Malibu Dude Ranch applies to become 'wellness center'

By Anya Tikka
WESTFALL — Malibu Dude Ranch, a resort on Milford’s Foster Hill Road known for hosting rodeos, has applied to become a "wellness center."
Westfall Township's public hearing notice described the proposed facility as being "for the provision of therapy and treatment for various physical and mental health conditions." The hearing will be at the Westfall Township Building at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 5.
The applicant is Malibu Land Holdings, LLC. Westfall secretary Jodi Hulse said plans have already gone before the planning board.
“They recommended it to the supervisors, and we’ve had meetings about it,” she said.
According to the June 5 meeting minutes, an informal discussion on the subject was held with township Solicitor Robert Bernathy and Malibu Dude Ranch representatives Tom Shepstone, Davis Chant, and Allan "Doc" Detweiler and Phyllis Detweiller, the resort's owners.
The Detweillers were advised to apply for a conditional use permit.
The Malibu Dude Ranch website explains that Dr. Detweiller was personally helped as a youngster by the ranch after he was twice kicked out of kindergarten. His visits to the ranch defined his future education and profession, and he bought the place once it became available, the website continues. He loves horses and the Pocono Mountains and woods, and Malibu Dude Ranch is “the oldest authentic working dude ranch east of the Mississippi River.”
Dr. Detweiller did not return phone calls by press time.
The minutes explain that the proposed use does not fit the definition of a treatment center, which local zoning calls “a use other than a prison or hospital providing housing for three or more unrelated persons who need specialized housing and treatment.”
The proposed use is also not for criminal rehabilitation, in the manner of a half-way house, or for currently addicted people that continue to use illegal drugs, then minutes say. It will not treat mental illness or other behavior that causes a person to pose a threat to the physical safety of others.
Because the proposed new use at Malibu Dude Ranch is not defined in the township zoning districts, it will be characterized as a conditional use, according to the minutes.