Agencies struggle to find safe injection landlords
Wesley Urban Ministries, AIDS Network, Shelter Health Network scramble as opioid crisis kills and election looms
The leader of a prominent Hamilton social services agency is blaming the “NIMBYism” of its landlord for rejecting a plan for a supervised injection site.
Meanwhile, a doctor who leads a network of health and shelter agencies says if they can’t line up a place soon, their plan for a temporary overdose prevention service stands a tough chance of materializing.
The upcoming Ontario election campaign — which typically slows the wheels of bureaucracy — adds to the urgency of organizing the life-saving facilities amid an ongoing overdose crisis.
“We have a few more days left to find a place or Hamilton will end up with no temporary overdose prevention site until the election is over,” Dr. Jill Wiwcharuk, of the Shelter Health Network, said Monday.
The Shelter Health Network, Wesley Urban Ministries and the AIDS Network have all run up against brick walls trying to find locations for facilities to help stem the tide of misery in Hamilton.
Daljit Garry, executive director of Wesley Urban Ministries, revealed Monday the social service agency’s landlord rejected its proposal for a permanent supervised injection site in January.
The idea was to secure space at 195 Ferguson Ave. N. to allow clients to inject illegal drugs such as heroin and crystal meth in a supervised, clean setting with trained staff.
But Wesley Community Homes, which is a distinct organization with its own board of directors despite the similar name, said no.
“In a nutshell, I would refer to it as NIMBYism,” Garry said, using the acronym for “not in my backyard.”
The goal was to provide injection site clients with “wraparound” services with existing health care, meal and housing services at 195 Ferguson.
The landlord-social housing provider operates a 115-unit complex for low-income residents with complex problems, including disabilities, mental illness and addictions.
“I was completely blindsided that it would not be permitted,” Garry said.
Wesley Community Homes’ general manager didn’t respond to requests for comment Monday.
Last week, the AIDS Network noted its landlord, Effort Trust, at 140 King St. E. had also rejected its proposal for a permanent safe injection site, despite the agency already operating a needle exchange program there.
A day earlier, Wiwcharuk said municipal zoning and building permit hurdles had thrown a wrench in her agency and partners’ proposal for a six-month overdose prevention trailer in a downtown municipal parking lot.
On Monday, she made another plea for a tweaked plan — a landlord to lease an area storefront to house the temporary service. “It needs to have a bathroom. It needs to have a sink.”
The urgency to open a supervised injection site in the city comes as paramedics and hospital emergency rooms bear the brunt of overdose deaths on the front lines of the crisis.
The city experienced 75 drug-related fatalities from January to October last year, a jump of more than 80 per cent over the same period in 2016.
Advocates of supervised injection sites say they help increase safety in their vicinities despite the public’s perception they’re magnets for crime and filth.
Staff are trained to administer the anti-overdose drug naloxone, and offer mental health crisis management and other health services. The sites also help reduce the spread of HIV and hepatitis C, by providing clean needles.
Last year, city council gave a ringing endorsement for a permanent safe injection site downtown, between Barton Street, Queen Street, Ferguson Avenue and Main Street.
Public health is supporting the initiative, but it’s up to agencies to seek upper-level government approvals and operate the services.
A federal exemption under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act is needed to establish a permanent supervised injection site. The province provides the funding.
There are several supervised injection sites in cities across Canada, including Victoria, Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Ottawa.
Nearby London, Ont., opened a temporary overdose prevention service in February and is pursuing two permanent supervised injection sites, after one would-be landlord backed out on the local health unit.
In Hamilton, Wesley Urban Ministries is now considering a mobile version of the project to travel to different parts of Hamilton, an idea the city has supported as well, Garry noted.
“We’re basically starting from scratch.”
But it’s crucial to line up provincial funding now, said Wiwcharuk, noting the campaign for the June 7 election looms. “If we can find a place in the next couple of days, we have guaranteed funding for six months.”
After that, it’s anyone’s guess as to what will happen, she said.
PC Leader Rob Ford has said he’s “dead against” supervised injection sites, casting a cloud of doubt over their future should his party form the next government.
“Who knows what will happen with that funding then,” Wiwcharuk said.