Community coalition wants supervised drug-use site out of St-Henri

On Oct 23, 2023

A coalition of parents, residents and business owners in St-Henri is calling on the provincial government and public health to block the opening of a supervised drug-use site near an elementary school, which is expected to enter into service in less than a month.

The group argues that public health is making a decision “without having in hand the evidence on the consequences of installing such a site in this environment,” referencing a study unveiled Monday morning that evaluated the potential impact of the site on nearby residents, including children. It wants the Quebec government to provide emergency funding for Maison Benoit Labre to relocate as soon as possible, and for a plan to help the centre’s clientele with the transition.

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Parents say they were blindsided by the information that the building under construction at the intersection of Greene and Atwater Aves. — between the Atwater Market and the McDonald’s on Notre-Dame — is to become a shelter for unhoused people that includes a supervised drug use component. The site is a stone’s throw from Victor-Rousselot Park, where children from the elementary school of the same name spend their recess and lunch breaks. Parents say they only became aware of the project in August, once their children were already enrolled in school.

“(Social Services) Minister Lionel Carmant recently said the centre couldn’t open its doors without social acceptability,” said Jean-François Gauvin, a parent with a young child at the school. “We’re here to loudly state that parents of Victor-Rousselot, residents and businesses don’t want this project. … This is a project that doesn’t have its place in this specific area.”

In response to the coalition’s demands, Carmant’s office reiterated Monday the importance of supervised inhalation centres for harm reduction.

“This is an approach that our government believes in as the opioid crisis hits harder and harder in Quebec,” spokesperson Lambert Drainville wrote in an email. “We are sensitive to the fears and questions of citizens living in the neighbourhood. Let us also remember that the project received the support of local elected officials, community organizations and parents in the neighbourhood.”

He added that public health has received a request for approval for a supervised inhalation centre “and the situation is still being analyzed.”

This story will be updated.