PROJECT leaders behind a proposed Torfaen recovery centre housing ex-offenders and recovering drug users, met with concerned residents at a public meeting this month.

The meeting discussed a planning application, submitted to Torfaen County Borough Council in July, that hopes to convert a residential property into supported housing for 10 residents and support staff.

The proposed unit at Edlogan Villa on Avondale Road, Sebastopol, will support male ex-substance users using a Christian 12-step programme managed by Hope Ministries, Cwmbran.

On Wednesday, September 14, residents were invited to meet representatives behind the project at the St Hilda’s Church, Griffithstown.

Lead Pastor at Victory Church, Clyde Thomas, attended the meeting and confirmed that the application has been temporarily withdrawn to allow for amendments before being re-submitted.

“We want to work with the community and we take their comments very seriously," he said.

“With some residents it is clear that they’re never going to change their minds and they don’t want something like this on their doorsteps.”

“A key point is that it’s not a rehabilitation centre but a ‘home for recovery’ and there is a big difference between the two,” he added.

“A home for recovery supports people who are in recovery and are working towards the journey of a abstinent lifestyle.

“It’s a very important fact that in treatment facilities, the levels of success are considerably lower in the stage after that (recovery centres).”

Original planning documents state the majority of the residents will come from Cwmbran and will be monitored 24 hours a day while being subjected to regular drug and alcohol tests.

Plans confirm that the project is not designed for serious offenders with a history of violence, sexual crimes or mental health and residents will be vetted prior to being offered a place.

A visiting regime will also be enforced, with the majority of residents meeting families after services at Victory Church, Cwmbran on the church premises.

Residents of the Parc Panteg area have since set up an action committee to challenge the centre and plan to list their objections, once they have assessed the re-submitted application.

Kevin Lowry, 45, of the Parc Panteg area, attended the meeting and said: “The general consensus was that residents were not against the treatment centre but definitely opposed the area in which they were proposing it.

“The residents of Griffithstown and Parc Panteg didn’t know anything about this development happening and it was by a sheer fluke that someone initially spotted it."

“The meeting was also a definite fiasco on the side of the church and opened up a lot of questions. We’re challenging them every step of the way and we will continue to do so," he added.

When the application is re-submitted, it could be taken to a future planning committee for consideration.