Motion to close supervised consumption site defeated at Victoria city council

A pitch to close the only publicly accessible supervised consumption site in Greater Victoria was denied on Thursday.

Coun. Marg Gardiner brought the motion forward and was the only member of city council who voted in its favour.

She wanted the city to ask Island Health to end operations at the Harbour, which is next to Our Place on Pandora Avenue.

Her motion also sought a request to Canada’s health ministry to not renew the Harbour’s federal exemption to the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, which expires on June 30, 2027.

“We have so many people now living on our streets, and they’re not really getting the help they need,” Gardiner told reporters after her motion was defeated.

“Getting illicit drugs, I don’t consider being help.”

Well over 400 people emailed city council about the motion, including physicians, addictions researchers and people who live downtown. Most of them opposed the idea, according to councillors.

Doctors for Safer Drug Policy organized a letter-writing campaign, calling the proposed closure “offensive beyond belief,” as the facility saves lives. The group of physicians advocates for safe, compassionate and evidence-based health-care policies.

Gardiner said the supervised consumption site contributes to disorder downtown.

“People who live nearby are being hurt, and businesses are being hurt,” she said.

The Downtown Victoria Business Association recently called for the Harbour and other harm-reduction services to be moved outside the city’s core.

‘Legitimate concerns’ tied to site

Island Health said an average of 249 people use the Harbour’s supervised consumption services each day. That figure doesn’t include people who access other services at the facility, including referrals to mental health, primary care and treatment options.

Coun. Krista Loughton said the problem isn’t about what’s happening inside the Harbour, but what’s happening outside it. Public drug use and encampments are regularly visible in the area.

“Our public has been begging us to do something about the issue around street disorder downtown,” Loughton said.

“It is not something that this municipality, or any municipality across the country, can solve. We need our provincial and federal partners.”

Loughton said she’s considering bringing forward a motion about managing the area surrounding the site.

Mayor Marianne Alto echoed that sentiment, saying the facility must operate in a way that reflects the “legitimate concerns” expressed by people who don’t use the facility.

“A life-saving service exists in one location, and people who need to access that service are going to go to that location,” Alto said.

“So we have to be realistic and proactive and deliberate in our conversations with its operator, Island Health, to try to ensure that service is managed in the best possible way.”

Public drug use an election issue

A political scientist said the state of downtown will be top of mind for voters ahead of the municipal election in October.

“The issue of the health and vitality of the downtown is always the top issue. It is now significantly conflated with public drug use,” said David Black, an associate professor at Royal Roads University.

Black noted the city has thrown a significant amount of money at the issue, creating a $10-million community safety and well-being plan.

“What we’re seeing right now is, yes, it’s posturing,” he said.

“But it’s also some sincere differences of opinion around how to best address this issue from the level of a municipality, all of course defined by the election in October.”