By Tim Pallesen
A man who signed up for the swank Ocean Drive drug and alcohol recovery program just as Delray Beach erupted against it has sued the Caron Foundation.
Scott Dickenson claims he arrived from Atlanta on Dec. 18 expecting the “luxurious beachside setting” with amenities such as the house chef, yoga, paddle boarding and quiet walks on the beach that Caron advertised on its website.
Instead, Dickenson says he was housed in a west Delray Beach apartment house after paying more than $100,000 for his eight-week Ocean Drive stay.
The lawsuit, filed in Palm Beach County Circuit Court by Delray Beach attorney Jason Dollard, accuses Caron of fraud and false advertising. “A contract was in place and Caron just didn’t live up to what they promised to do,” Dollard said.
Caron attorney Jim Green said Dickenson got what he paid for. “Caron denies that it breached any contract or mislead plaintiff in any way,” Green said. “We will defend against these allegations vigorously.”
Dickenson was unaware when he signed the contract that coastal Delray Beach residents had just begun to object to Caron’s plan to house Ocean Drive patients in two sober houses near the ocean, Dollard said.
Caron’s house at 740 N. Ocean was closed for renovation during his eight-week stay. The city refused to allow the second house at 1232 Seaspray Ave. to open.
Caron sued the city in February. After Dickenson returned to Atlanta, the City Council settled the lawsuit and both sober houses were allowed to open.
Comments
The Caron Foundation had a promotional video for "Ocean Drive" on their website long before the rehab was granted reasonable accommodations from the city for the two upscale sober houses. The video was removed after the neighborhood began to protest, but obviously, Caron continued to hard sell "Ocean Drive" to wealthy clients. Apparently, Caron did not feel it was necessary to disclose the escalation of the issue (to the point of a lawsuit with the city of Delray Beach) to non-locals who were unaware of the "rehab by the sea" turmoil.