By Julie Stipe

Despite concern on the part of some Hopewell Township residents, two new group homes operated by the nonprofit The Children’s Home opened in Hopewell the week of Dec. 12, one located on Church Road and the other on Jacob’s Creek Road in Titusville.

Two similar homes opened in Robbinsville two months ago. The Children’s Home executive director Roy Leitstein declined to reveal where in Robbinsville the homes are located.

There are 90 children in some two dozen group homes like those scattered across Central and Northern New Jersey. The Children’s Home purchases houses in residential areas for small groups (usually around five) of kids, most often ages 16-19.

Leitstein points out that having many group homes spread across the area is important because it allows kids to remain close to their parents or foster parents and near—and in some cases in—their own communities. This is easier for both the children and their parents, and makes the transition back home a smoother process.

Kids end up at the group homes for a variety of reasons, such as behavioral problems, mental health issues and developmental disabilities. Teenagers who are a good fit for the program are referred to The Children’s Home group homes by the state of New Jersey, often after the state has been contacted by the children’s parents.

At a group home, kids may attend a local school (tuition is paid by the school district to which the student normally belongs), or, if identified as requiring special education, students may be taken to The Children’s Home headquarters in Mount Holly, where the organization’s own school teaches in a way tailored to those with disabilities and behavioral problems.

Controversy over the homes erupted in Hopewell when a video circulated in October showing a fight between two teenagers in the Mount Holly facility while counselors stood idly by. The staff members involved were immediately let go, Leitstein said, who also states that he was “disgusted by the actions of the staff,” and adds that the incident is not representative of the organization.

Still, the idea of having several troubled teenagers in the neighborhood didn’t sit well with some Hopewell residents. After the property on Church Road was purchased, a few families in the vicinity of the house voiced fears about their own children’s safety and the property values of their homes if the teens were to move in nearby.

Yet, Hopewell Township mayor James Burd was supportive of the Children’s Home, and said he hasn’t heard any complaints about the homes since they opened.

“Since I haven’t heard of any problems, I believe they’ve been very good neighbors,” he said. “I think that’s the best of all worlds ... I would like to see these homes prove themselves as good neighbors to the community. From information that I’ve found and through the discussions with the neighbors which I attended, I think that can be proven out in a very positive manner.”

Issues never arose in Robbinsville, where the township administration and the residents have largely left the folks from The Children’s Home alone.

“We certainly welcome them,” Robbinsville business administrator Tim McGough said. “We hope things go well with their operation.”

Even if people in Robbinsville did have an issue with the group homes opening in the township, there wasn’t much they—or the municipal government—could have done to stop it. McGough pointed to New Jersey’s municipal land use laws, which states communities must allow such homes, and permission to use a single-family residence as a group home is not required from the township, nor is any kind of permit needed, as long as the homes do not house more than six, not including staff members.

Because notifying the township of the homes is unnecessary, group homes planted by The Children’s Home have gone unnoticed in many places. Officials in Robbinsville did not know the homes had opened in their town until the outcry began in Hopewell over the proposed Church Road property.

Robbinsville’s ignorance of the existence of the homes is perhaps as good a rebuttal as any to the argument that the homes will have a negative impact on the community around them. And Leitstein stressed that teenagers placed in the homes aren’t running rampant, but are under strict supervision day and night, and that all activities in the home and outside it are structured and organized by the staff.

During the week, the kids attend school, and afterward kids and counselors often have a house meeting to identify the goal that they are working on that day. Time is allotted each day for activities such as going to the park or the mall, learning karate or practicing yoga. Even watching television is a prearranged activity.

“We try to make their day as normal as possible,” Leitstein said, “but it’s highly structured.”

As for the resistance to the homes, Leitstein pointed out that those opposing the homes are a “small segment of folks,” and that “the vast majority of the community is supportive.” He said fears about the group homes are due to a lack of understanding, presumably about how they are run and the kids they will house, and states that the homes are not only not bad influences, but even have a positive impact on the community around them.

“We make good neighbors,” Leitstein said.

Community editors Rob Anthes and Diccon Hyatt contributed to this story.