Supervised injection site recommended for Park Street by Charlottetown's planning board

The City of Charlottetown's planning board has recommended that city council approve two applications by the province, during a special meeting on Wednesday night.

One application was for a one-year, temporary variance to establish what the province calls an overdose prevention site in the Park Street area. The other was for a one-year extension to a temporary variance for Park Street Emergency Shelter, to allow it to continue to offer services.

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About 10 people were in the council chamber for the meeting with a couple of dozen more watching a video feed just outside the doors. There was also an added police presence.

Seven people spoke at the meeting. Some were not opposed to providing some form of supervised consumption program for those facing addiction, but none wanted to see it on Park Street.

The provincial government's plan for the supervised injection site would let people use the facility to take drugs they've obtained themselves, after using supplied kits to test the drugs for the presence of dangerous substances such as fentanyl.

"I have deep concerns about the effectiveness of the location due to the lack of accessibility to a larger pool of Islanders and residents of Charlottetown who would potentially use the service if it was a mobile service, professionally run," said Patrick Coady, adding that he helped provide services at the Community Outreach Centre for a few years.

Mathieu Arsenault, who said he comes from a family that has struggled with addictions, said he wants the best for those facing addiction, but he doesn't like the idea of a supervised injection site near Park Street Emergency Shelter.

"All these people that are here today have impacts," Arsenault, said referring to the current set-up of the emergency shelter.

"There are noise complaints, there is theft, there is vandalism, there are needles. You know, an eight-year-old got pricked in the park. I mean, this is unacceptable in my view. I have a young kid and it is emotional to me to see those risks and I don't want this, but I also want to support them."

Arsenault wants a committee created that will take ongoing feedback from members in the community who might be impacted by a supervised injection site, he said.

Some speakers said they don't think supervised injection sites help those experiencing addiction, but the province presented contrary information.

"With controversial topics, oftentimes they are studied to death," Shawn Martin, harm reduction coordinator with the Chief Public Health Office, said through a video feed. 

"What we see from over 100 studies of real services — I need to emphasize that we are not talking about something that happens in a lab; we are talking about real services and their results — we see that they prevent overdose deaths, of course connect more people to services including addictions and mental health treatment and housing, and reduce public substance use."

He added: "There have been zero deaths in overdose prevention sites."

There were 36 accidental opioid-related overdoses in P.E.I. in 2022, four of them fatal, according to the province's website. Numbers for accidental or unintentional overdoses involving opioids do not include those that occurred as a result of intentional self-inflicted harm.

The only provinces without a supervised injection site are Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador, Martin said.

Planning board also considered letters from interested parties, 11 letters in opposition, 25 in support, and six that did not take a position.

While no one service can be a fix-all, we cannot solve this crisis without an overdose prevention site.— Provincial government statement

On Thursday afternoon, the provincial government sent a statement to CBC News welcoming the planning board's recommendation. 

"An overdose prevention site is a key service for preventing overdose deaths, connecting people to treatment, and reducing public substance use. While no one service can be a fix-all, we cannot solve this crisis without an overdose prevention site," the statement said in part.

"By working together as Provincial and Municipal Governments, we can address challenges like homelessness and addictions and mental health, and create healthy and safe communities."

Originally the supervised injection site was to be located at 33 Belmont Street, across from the city's food bank, but during the spring provincial election campaign, the Progressive Conservative candidate for the district said the site would be going elsewhere.

On Wednesday night, Coun. Norman Beck asked provincial staff what the long-term plan for the supervised injection site is, but didn't get a direct answer.

Charlottetown's planning board voted 6—2 in favour of recommending that council approve the supervised injection site with the following conditions:

• The province provides Charlottetown Police Services with funding for six police officers. Four of those officers will monitor the Park Street shelter and area of influence, which represents a 20-minute walking radius around the property, for one year.
• The province funds and operates daily garbage and safe disposal clean-up services within the public right-of-way throughout the area of influence.
• The province designs and installs fire sprinkler systems at Park Street Emergency Shelter.
• The main entrance to the facility will be relocated to the satisfaction of the manager of the city's public works department.
• The province designs, funds and constructs a new public sidewalk and lighting that ensures a direct and safe pedestrian connection between the 500 Lot Area and the supervised injection site, and construct fencing that restricts access to the subject property from Beach and Park Street.
• Any future planning and development applications by the province for the subject property shall be fully compliant with the requirements set out in the City of Charlottetown Official Plan.
• An extension of the temporary variance approval shall be prohibited.

The board also voted unanimously to recommend city council extend the province's temporary variance to operate Park Street Emergency shelter for another year, under the same conditions.

The province came under scrutiny in the P.E.I. Legislature in June, when MLAs questioned sprinklers not being operational at the 50-bed emergency shelter.

During the planning board meeting, Coun. Julie McCabe confirmed with staff at the province's Department of Housing that the Park Street shelter still doesn't have those sprinklers operational.

"It's been a year since they have been operating," she said. "It causes me a little concern how to approve something that's not up to code."

Provincial staff will have a tender out to install sprinklers by the end of next week, said Jason Doyle, the province's director of housing.

Officials with the province were invited to speak at the planning board meeting, but decided to present virtually, said Charlottetown Deputy Mayor Alanna Jankov, who also chairs the board.

"The first option is to always come in person. I can't speak to why those chose not to come in person, but I know everyone else was in person tonight."

Both temporary variances will be voted on at the next city council meeting, Jankov said.