Doc Drop: Cymbrowitz’s Letter Blasting Department Of Health’s Decision To Allow Disdained Rehab Center

Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz and the local community scored a huge victory last week, forcing the Department of Health (DOH) and the state’s Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) to issue a cease-and-desist against a planned drug rehabilitation center on East 21st Street.

The clinic, First Steps to Recovery, sought to move its existing operations from Brighton 12th Street to 2634 East 21st Street. Despite being opposed by Community Board 15, Cymbrowitz, and vocal neighbors, the Department of Health issued a “contingent approval” allowing the facility to begin construction – and they never notified community leaders. In response, Cymbrowitz demanded a meeting with DOH and OASAS officials, at best described as “heated,” where he chewed them out for their negligence and threatened legislative regulations to force them to get their act together. You can read all about that here.

Following that meeting, Cymbrowitz sent a testy letter to DOH Commissioner Thomas Farley. Sheepshead Bites has obtained a copy of that letter, published in full at the end of the article.

Here’s a highlight for anyone too lazy to click through:

Even more disturbing were the numerous failures committed by your agency. At the meeting in my office, it became immediately apparent that your representatives were unaware of any issues surrounding this inappropriate location. They had no idea that the drug treatment center would occupy space in a residential building with children (a simple site visit by your agency would have revealed children’s toys on the terraces), that an elementary school is located right across the street, and that the street is too narrow to accommodate vehicles dropping off clients.

Your agency would have been aware of all of these negatives if it had paid the slightest attention to the vehement opposition expressed by Community Board 15, which echoed residents’ feelings.

Here’s the text of the letter in full:

July 19, 2013

Dr. Thomas A. Farley, Commissioner
NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
42-09 28th Street
Long Island City, NY 11101

Dear Commissioner Farley:

On July 16th I held a meeting in my district office with four representatives of your agency, representatives from the state Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) and Community Board 15 Chair Theresa Scavo to discuss an outpatient substance abuse treatment center, First Steps to Recovery, Inc., and its proposal to relocate to 2632 East 21st Street in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn.

I requested this meeting after learning just a week ago that First Steps had been granted contingent approval for this clearly inappropriate location back on May 15th, allowing the provider to begin construction. That same week, angry residents of East 21st Street presented me with petitions and begged for my help to prevent First Steps from opening. As the Chairman of the Assembly’s Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Committee, I find it extremely disturbing that I did not receive notification in this process.

Even more disturbing were the numerous failures committed by your agency. At the meeting in my office, it became immediately apparent that your representatives were unaware of any issues surrounding this inappropriate location. They had no idea that the drug treatment center would occupy space in a residential building with children (a simple site visit by your agency would have revealed children’s toys on the terraces), that an elementary school is located right across the street, and that the street is too narrow to accommodate vehicles dropping off clients.

Your agency would have been aware of all of these negatives if it had paid the slightest attention to the vehement opposition expressed by Community Board 15, which echoed residents’ feelings. DOH could then have included CB 15’s recommendation in the assessment you forwarded to OASAS, which would likely have stopped the process in its tracks early on. Instead, your agency failed to recognize a clearly unacceptable site and turned a deaf ear to the community. This allowed a flawed process to move forward, wasting time, manpower, money and causing unnecessary distress for neighborhood residents.

No one disputes the need for this type of outpatient program, but at the right location. It is my hope that you will take a close look at the errors made in your agency’s review of this site and at the entire approval process for outpatient substance abuse facilities, which is clearly in need of improvement if fiascos such as this one can occur.

I look forward to your prompt response.

Sincerely,
Steven H. Cymbrowitz
Member of Assembly

And here is how it appeared on the letterhead: