Complaints prompt Charlottetown deputy mayor to call for police plan on illicit drug use

Prompted by complaints, Charlottetown's deputy mayor wants to hear from the city's police service about how it plans to address illicit drug use "to help residents feel safer in their homes."

Deputy Mayor Alanna Jankov put forward a notice of motion at city council's meeting Monday night for police to create a plan and share with the community how they hope to address illicit drug use and illegal behaviours in the city.

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"I found it was a very constructive way to bring this to council after hearing a lot of residents' concerns," Jankov said, adding that many of the complaints are connected to clients of the Community Outreach Centre, which moved to its current location on Euston Street two years ago.

"I just thought by bringing this notice of motion, this will start some steps to find some positive way for us all to live happily and safely in the community."

Several councillors spoke at the meeting, saying they have heard about people who live near the outreach centre being threatened, as well as dealing with their property being damaged, stolen and trespassed upon.

Jankov is hoping a police plan will lay the groundwork for a positive approach.

"It's a great opportunity for council to have many, many questions that they would like to have answered, as well as looking at our other government partners to see how we can work together and find a successful outcome for everybody," she said.

It is not just a question of police enforcement, she added.

"They don't just deal with the enforcement piece; they are dealing mental health and addictions. They deal directly with the different levels of government when it comes to health," Jankov said.

"I think we can do better. All of us together."

Coun. Mitchell Tweel, who represents Ward 4 where the centre is located, said he gets calls every day from residents who live nearby and feel threatened by clients of the centre.

"This was a very poor decision right from the outset," he said, adding that the centre should not have been put near schools. "This community was not consulted in any … way, shape or form."

The issues around the outreach centre are causing some people to put their homes up for sale, Tweel said.

"It's just been a horror show, just horrific," he said. "It's been treacherous for property owners: trespassing, drugs being utilized on their property, goods being stolen, vandalization, intimidation, threats.

"The list goes on and on and on."

Tweel also complained about the needle exchange program run out of the centre, saying it facilitates drug use.

"What I am saying is if you are going to have a program of that nature in that facility, where was the communication with the City of Charlottetown?" Tweel said.

PEERS Alliance has partnered with the Provincial Needle Exchange Program and the Community Outreach Centre to increase access to sterile injection equipment. Community members can pick up injection kits by visiting the outreach centre, according to the PEERS Alliance website.

Tweel said he doesn't believe the outreach centre has had any positive impact.

"It's been two years and I haven't seen any enhancements and improvements, and neither do the residents," he said.

Centre's leader explains precautions

Roxanne Carter-Thompson is the executive director of The Adventure Group, which oversees the centre.

She said there's a disposal site for discarded needles at the facility. Also, PEERS outreach staff provide support at times of the year when children are in school, picking up any needles they find outside and making sure they're disposed of properly.

She said ensuring individuals have access to safe needles is a proactive and innovative approach that makes communities safer.

"Drugs are in our community," she said. "The landscape of our community has changed and it's been changed for some time. At the Adventure Group, we've been picking up needles for 15 years out at our challenge course by Hillsborough Hospital. So this is not new."

Fatal OD numbers dropping

While there were 36 overdoses recorded by the province in 2022, the highest since the province started tracking the numbers in 2016, the number of accidental overdoses resulting in death is at an all-time low. Four people died of accidental overdose last year, according to the province's website.

The province's accidental overdose numbers do not include overdoses that occurred as a result of intentional self-inflicted harm.

"I want to hear from the medical experts. I don't want to hear from people that have a vested interest in terms of interpreting data. I want a fair, objective analysis," Tweel said.

Outreach centre staff have made some adjustments such as adding a security team to monitor the area, including nearby properties, but that's not helping ease residents' concerns, the councillor said.

The security team was created only this month, so Carter-Thompson said it's too early to say whether it's been effective or not.

"It's hard to be able to make a full critique of whether something has been beneficial or not when it's only been in place for nine days," she said. "I will tell you that after the first day, my shoulders lightened knowing that we had this type of support here."

Discussion set for Aug. 28

Jankov's motion will be up for discussion at a special council meeting on Aug. 28.

The province has been talking about possibly moving the outreach centre closer to the Park Street Emergency Shelter, which offers unhoused people a bed for the night. The property is undergoing an environmental assessment because of its former use as a government garage, so the province can't commit to the move yet.

Tweel doesn't like that site for the outreach centre either.

The province also has a plan to put an overdose prevention site in the area, and Tweel said too many services are being placed in one location.