A plan to turn a former NFL player's Gretna mansion into an adolescent drug treatment center remains up in the air.

After an hour of testimony Tuesday night from supporters and opponents of the plan to transform the former Rod Kush mansion, the Gretna Planning Commission voted to table action until its July 28 meeting.

Most of the opponents, who live in an adjacent subdivision, raised questions of public safety and potential loss of property values, said Gretna City Attorney John K. Green. Supporters spoke of the need for residential drug and alcohol counseling for teens, he added.

Regardless of what the commission decides, the final decision on the project will be made by the Gretna City Council. But if the commission withholds support, it would deeply hurt the project's chances with the council.

Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Omaha wants to remodel the nearly 15,000-square-foot home into a 16-bed residential treatment center called Journeys. The $2.3 million mansion would replace the 12-bed center the group operates in Bellevue.

Kush is a former defensive player with the Buffalo Bills and University of Nebraska at Omaha football teams who went on to open a chain of furniture outlets in Lincoln, Omaha and other cities.

In recent years, he ran into financial difficulties, closed most of his stores and decided to sell the mansion.

Land developer Frank Krejci of Elkhorn bought the home and its 35 acres for $1.625 million late last year. He has since leased 25 acres and the home to Catholic Charities for a minimal fee.

To renovate and run the treatment center, Catholic Charities plans to work with two other nonprofit groups: the Child Saving Institute and Omaha Home for Boys.

The groups need to raise about $800,000 to renovate the mansion into a group home. They recently received $435,000 in state and federal funding for the project from District 6 Regional Health Care of Douglas County, said Jean Sassatelli, senior director of behavioral health services for Catholic Charities.

They will need to raise the rest of the money privately, Sassatelli said. Earlier this year, the Nebraska Legislature declined to provide funding from a pool of federal stimulus funds.

Some of the program's children are ordered into treatment by judges while others are placed by families. But the treatment is voluntary and the center is not locked down.

As for those who oppose having a teen drug rehab center in their neighborhood, Sassatelli said her group has run the program for six years at two locations in Omaha. While some young clients have walked away, there have been no "critical incidents," she said.

The center employs a staff of 24. It has a waiting list of seven to 15 youths at any time, she said.

Clients and their families pay for services if they are able or qualify through insurance or Medicaid. Fees are waived in some cases, Sassatelli said.

Reach Joe Duggan at 473-7239 or jduggan@journalstar.com.