Everett City Council May Remove Restrictions On Methadone Clinics And Opiate Substitution Facilities

Back on December 5th the Everett Planning Commission voted to recommend changes to the City of Everett Zoning Code that would repeal the definition of “opiate substitution treatment facilities” from the city’s zoning code.

Planning Commissioners also recommended removing the term opiate substitution treatment facility as a use that required specific restrictions as to number allowed and location within the city and also amended the definition of clinic to no longer exclude opiate substitution treatment facilities.

On Wednesday the Everett City Council is scheduled to have a first reading of an ordinance that would accomplish that and bring Everett’s code more in line with Washington State law when it comes to regulating medical treatment facilities of all types.

This all came about after receiving a legal opinion that restricting methadone clinics or other opiate substitution treatment facilities is a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The City of Everett has been considering where to locate another methadone clinic after a request by the operator of the current clinic in south Everett.

That issue is still very much up in the air and the briefing papers for the city council to consider make mention of the fact that the need for another methadone or other such treatment facility has been identified as greatest in the north Everett to Marysville-Tulalip area.

During discussions at the Planning Commission members of the downtown Everett business community argued strongly against any more treatment facilities in downtown Everett. Lanie McMullin, the City of Everett’s outgoing Director of Economic Development (she recently announced her resignation) voiced her opposition to the idea stating “the allowance of a methadone treatment facility in the downtown core would significantly set back the emerging, but fragile development progress of the last decade”

Wednesday night will be just a briefing and the first reading of the proposed ordinance dealing with opiate substitution facilities in all of Everett. A third reading and public hearing is scheduled on the issue for February 21st. You can see all of the briefing papers and proposed changes to the ordinance here.