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San Gabriel City Shuts down Illegal Maternity Home
Arcadia Weekly Mar 18, 2011
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More Homes Could be Operating Illegally in Temple City, Arcadia and Rosemead
On March 8, the Neighborhood Improvement Services Division (NIS), the Building Division, and the San Gabriel Police Department investigated an illegal maternity house operating in five (5) attached townhouse units in south San Gabriel.
Beacon Media spoke with NIS Officer Jorge Arellano Friday afternoon who said this is the second time this particular building owner has been cited. His office was allerted to the problem by a concerned citizen.
According to NIS Officer Jorge Arellano, young women travel from areas such as Taiwan on “vacation” visas and are illegally housed in situations like this while they go through pregnancy and birth. The average cost per person is between $2500 and $3500 to the tyounf mothers. The payments are usually made via a broker in Taiwan who makes the arrangements in the US.
After the mother has the child, which is now a US Citizen by birth, she usually goes back to Taiwan and when the child comes of age, he or she can legally return to the United States as a citizen.
The units were used to temporarily house new mothers and their newborn babies. During the investigation, the city found seven (7) newborn babies being cared for in the kitchen area of one of the illegally converted units. City staff was able to verify a total of 17 rooms used to house new mothers.
The operator of the illegal maternity house removed separation walls which allowed the occupants of the townhouses to travel freely from unit to unit. The operator also added additional bedrooms and converted closets into bathrooms. The San Gabriel Police Department and the Community Development Department worked together to identify the operators and end the operation permanently. It is a violation of the City’s Zoning Ordinance to operate a maternity house in a residential zone and the facility has now been closed. To date, the property manager has paid the citations and secured all required building permits to restore the property to its original condition.
As city staff approached the units it became clear to the operators of the facility that there was trouble ahead for the maternity home. When NIS agents entered the dwellins, they found a few babies left unattended as some people attempted to vacate the area.
NIS Officer Jorge Arellano said that the owner who was cited two years earlier for a similar violation will only receive an administartive fine from the city. Had the police been involved, the charges could have been more serious.
According to NIS Officer Jorge Arellano, this is a common problem in the local area including Temple City, Arcadia, Rosemead and Rowland Heights. 17 mothers and babies were removed safely from this illegal conversion and have been safely placed elsewhere.
County agencies were contacted and evaluated the care and condition of the newborns on March 9, 2011. If you have information about any other maternity homes in the City of San Gabriel or elsewhere, please report it to NIS Officer Jorge Arellano at 626.308.2806, ext 4637 or at jarellano@sgch.org
