O’Fallon to Consider Permit for Group Home for Adults With Disabilities

The  will consider a request on June 28 for a conditional use permit for a group home at 228 Westridge Dr., for three adults with developmental disabilities.

The O’Fallon Planning and Zoning Commission held a public comment hearing regarding the permit requested by and approved the recommendation at its June 7th meeting.

Emmaus Homes is a non-profit organization, which provides 24-hour support services for adults with developmental disabilities, such as cerebral palsy, down syndrome and autism.

During Thursday’s public comment hearing, Dave Kramer, chief operating officer of Emmaus Homes, discussed the group home and mission of the organization.

“Through this process, we are hoping to better educate people about the residential services within this home and for people with developmental disabilities in general,” he said. “It is sometimes difficult for people who are unfamiliar with developmental disabilities to understand that they truly are single family residences.”

Kramer said the group home is legally defined as a single-family dwelling and the conditional use permit would not require any of rezoning or reclassification.

“We are providing the accommodation, which allows them to live as independently as possible,” he said, adding that Emmaus staff members help out with cooking, cleaning, handling finances or making healthy choices. 

O’Fallon Patch previously reported, group homes have been a controversial issue in St. Charles County. Local governments cannot ban them, but can place restrictions on how close they are to each other.

In O'Fallon group homes must be one-mile apart. requires a conditional use permit and homes can be no closer than a thousand feet from each other. St. Peters, and Cottleville have 2,500-foot requirements.

In January, against a proposed Emmaus group home there, citing concerns that their property values would decline. The permit for the home in Lake St. Louis was approved later that month.

Kramer said on Thursday, it is a common misconception that the houses surrounding group homes will lose property value. 

“This simply is untrue,” he said. “The reason that is, is easy. We must conform to the same standards for the the exterior as any other residence that is in that neighborhood.”

He added that in other municipalities, some people asked about the Department of Corrections and other funding sources, but Emmaus homes only serves those individuals with disabilities.

The service is completely separate from the home ownership and the lease, Kramer said.

“It is not a commercial business or a facility–it’s their home,” he said, adding that the job of Emmaus is to help their people become valued members of society.

He said the community benefits in many ways from welcoming the group home, including full-time jobs with benefits, local patronage by residents and their support and the property tax the homes generate.

“This is about three ladies and their families, they want the same thing you, I and our children want—that is to have a home of their own and be happy,” Kramer said. “They are happy to be a part of, and we are proud to support them in being a member of the O’Fallon community.”

No other residents spoke up for or against the home during Thursday’s public comments at the meeting.

The conditional use permit will go before the City Council for a final reading and vote at the Thursday, June 28 meeting.