VIRGINIA BEACH
A home for troubled youths will continue to operate in the Lynnhaven area.
The City Council agreed Tuesday to renew a one-year lease for the Tidewater Regional Group Home Commission, which operates a transitional living program off Lynnhaven Parkway. The lease will be reviewed annually for the next four years, and includes an option to renew the agreement for one year following each review.
The city, which rents the property for $1 a month, may terminate the agreement at any time. The transitional living program serves mainly 17- to 20-year-old males released from the state's juvenile correctional centers.
Last year, four of the home's residents used a gun to rob two neighborhood youths. The incident raised community anxieties about security and led to a directive from council members that the home relocate by mid-February.
City leaders decided to give the home a second chance after additional safety measures were put in place, including more stringent screenings of juveniles involved with felony crimes. The home already does not accept those convicted of murder, manslaughter, sexual offenses or arson.
Susan E. White, (757) 222-5114, susan.white@pilotonline.com
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