LYNNWOOD — The fight over opening a methadone treatment clinic in Lynnwood is headed to court.
City officials say the process for locating a methadone clinic is unclear and plan to sue the state Department of Social and Health Services to clarify state rules.
The city wants a judge to stop DSHS from considering any applications for methadone clinics “until they get their house in order,” said Lynnwood City Attorney Greg Rubstello. The Lynnwood City Council unanimously authorized filing a suit on Monday, Feb. 10. The same day, a company that’s trying to open a methadone clinic in Lynnwood sued the city in Snohomish County Superior Court, saying the city should not have turned down its application for a business license.
San Diego-based CRC Health Corp. wants to open a methadone treatment clinic in the Alderwood Professional Building, 18631 Alderwood Mall Blvd., near a Toys ‘R’ Us store and the Interurban Trail.
Under state law, which was rewritten in 2001, counties can’t say no to hosting a methadone clinic because the state considers them essential public facilities. State law does say, however, that the county and the city have the final say on the actual site, based on its zoning laws. Lynnwood officials say they feel deeply frustrated by the process, which they claim doesn’t clearly spell out the role of the city and state.
“The law says you must take into account seven or eight things. The problem is what is the sequence of events?” said Councilman Don Gough. “We want to know what the state should be doing and the sequence of steps so that the city can properly respond.”
The city is also upset it wasn’t consulted earlier by DSHS, which certifies methadone clinics. “We want to protect our rights so Lynnwood can have a meaningful voice about what happens in our own city,” said Lynnwood Mayor Mike McKinnon. “We’re very concerned about the impact of the facility on our citizens and our businesses.”
The CRC clinic would be the first one in Snohomish County and serve 350 heroin-addicted clients. Other agencies have applied for permits to locate clinics in Everett and Arlington.
Methadone is a prescription drug used to treat people addicted to opiates such as heroin and illegally obtained prescription narcotic painkillers like Vicodin or OxyContin. City officials rejected CRC’s business license application in December because the company did not have certification from DSHS. But the state doesn’t have the authority to certify a clinic until it opens, said Ken Stark, director of DSHS’s Division of Alcohol and Substance Abuse. “We’re caught in the middle,” Rubstello said. “We have the applicant telling us that they can proceed and get all of their approvals here without having the state say, ‘Yes it’s appropriate to locate a clinic in the city of Lynnwood at this location.’”
CRC did not return calls for comments about the city’s decision to sue the state. Stark said he was disappointed Lynnwood plans to file a lawsuit instead of working with DSHS.
“It’s unfortunate and we’re quite surprised,” he said Feb. 11. DSHS restarted the consultation process with Lynnwood in January, Stark said, and had asked for the city to submit comments by mid-February. DSHS also plans to meet this week with representatives of numerous cities to discuss the rules for siting methadone clinics, Stark said. The resolution passed by the City Council on Feb. 10 also authorizes any other affected cities, counties, residents or businesses to join Lynnwood’s lawsuit.
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