Detroit’s Psychedelic Healing Shack up for sale as owner clashes with city
Dr. Bob, the owner of the wellness center, says the city has relentlessly harassed him
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The owner of the Psychedelic Healing Shack, a spiritual and wellness center that was raided by Detroit police last year, has put his Woodward Avenue property up for sale.
Robert Pizzimenti, known to many as Dr. Bob, says the move is not because he wants to leave but in protest of what he describes as relentless harassment by the city.
He says he’s asking $600,000 for the property, even though it’s valued at closer to $350,000. He insists he’s not eager to sell but feels forced to after what he describes as years of fines, red tape, and aggressive enforcement tactics by the city.
“It’s kind of a protest,” Pizzimenti tells Metro Times. “I don’t want to sell, but the city is giving me a hard time.”
When a Metro Times reporter visited the building on Monday, a handmade sign was placed in the front yard reading “FOR SALE” with a frowning face scrawled on it.
The city forced Pizzimenti to close the building in September, when police raided the site with guns drawn and confiscated psilocybin mushrooms and marijuana. Pizzimenti says the mushrooms were used for religious and healing purposes under the protections of Sugarleaf Church, a spiritual group that considers entheogens sacred.
In 2021, Detroit voters decriminalized so-called “magic mushrooms” and other plants. The city says the new decriminalization law doesn’t mean the plants and substances can be sold.
About six weeks ago, after months of back and forth with the city, Pizzimenti says he reluctantly signed a consent agreement, which requires him to admit to illegal activity, waive his right to sue the city, and submit to random inspections.
But instead of easing the situation, Pizzimenti says the city’s Buildings, Safety Engineering and Environmental Department (BSEED) red-tagged the building again, citing additional violations.
“They’re fining me, bullying me. They aren’t even following the law,” Pizzimenti insists. “I tell them I’m a healing center. They don’t like that. They want me to be more specific.”
In a statement to Metro Times, Detroit Corporation Counsel Conrad Mallett Jr. defended the city’s actions, saying the agreement was designed to help Pizzimenti legally reopen.
“The purpose of the consent agreement was to provide a structure and timeline for Mr. Pizzimenti to take actions that would allow for the reopening of his business,” Mallett said. “Those requirements include obtaining proper permitting, licensing and certificate of occupancy, as well as paying overdue BSEED fees. To date, he has not completed any of these. As part of the consent agreement he acknowledged that his marijuana and psilocybin sales were, in fact, illegal.”
Despite repeated clashes with the city, Pizzimenti says he’s not trying to cause trouble.
“I’ve been in the healing arts for 40 years,” he says. “Nature is the perfect science. None of us is going to truly heal until we align with nature and take care of her like we’re supposed to.”
Located at 18700 Woodward Ave. on a high-traffic stretch just south of Ferndale, the Healing Shack was known for its eclectic spiritual offerings, wellness services, and community drum circles.
Pizzimenti says he’s poured more than $300,000 in repairs and upgrades to the property, including a pond and an added room. While he’s received offers as low as $200,000, he says he wants at least $600,000.
“I don’t really want to sell,” Pizzimenti says. “But at $600,000, I would.”
If he sells, Pizzimenti is considering relocating the healing center a few blocks away, where he has a home that is surrounded by 13 empty lots. He says the land could be used for farming, education, and self-sufficiency.
If the city cared more about farming and self-sustainability, he says, fewer residents would be unemployed and unhoused.
“We could feed all the people with the amount of vacant lots,” Pizzimenti says. “We could employ people. We could educate people.”
Pizzimenti says he moved to Detroit for the freedom it affords and still holds hope for the city.
“I’m grateful. I’m not mad at the city,” he says. “But I try to have reasonable conversations from the heart, and I just don’t get it.”
