Alternative to supervised consumption site is ‘bus shelter, in the bathroom at Tim Hortons’: premier

Premier Wab Kinew defended his government’s plan to open a supervised consumption site in downtown Winnipeg, saying a public health emergency demands it and doing nothing is not an option.

“The alternative to a supervised consumption site is an unsupervised consumption site on Main Street — in the bus shelter, in the bathroom at Tim Hortons,” Kinew said Wednesday, a day after his government’s throne speech announced the facility would open in January.

“I think we all agree we’ve got to do better than what we’re seeing right now,” said Kinew, who wouldn’t identify the site’s exact location but noted it is west of Main Street and not near any schools. In the coming weeks, that will be spelled out along with plans for community consultations required as part of the federal application process, the premier said.

The province previously proposed a supervised consumption site at 200 Disraeli Fwy. It cancelled that plan after some residents opposed the location, arguing it was too close to schools and child-care facilities.

“We’ve been flexible, we’ve been listening,” Kinew said. “We’ve changed the location based on community feedback. I think that’s an act of good faith.”

Mayor Scott Gillingham said it was important to hear from community members.

“There’s a process the province has to follow. I think public consultation has been shown (to be) very important in the last attempt that they made. Public consultation would be very, very important here … to hear from residents and business owners as to their thoughts related to the potential impact on the area around (the site),” Gillingham said.

Longtime Point Douglas resident Katherine Bitney fought against the last proposed site, arguing it was too close to a school. She is happy to hear the new space will be farther away, but said she was not part of any consultations.

After the recent news that the previously proposed building on Disraeli will be used as a 72-hour detention facility for people experiencing drug psychosis, she’s left wondering why so many spaces for people struggling with addiction are being “plunked in Point Douglas.”

“We’re beginning to feel like a drug rehab dumping ground around here,” she said.

“We’re beginning to feel like a drug rehab dumping ground around here.”

Amy Robinson of the Point Douglas Residents Committee said the group was not consulted on the new location. She said the committee has requested information from the federal government on its “urgent public health need” exemption but have not received a response.

“Residents deserve clarity and the ability to have meaningful consultation,” she said in a text.

During question period Wednesday, Tory leader Obby Khan called out Kinew for not consulting with community members.

“Will the premier stand up and tell Manitobans today why he is circumventing Manitobans’ right to come out and have their voices heard when it comes to a drug consumption site in their backyard,” asked Khan.

The premier dodged the question, saying the Progressive Conservatives are the only ones who’ve circumvented Manitobans’ rights, with former leader Heather Stefanson and two members of her cabinet breaching ethics rules, referring to their attempt to push through approval of a controversial sand mine in the dying days of their government.

Khan — who claimed repeatedly on Wednesday that the government would be providing drugs at the site — said after question period that if he said that, it was incorrect. Outside the chamber, he said the government shouldn’t be facilitating drug use.

“The NDP wants drug consumption sites. We want to help Manitobans get off of drugs.”

Kinew said earlier in the day that the site will connect people with primary health care so they can take the first steps towards recovery “or get tested for pregnancy so that we can stop syphilis and HIV being passed on to babies as they’re born in Manitoba.” He pointed to a rise in the number of infected babies born in the province resulting from intravenous drug use.

“Maybe we’re not going to get somebody to turn their life around 180 degrees overnight, but maybe we could start to put them on a more positive path by tying them into primary health care. That’s what we mean when we say supervised,” Kinew said.

“I’m not asking you to like a supervised consumption site. I’m just asking you to understand that this is a public health emergency that we’re responding to, and it’s one of the tools, not a silver bullet.”

— with files from Tyler Searle, Malak Abas and Joyanne Pursaga

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca