PHOENIX — Two weeks after a Phoenix group home shooting, city leaders say the facility was not registered correctly.
A city leader tells ABC15 that North Star Independent Living Services, where a young man was fatally shot is not registered with the City of Phoenix as a group home.
Councilwoman Debra Stark’s office tells ABC15 that if this is a transitional foster care home that is licensed by the Department of Child Safety, then it should have a Use Permit and registration as a community residential home.
“They are currently not registered with the City of Phoenix as a group home, and they do not have the required Use Permit,” an official with Stark’s office said.
ABC15 is told that the Neighborhood Services Department is being ‘notified to send an inspector to notify the operator of the requirement and notice of violation to get them started on the process for compliance.’
Councilwoman Stark spoke with ABC15 on Thursday about questions she has on the permitting process as most times there is a public hearing, “if it’s a larger group facility like this it ordinarily would require a Use Permit, and a Use Permit would require a public hearing, and that would give the neighborhood an opportunity to suggest conditions to enhance and protect the neighborhood,” she said.
Two weeks ago Phoenix police responded to the group home off 19th Avenue and Hatcher Road for a shooting that left a young man dead, and another resident arrested.
Phoenix police officials confirm a shooting at this group home in Phoenix is not the first as multiple people were shot about 18 months ago.
Earlier this month, a former employee of a group home is concerned the youth foster system put in place to help teens and younger adults are 'failing' after that young man was shot and killed.
Kent Miller tells ABC15 that he left his job at the North Star Independent Living Services several weeks ago and has filed concerns in the past to authorities as he's a mandated reporter.
"The whole system is failing and someone has to see that," he said. "Something has to be done."
Stark used to be the planning director for the City of Phoenix, before being elected as a councilwoman.
The group home that has had numerous allegations of drugs, fighting, and guns on campus is within Stark’s district.
“Most group homes are handled by the Arizona Department of Health Services, they have a process, this is kind of an outlier, and so I think it’s our opportunity to talk to the state [DCS] about having a similar process,” said Stark.
North Star tells ABC15 that it believes it has all the necessary permits and paperwork, “if we learn additional documentation is required we’ll work with the proper entities to remedy the issue.”
Stark has also reached out to Representative Jennifer Longdon of LD5 to arrange a meeting between DCS, her office, police, and other officials to request action and figure out what processes are in place with contracts like this.
“When we do meet with the state, we are going to have our police department there as well, so they can talk about some of their concerns and make DCS aware of that,” said Stark.
Contract records show that North Star makes $135 to $200 a day per kid depending on the level of ‘trauma’ they are given.
The campus off Mountain View Road is licensed for 46 beds.
North Star owns five group homes, ranging in the number of licensed beds.
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Reach out to reporter Nicole Grigg at nicole.grigg@abc15.com