By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

Two sites approved for mobile supervised consumption services

May 29, 2018 | 1:16 AM

The pieces are finally in place for mobile supervised consumption services (SCS) to set up shop in Red Deer.

On Monday, city council approved amendments to its License Bylaw which make it possible for a service provider – in this case Turning Point – to complete an application for a federal exemption.

Turning Point has already stated their intent to move forward with mobile SCS, despite repeatedly saying mobile services will not meet the full need of the community, and that a permanent site is highly preferable.

Councillor Dianne Wyntjes echoed those sentiments, stating that a mobile site is only a band-aid solution.

“As a community leader, I don’t feel it adequately provides the needs to those with addictions and to the community as a whole,” she said. “I think about a mobile unit and the fundamental issue to me is there are no or very little wrap-around services.”

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Council went into their meeting with five potential sites on the table before whittling them down to two – Red Deer Regional Hospital and Safe Harbour.

The Safe Harbour site was a late save after council initially voted 4-3 against it. Once they’d gone through all five possibilities and were left with only one, they reconsidered Safe Harbour and voted 5-2 in favour with councillors Lawrence Lee and Ken Johnston changing their votes.

The proposed sites north of 43 Street, on 54 Avenue and at the P9 parking lot near Turning Point were all rejected by council.

Veer, Wyntjes and Councillor Tanya Handley took aim at online commenters who claim the blood from the rising death toll of opioid overdoses in Red Deer – 25 so far in 2018 – is on council’s hands.

“These types of comments are not productive, and frankly, they are unfair,” said Handley, who paused to hold back tears. “A member of my own family is on that waiting list for treatment that is not there. That is what’s missing in this. Instead of band-aids, we need to talk treatment.”

Councillor Vesna Higham also pointed out Monday that The City of Red Deer has been fighting for a treatment centre for more than a decade and called on the province to take action.

“I’m hoping with everything I feel inside that the province will pay attention to the pleas around this table,” Higham said. “Is mobile consumption services ideal? Of course it’s not. We need to help people get their lives back, get their dignity back and that can only be done when we offer treatment services.”

Councillor Lawrence Lee said there needs to be more resources put towards choking off the supply of drugs from the source, while Johnston urged the community to applaud the courage of Turning Point to help the vulnerable population of Alberta’s third-largest city.

The bylaw was approved unanimously, councillors Buck Buchanan and Frank Wong were absent, with two amendments. The first lays out penalties and possible revocation of a license should the service provider not leave the site in its original state daily. The second amendment stipulates that only one license can be issued per year.

Additionally, a review of how mobile supervised consumption services are working will be brought back to council within six months of the issuing of a license.