Police shut down unlicensed group home in unincorporated Stone Mountain

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Neighbors in a Gwinnett County community told Channel 2 Action News an illegal group home that popped up in their neighborhood is raising safety concerns as the county and a property management company work to resolve the situation because of months of complaints.

On Sunday, neighbor Tamayra Ginyard says she saw a man with a butcher knife walking around in front of her home in unincorporated Stone Mountain and arguing with someone.

He is one of up to 12 people with mental health issues living inside of an unauthorized and illegal group home next door, she says. Gwinnett Police showed up and detained the man and left without making arrests, police said.

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“I felt threatened seeing a man outside with a butcher knife,” Ginyard told Channel 2 Gwinnett County Bureau Chief Matt Johnson.

It wasn’t the first time Gwinnett Police showed up to the address on DeKalb Way.

In fact, police say they’ve responded to the address of the group home seven times since March 1.

During one incident, Ginyard said a neighbor called police to say someone from the group home was in their backyard performing lewd acts.

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“There’s too many children playing around here and young people walking, getting off a school bus,” said Ginyard.

Last month Gwinnett County Code Enforcement fined and cited the tenant who’s renting the home for operating the group home without proper zoning permits.

Officials told Channel 2 Action News they are working with the property owner Progress Residential to terminate the lease of the tenant because of a lease violation.

Even beyond safety for neighbors – Ginyard says she worries about the safety of the people inside – including the man detained Sunday.

“If he would have lunged at those officers, we would be talking about something else right now,” she said.

Gwinnett County is working to place the people inside in a different environment. Ginyard says she has been complaining since November and is waiting for a resolution before someone is hurt.

“I want them to be in a safe and secure place,” she said.

In a statement, Progress Residential said, “The safety and security of the communities we serve are always our top priority and upon learning of these complaints, we began working closely with local authorities including Gwinnett County Code Enforcement to appropriately address all violations. As a result of this collaboration, we expect the property to be vacated by March 18.”

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