Drug house in Mill Woods shut down after decade of disturbances

Residents living in a Mill Woods neighbourhood say they are relieved after Alberta sheriffs shut down a long-time drughouse.

After 10 years of complaints from neighbours over drug and criminal activity, a house in Mill Woods has been closed by provincial sheriffs.

The Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods (SCAN) unit of the Alberta Sheriffs received a court order to close the southeast Edmonton property at 6707 32 Ave. for 90 days. All people living in the home, including the property owner, were required to leave it under the order starting Thursday.

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The house has been boarded up and fenced off, and has had its locks changed.

The moves to close down the house have neighbours feeling relieved and safer after enduring disturbances and property damage over the years.

Pauline Wilson, who lives two doors down from the house, said people coming and going from the house would make a lot of noise, describing “yelling and screaming over there.”

She said once she and her neighbours petitioned the sheriffs and the City of Edmonton, officials moved quickly to shut it down in a month’s time, Wilson said.

“It’s about time they started cracking down on these places,” she told CTV News Edmonton on Sunday. “They’re not good for a neighbourhood. They’re not good for children. It makes the whole neighbourhood safer, and I’m really glad they’re gone.”

Pyol Awac, who lives across the street from the problem house for seven years, said he and his family dealt with damage to their vehicle by people associated with the house. They had to park their vehicle behind the house to avoid further damage, but now, his wife feels comfortable enough to park it in front of their house again.

“I’m safe now, better than before,” he told CTV News Edmonton.

Since 2009, SCAN has investigated the property six times, twice resulting in orders temporarily closing the house and evicting people living there.

Police had visited the property more than 250 times since the start of 2015.

There were two fatal drug overdoses at the house in 2022.

People who lodged complaints with police reported suspicious people, assaults, drug possession and drug trafficking at the property.

SCAN told CTV News Edmonton the owner of the property now plans to sell it.

Keren Tang, the city councillor who represents the area, said efforts by the neighbours to report the activity at the house was key in helping the city and police take action to deal with it.

“Based on what I’m hearing and what I’m understanding, it takes some time, neighbours reporting, all those things matter,” Tang told CTV News Edmonton last week.

“This is why we have dedicated policies, dedicated resources. This is why we’re taking a multi-disciplinary approach to this ... some of these properties are fairly complex. You may not run into one issue – gang violence, for example – you may run into homelessness and housing issues or squatting, so it does take a concerted effort.”

Since it began in 2008, the SCAN unit has investigated more than 10,000 properties and has issued more than 130 community safety orders.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Sean McClune