West Hollywood cabin that hosts recovery meetings facing possible eviction

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. (KABC) -- An old cabin sits at the corner of Robertson and Melrose in West Hollywood.

For decades the small steps at the entrance have led many to a place of refuge.

"Recovery meetings, 12-step meetings, from Alcoholics Anonymous and narcotics anonymous, over-eaters anonymous," said West Hollywood Councilman John Duran.

The cabin has been there for about a century but it seems that for several decades, in some ways it went largely unnoticed.

The city of Beverly Hills owns the land and said that while conducting an inventory, it found the primary tenant - Lions Club of West Hollywood - had no lease for more than 30 years, according to Beverly Hills public information officer Keith Sterling.

Beverly Hills notified the Lions Club it must vacate and quote "remove the building" by March 31, 2020.

"In addition, a contractor to be hired to walk the building found the building to be in poor condition, with a lot of issues that needed to be addressed," Sterling said.

The Lions Club president told us 24 groups meet there once a week, and that the club is willing to make the necessary repairs.

Councilman John Duran has attended meetings there for 23 years. "I've watched miracles happen in people's lives. People who come in broken, who can't stop drinking, who can't stop using crystal methamphetamine, and I've watched them get their lives back together," said Duran.

More than 9,000 people signed a petition to save the building. The two cities said they are working together to try find a solution.

"We have offered specifically to the Lions Club, and the organizations that use that facility to relocate their meetings to sites in Beverly Hills. We would never abandon them or their needs," Sterling said.

"The people who come here attend regularly. To suddenly disband those relationships, and those people who keep one another sober, would be really a terrible scenario," said Duran.