THOUSAND OAKS : Neighbors Petition to Evict Youth Home

Neighbors of a group home for youth offenders in Thousand Oaks submitted petitions Tuesday asking the City Council to remove the facility.

Opponents say the home on Berkshire Drive has been a problem since it opened in August, and residents began noticing an increase in crime.

The petitions have more than 230 signatures gathered from residents who want the facility, located in a neighborhood of single-family homes, closed.

Lee Bleiberg, a spokesman for a group of residents who oppose the home, said his teen-age daughters have been accosted by residents of the JMS Group Home.

“We are being held hostage by this facility,” he told the council.

City Atty. Mark G. Sellers said the facility is regulated by the state Department of Social Services, and city officials are powerless to shut it down.

However, City Council members have asked a committee to investigate what it can do about the home and called for state legislation that would allow cities to regulate such homes.

Officials with the social services department launched an investigation into the JMS Group Home after a teen-age resident stabbed another resident in the arm March 1.

The home is licensed to house up to six youths who are emotionally disturbed or who are juvenile offenders.