Shalom House upbeat for Christmas

Owner and manager Peter Lyndon-James, who is on call 24/7 for addicts and their families, said the men’s rehabilitation facilities were growing fast.

“We’ve got 60 men at nine properties, soon to be 11,” he said.

“We are getting bigger and bigger by the month.”

The City of Swan took legal action earlier this year after Shalom House began operating without the required planning approval.

It claimed that Shalom House had the wrong classification to be operating in the Swan Valley and would need to seek an amendment to the City’s Local Planning Scheme to allow it to be approved.

Shalom House appealed this decision to the State Administrative Tribunal (SAT) and sought to have the building reclassified.

SAT found that Shalom House did not fit the classification the City or Shalom House was seeking, and instead SAT asked the City to consider re-classifying the property altogether.

However, the City did not agree with SAT’s decision, as it believed the classification SAT suggested was ambiguous and could jeopardise the City’s Local Planning Scheme.

The City is now appealing SAT’s decision in the Supreme Court, which will be heard on January 27.

“We are still 100 per cent self-|funded,” Mr Lyndon-James said.

“We are not wanting anything from anyone other than be allowed to continue to help people break free from addiction and other life-controlling issues.”