Cuomo spikes drug rehab center

Rosier, Linda

Assemblyman Steve Cymbrowitz was pleased with the state ruling, which came after he and others lobbied the Cuomo administration.

A proposed drug rehab center in Sheepshead Bay has gone up in smoke.

The Cuomo administration denied a plan by First Steps to Recovery to move into the ground floor of a residential apartment building at 2632 E. 21st St., citing “sufficient” drug treatment opportunities “in the greater community.”

Last week’s decision follows strong opposition from a local pol and residents who argued that a building filled with young families was a bad spot for the outpatient drug center.

“The location was completely unacceptable,” said Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz (D-Sheepshead Bay), who led the opposition.

Cymbrowitz had argued that drug addicts waiting for their appointments would turn the building’s entrance into a seedy hangout.

“Children play in front of that building,” he said.

The narrow street would have also created a parking nightmare, he added.

The state’s rejection comes after the city Health Department actually granted a preliminary approval to the center’s owners to move from the current location at 2990 Brighton 12th St.

But Cymbrowitz charged that city officials never even checked out the proposed new site, which was previously home to a dermatologist and dentist.

“If the city did their homework they too would not have approved the site,” he said.

Health Department spokeswoman Jean Weinberg said the city makes recommendations to the state — and the city’s site visit in August “provided observations to (the state) so they could make their final decision.”

Regardless of who pulled the plug, one resident of the block was “delighted.”

“There was no need for it here,” said Daniel Colon, 68. “It didn’t belong in a residential area. I’ve seen patients hanging out in front of these establishments, disrupting the neighborhood and causing havoc.”

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