B.C. biker clubhouse to become centre for addiction, mental health recovery

A former clubhouse for biker gangs on Vancouver Island is being transformed into a wellness centre.

A building in Langford, B.C., once occupied by biker gangs is being transformed into a wellness centre for people recovering from addiction and mental illness.

The building was previously used by the Savages Motorcycle Club, and before that, the Devil’s Army — both of which police say are tied to the Hells Angels.

The clubhouse went on the market last year, after it was raided by police during a drug trafficking and organized crime investigation.

About two weeks ago, the Construction Federation of BC (CFBC) bought the property for $1.1 million.

“(We’re) basically taking the building from notorious to glorious,” said CFBC executive director Abigail Fulton.

CFBC is a charity dedicated to supporting people in the construction industry. It plans on turning the space into a wellness hub for tradespeople, called The Forge.

“The building becomes a refuge, a place of hope and wellness for the community,” Fulton said.

CFBC needs to fundraise $500,000 to refurbish the building and expand its footprint, she said. It’s anticipated renovations will be completed by next summer.

“It’s been a couple of decades where the neighbors have been pretty disappointed about the things that were happening at this facility, and now we get to change that script,” said CFBC philanthropy director Mike Manhas.

Once the centre opens, the plan is to offer peer support, clinical counsellors, recovery coaching, and a social club. The Forge’s services will not include treatment beds or harm reduction services.

“People get sent to treatment, get released, go back into the community and large numbers relapse,” Manhas said.

“When you’ve gone through the harm reduction piece — (and) there are lots of people providing those services — our job is to provide that recovery piece that no one’s providing.”

Manhas will help run the centre’s programs, alongside carpenter and CFBC industry relations manager Trevor Bodkin. Both men are in recovery.

“The idea being that we take workers like myself with lived experience not only on the tools … but we train them in actually how to use their lived experience of mental health and substance use challenges and recovery to support other workers,” Bodkin said.

The Forge team is hosting a ground breaking ceremony next Thursday.