City council approves drug consumption and treatment site in downtown Windsor
CBC
Windsor City Council has narrowly approved the location of a drug consumption and treatment site — a space that health officials and advocates have been pushing for in the past few years as the region struggles with an opioid crisis.
At an hours-long council meeting on Monday, councillors voted 6-5 in favour of setting up the consumption and treatment site at the proposed location of 628 Goyeau St.
Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens was among those voting against the plan, citing concerns about the location's impact on businesses.
Dilkens, who was not present for the entirety of the debate, said he'd like to see the site operate at the Water World building, where the Housing, Homelessness and Health Hub is located.
The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit (WECHU) can now submit an application to the provincial and federal governments.
The discussion during Monday's council meeting kicked off with a presentation from WECHU and then councillors heard from more than a dozen delegates, ranging from business owners close to the site to mental health and addictions professionals.
Mandeep Johar, who owns the property beside the site, said she understands this space may be necessary for people but doesn't want it beside her building.
"With this being open next door to the building it's going to affect the businesses that are currently there, our tenants and if the tenants leave it's going to affect us because this is our retirement savings that we have been working very hard towards," Johar said.
General manager Daniela Maceroni for Quality Inn & Suites, located at 675 Goyeau St., made similar statements.
She claimed that the site will "tarnish our reputation, lower our scores and impact the hotel's viability and existence."
Maceroni added that they often find needles and garbage around the area, as well as have people experiencing homelessness frequently enter the lobby of their hotel.
But health expert delegates emphasized that the site would be monitored and have security measures in place, adding that this sort of location would likely put a stop to the needles and unwanted entrances.
As well, Lindsey Sodtke, who oversees a consumption and treatment site in Guelph, said their space hasn't disrupted nearby businesses.
The health unit began collecting information for a possible site in 2018.
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