ESCONDIDO - Local women recovering from drug and alcohol addiction will soon have an easier time getting back on their feet thanks to Serenity Village, a special apartment complex opening this month in Escondido that will give recovering addicts an inexpensive and drug-free place to begin building a new life.

The $3.5 million complex, which has been planned for more than six years and under construction since July 2006, will house 48 women who have recently completed recovery programs at North County Serenity House, the only substance-abuse facility in the county geared for women.

A grand opening celebration will take place from 10 a.m. to noon today at the complex, 619 E. Second Ave.

"This has been a long time coming," said Kathy Valenzuela, executive director of Serenity House. "One of the biggest hurdles for these women is finding a clean, safe and affordable place to stay when they complete the program. It's their last step in returning to self-sufficiency."

Finding affordable housing is especially difficult in San Diego County, said Valenzuela. And it is crucial for recovering addicts to pay their own rent, so that they are not reliant on family members, husbands or boyfriends, she said.

"This gives them a place where their name is on the lease, instead of staying on a couch," said Valenzuela.

Thanks to city, state and federal subsidies, women in Serenity Village will pay only 30 percent of their salary in monthly rent, and one-third of their rent money will be placed in a savings account so they can afford permanent housing when they leave. The complex is intended as a temporary solution, so the maximum stay will be one year, said Valenzuela.

Among the first residents of Serenity Village will be Corrina Garcia and Cathlean Garnett.

"The best thing about this is that I don't have to go back home (to Imperial Valley)," said Garcia, a 33-year-old who said she is recovering from methamphetamine addiction. "I can stay in Escondido and get more support. I have no idea where I'd go without this place, so it has meant a lot less stress for me."

Garnett, 55, said she was homeless before she began the recovery program at Serenity House.

"Having a nice place to stay will help me focus on my past," said Garnett. "And it will be great to live with people who have walked in my shoes."

Valenzuela said housing 48 recovering addicts together in Serenity Village will create a high level of camaraderie. The complex features eight, three-bedroom apartments, and each of the 24 bedrooms will be shared by a pair of women.

"They'll be around other women who have shared the same experiences and same hurdles," said Valenzuela.

Mayor Lori Holt Pfeiler, a longtime supporter of the programs at Serenity House, said she sees camaraderie as the key benefit provided by the new apartments.

"This will put some peer pressure and camaraderie into the equation so they can all be successful together," said Pfeiler.

In 2002, the City Council helped Serenity House buy four boarded-up houses on Second Avenue between Fig and Grape streets to make way for Serenity Village. That was followed by lots of fundraising, and, eventually, construction, said Valenzuela.

Serenity House officials said they expect the new complex to help increase the recovery rate of women addicts in their programs, said Janelle Devera, development director for Serenity House. The rate, which now fluctuates between 65 percent and 75 percent, could jump above 90 percent, she said.

Serenity House, established in 1966 by six Poway women, moved to Escondido in 1972. The nonprofit now operates four residential recovery facilities for women and two facilities geared for the children of female addicts, all in Escondido.

For details, visit http://ncsh.org.

- Contact staff writer David Garrick at (760) 740-5468 or dgarrick@nctimes.com.