DITTMER, Mo. (RNS) A quiet street and a quaint three-bedroom home drew Mike Stenzhorn and his family to Dittmer 15 years ago. He and his two children loved the neighborhood in the small community 40 miles southwest of St. Louis.
They didn’t put much thought to the Roman Catholic facility across the street — a small complex of buildings called the Vianney Renewal Center.
Stenzhorn knew the center had something to do with helping struggling priests. In any case, it seemed harmless, and the neighborhood was nice.
“If you had to live somewhere in the Midwest, and you wanted quiet, this is the place,” Stenzhorn, 62, said one recent afternoon.
But in the years that would follow, the full truth about the Vianney Renewal Center would come to light.
The facility, operated by a Roman Catholic order called the Servants of the Paraclete, cares for religious men who suffer from a variety of illnesses, including alcoholism and depression. The center also treats sexually abusive priests.
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“I mean you got … pedophiles across the street. Who is going to buy the house? A family with kids?” Stenzhorn said.
In fact, Stenzhorn said he hadn’t even tried listing his house. He doubts he could even fetch market rate.
So in April he did what his neighbors did years ago. He approached the Paracletes about the possibility of purchasing his trilevel home, which now boasts a backyard pool.
He was presented with an offer of $175,000. Stenzhorn thinks that price is unfair, especially when compared with his neighbors whose homes, Stenzhorn said, were bought for much more.
County records of such sales are unavailable. Back in 1999, Stenzhorn paid $154,000 for his house. Several years ago, he hired an appraiser who valued the home at $200,000. But based on what his former neighbors said they were able to negotiate, Stenzhorn had hoped for an offer in the $325,000 range.
If “your neighbors got all that money for a house, wouldn’t you feel left out?” Stenzhorn said. “I wasn’t looking for a million dollars. I was looking for what my neighbor got next door.”
