Ben Hill County commissioners deny Christian Recovery Center special exception; 45 days to vacate

Ben Hill County Commissioners voted unanimously on Nov. 7 to deny a Special Exception application from the Christian Recovery Center and ordered the facility to vacate within 45 days, citing repeated health, safety and building-code violations documented by county inspectors.

Building & Zoning Administrator Jacob Hughes told the commission he had issued compliance notices following an Aug. 8 review and made multiple follow-up inspections, including an unannounced visit Nov. 6. Hughes said the county found numerous problems that remained uncorrected, including non–ground-fault-compliant exterior receptacles, a broken pantry window, extension cords and surge protectors in use after prior warnings, unlabeled electrical panels, multiple kitchen appliances on a single receptacle instead of dedicated circuits, and a nonfunctioning integrated fire alarm system despite pull handles and bells remaining in place. Hughes also reported the facility continued to operate two washing machines after assurances to the Department of Public Health that one would be removed to satisfy wastewater standards for the existing drain field. He said no sprinkler system had been installed despite a quote from International Fire Protection, Inc., and two sets of required architectural drawings had not been provided.

"Given this background, the proposed use will cause an excessive or burdensome use of services to the County," Hughes said, recommending denial of the special exception and asking that CRC be given 45 days to vacate to protect public health and safety.

County Manager Michael Dinnerman supported Hughes's recommendation, calling the matter "a health and safety issue" and saying county staff had offered assistance and a remediation plan that CRC had not followed. "We were willing to work with them," Dinnerman said.

Commissioner John Mooney moved to deny the Special Exception application and to give CRC 45 days to vacate; Vice-Chair Hope Harmon seconded. The motion passed unanimously, with Commissioners Mooney, Harmon, Bennie Calloway, Daniel Cowan and Chairman Steve Taylor recorded as voting yes.

The minutes record prior enforcement actions: Hughes said CRC was provided a list of violations in August and had been given time to come into compliance, but county staff found many items unresolved at the November inspection. The record includes differing references to prior timelines—Hughes cited a 60-day compliance notice issued Aug. 8, while County Manager Dinnerman said staff had at one point allowed a 90-day period for corrections. The commission's action at this meeting is a denial of the Special Exception; the minutes do not record any onsite response from CRC representatives or an immediate plan submitted to remedy the cited deficiencies.

Next steps recorded in the minutes: the denial and the 45-day vacate order are the formal actions from the Nov. 7 meeting. Any subsequent appeals, permits, inspections or legal filings are not recorded in these minutes.