Three years ago a clubhouse, Granite Pathways, opened in Manchester, N.H. to help people struggling with mental illnesses deal with the isolation, housing, and work issues that come with the territory, and all this without government funds. Unfortunately, a few families didn’t want such a facility in their beautiful, upscale neighborhood, feeling members would be better served in the poorer section of town. (Sound familiar?) After the clubhouse received a variance from the city’s zoning board allowing it to operate, four families sued the city, and the whole brouhaha went to the state’s Superior Court. When the judge at Superior Court ruled that GP didn’t even need a variance to begin with, these same families next appealed to the state’s Supreme Court who just sent the whole mess back to the zoning board to vote on the tangential issue of the need for a variance. Whatever they decide, it can be appealed back to the Superior Court so this can go round and round. Fortunately, GP is not spending its money. (It doesn’t have any to spare.) It is the city being sued, but I hope these families are spending big bucks on lawyers’ fees, deleting their individual accounts. You’d think they have better things to do. Meanwhile GP continues to operate. (www.granitepathways.org )
They Just Don’t Like Us
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Waywardweed's Blog 
Glad the club house is still up and going. Wonder what a few well placed letters to the editor would do to publicize the issue? Would those four families offer assistance to help reestablish a club house elsewhere? I think not, shame on them, why shun their fellow beings?
We’ve had some letters to the editor in print but the publisher of the local newspaper doesn’t like us. He lives in the neighborhood. He’s not one of the four families, but is supportive of them.
What about the local news station? Have they been covering the story? Are they at all empathetic? I just don’t understand what’s wrong with people.
Nothing on tv or radio that I know of, but another newspaper, in a city about 25-miles north of here, did a nice article. And there are people in the neighborhood that didn’t object and are supportive. We’ll just have to let the legal drama play out in court.
Unreal and all too familiar 😦
Yeah, but I don’t think they’ll be able to throw us out. I’ll keep everyone posted.
People can be so narrow-minded… What you write about is just plain childish, I can hardly imagine those families actually having that much of a problem with the club.
I hope they won’t be able to throw you out!
I found out a few days ago that the lawyer for the plantiffs filed an appeal with the NH Supreme Court. “It’s a delaying tactic” I was told. According to this person (on the board of directors), the issue no longer concerns us but the church allowing us to use their space. The question is, can churches let other organizations use their space if it falls within the mission of a church? This actually has wide ramifications since it affects all churches. As for us (Granite Pathways), we have a variance so we are apparently okay whatever they decide.