The Hart Women's Recovery House

About this Recovery House

The Hart is a women's recovery residence in Delray Beach, Florida, in Palm Beach County. It is one of two women's houses run by RECO Institute, which provides transitional sober housing for people in early recovery across a group of residences in the city.

A Women's Sober House Designed as a Retreat

The operator describes the house as a restful setting with modern, comfortable furnishings, and the features it lists point the same direction: a spacious backyard, a screened-in back porch and a generously sized loft. In South Florida a screened porch is usable most of the year, and a house with more than one place to sit alone gives residents somewhere to go that is not a bedroom. Small architectural facts like that decide whether a household of women in early sobriety feels crowded by August.

Cooking and Shared Life in This Recovery Home

An oversized, chef-inspired kitchen anchors the common space. Kitchens are where recovery housing either works or does not. Residents cook, eat and argue in them, chores get negotiated there, and someone who has not fed herself properly in two years relearns how in that room. A house built around a large kitchen is a house that expects people to be in it together.

Recovery Housing in Delray Beach and Palm Beach County

The exact address is not published and placement runs through the operator. Delray Beach sits on the Atlantic coast between Boynton Beach and Boca Raton, with West Palm Beach, the county seat, about twenty miles north. The city has one of the densest recovery communities in the country, with meetings through the day and shops and restaurants close to the residences. Interstate 95, US Highway 1, Tri-Rail and Palm Tran all serve the city, so a resident can reach work and appointments across the county without a car.

Certification of Recovery Residences in Florida

Florida certifies recovery residences voluntarily through the Florida Association of Recovery Residences, the only credentialing entity the state's Department of Children and Families has approved for residences. Certification requires written disclosure of fees and rules before move-in, a documented relapse and discharge policy, an ethics code and complaint review from outside the house. Confirm the current status of this residence with the operator.