Center building, 1827 West Gentry Parkway.

The center received a stamp of approval this past week from Tyler’s Planning and Zoning Commission, with a one-year special use permit to operate. The issue is expected to go before the Tyler City Council for final approval next week.

Opponents said their opposition wasn’t that the center wants to come to Tyler, rather its location on an important thoroughfare in the city. The meeting was hosted at the Tyler Metro Chamber of Commerce, 2000 West Gentry Parkway. More than 25 were in attendance.

Bill Bailey, Cenikor’s president and CEO, said the average patient’s stay will be between three to 30 days, depending on the level of treatment needed. Bailey said the center expects three to four medical discharges and admissions per day and will only accept patients during regular business hours.

If approved, the facility will have 24-hour nursing staff as well as counselors and doctors. The nonprofit organization operates 12 similar treatment centers in Texas and Louisiana.

Cenikor expects a $2 million economic impact on the city, including food purchases and salaries.

Small business owner Eleno Licea asked if many of the specialized employees needed for the center could come from North Tyler.

Bailey said given the specialized jobs, the center could not guarantee where the employees reside, but said the center would provide opportunities for new graduates to stay in town. The center has the potential to attract more families to the area because people generally like to live near their workplaces.

“(The) colleges have programs for counselors,” he said. “People are being educated here. Rather than leave the community, this will provide them with jobs to stay. “

Developer Ed Thompson said the facility would be self-contained, whereas people entering into the former plasma center came out with cash that could be spent at local businesses.

Thompson said he also objected to the center’s location and not its services. He said the company would be an economic driver for the city as a whole, but the impact might not affect the neighborhood businesses, because its clientele is not likely to spend additional money in the area.

“We don’t want your company walking away from here thinking we are the boogey man or something,” he said. “Our opposition against your company coming to Gentry is not based on false pretenses — it is real to us; it’s real to us that have been her 50-plus years.

“It’s the businesses that have suffered and have been suffering all these years … because we lost major jobs. What we need on Gentry Parkway is a company that has employees going to Whataburger, Subway, spending money in the community … North Tyler is busy rebuilding and restructuring, and we are sorry you walked into this, but we are going to protect it.”

Supporters of the center said it would help people go from being a recipient of the system to contributors by helping them get clean and find gainful employment.

Resident Tony Meeks said there is no price on saving a life.

“Where are you going to fight?” he said. “Are you going to fight to help someone or fight to keep it out of (your) backyard? It’s already in our backyard. … It’s in South Tyler, North Tyler — it’s everywhere. People are addicted. We can all sit here and put our blinders on, but when you take a (step back), look at your house first and then your neighborhood, and if someone comes to help, I say you welcome them on board.”