South Florida has long been known as a center for recovery centers for drug addiction, which many people seek out after facing drug charges for possession or trafficking. Delray Beach, in particular, is one area that has often been called the recovery capital of the United States. Recently, the managers of sober houses, long allowed to operate with little public oversight, have come under additional scrutiny. A check of 15 sober houses in Delray Beach by the Palm Beach Post showed that nine of the owners of those houses have criminal records. A sober house, also sometimes known as a halfway house, is a place where recovering drug addicts can live in a structured and sober environment to help ease their re-entry into society. These homes are not licensed under state law and there is no requirement that the owner of a sober house undergo a criminal background check prior to opening the house. Some advocates of sober housing have downplayed the findings, stating that having people with difficult prior records can be an effective example for recovering addicts.
Jim Green, who is part of an effort to regulate sober houses in Delray Beach, has argued that having a high concentration of addicts in the Delray area can have a negative effect on the surrounding community due to the potential for relapse and re-offending. "Sometimes those in recovery fall quite spectacularly," Green said. Delray city commissioners have recently sided with Green in an effort to move sober houses from single family neighborhoods, reducing from 5 to 3 the number of unrelated people who were permitted to live in the same house together. There has been some discussion that further licensing is necessary for these houses in order prevent sober houses from have a detrimental effect on the surrounding neighborhood. Some Delray Beach residents have complained about loud parties and people coming and going late at night at sober houses.
