This property at 504 E. Center St., Warsaw, could be the future site of a recovery home for drug and alcohol addicts. (Photo from Kosciusko County GIS)

Best known for his work with Serenity House and guiding men with drug and alcohol addictions toward recovery, Jeffrey “Hoss” Smith got approval Monday night to move forward with a recovery house.

Smith’s request before the Warsaw Board of Zoning Appeals to establish a group home at 504 E. Center St., Warsaw, was approved unanimously. With the city Planning Department’s recommendation, the BZA agreed to grant a variance from development standards to allow the home in what is now a single family residence.

The Serenity House currently operates two men’s homes in Warsaw where a total of 28 beds and 3 emergency beds are available. Although Smith has secured financial backers for a recovery home to operate separate of Serenity House, he told the BZA he would still be able to manage all three facilities successfully.

“This would add 16 beds,” Smith explained, noting that he has an extensive waiting list of men who want to enter the Serenity House recovery program. But, Smith told the BZA, “I’m not sure this is going to be a Serenity House, this may be a recovery house that myself and someone else is venturing into … I just don’t know if Serenity House wants to take on the debt of opening another house.”

Attorney Scott Smith spoke to the BZA in favor of Smith and the program careful to note he was not there as a representative for Smith or the Serenity House, but “as a supporter and believer” in the program.

“As an attorney I deal a lot with people who have issues involving alcohol and or drugs. Through that, I came into contact with Serenity House,” Scott Smith said. “The problem you see with so many people who come through the system, they do whatever they’re supposed to then go right back to it. It’s a revolving door … that’s where Serenity House comes into play. It gives them something to work with … it gives them the tools they need to not go back through the revolving door.”

“Hoss” Smith said whether the residence is acquired for use by Serenity House as a third facility, or whether he operates it as a separate entity, the group home would provide a positive community service to assist addicts with responsible rehabilitation. “We take our properties seriously and want to give these men a great home to live in.”

The property at 504 E. Center St. has not yet been purchased. “Hoss” Smith the BZA hearing was the first step in moving forward.