Owner defends sober-living facility planned for La Crosse’s north side

Full city council to vote on center Thursday

Everyone wants good neighbors. It can’t get much better than a house full of 18-25-year-old men recovering from substance abuse.

Co-owner of Driftless Recovery in La Crosse, Austin Reinhart was in the AM 1410 WIZM studio with Mitch Reynolds on Tuesday and said the neighborhood around his planned sober-living facility on the north side will be more than pleased with the place.

Reinhart, however, understands why some future neighbors of the facility might not feel that way.

“Any time that you’re talking about something that has such a negative connotation,” Reinhart said, “that has such a stigma to it of being someone living in recovery or someone living in addiction, there is that fear of, ‘Who are these people? How are they going to act?’

“With both my personal and professional experience, people in recovery are some of the best neighbors you could possibly have.”

Reinhart knows his clients there will work to remain sober and are held accountable. Part of their ability to remain sober is also the location of the house itself.

“Easy access to recovery meetings, which are held very close to the house,” Reinhart said, also mentioning the close proximity the house is to shopping, restaurants and the bus stop. “It really is an ideal location.”

Some, however, are worried that the voluntary facility is a little too close to a church, a school and bar.

Thursday, the full La Crosse city council votes on whether to approve the sober-living facility – the first facility of its kind in La Crosse. One that’s completely voluntary and run by the for-profit company. Reinhart expects to have no lack of clients. The house would hold 16 young men and a couple staff members.