Red Deer needs safe 'consumption site' for drugs, says councillor

The streets of Red Deer have become riddled with drug paraphernalia and that has one citycouncillorand business owner floating the idea of creating supervised spaces for addicts to shoot up and smoke crack.

"We've had citizens report that their children are finding them in the parks back alleys and laneways. Sometimes in the storefronts," Paul Harris told the Calgary Eyeopener.

"We're seeing just way too many needles that really need to be dealt with in a different way."

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There are 44,000 needles distributed in Red Deer every month by social groups, but users don't always properly dispose of them.

Harris's ideais to create dedicated rooms in existing facilities, such as Turning Point, where addicts can safely shoot up so that the needles "never actually leave the facility."

"To start a new site is not what I'm proposing. So it wouldn't be a big community battle about where you're going to put a safe injection site. And it's not a safe injection site I'm looking for it's a supervised consumption site."

He says creating a space "just for injections" is too limiting because people use drugs in numerous ways.

"Needles is just one way. They smoke crack, they do other forms of self-medicating."

Last week, Canada's Health Ministerannounced a series of legislative changes tospeed up the process for opening safe injection sites.

Harris has already asked city administration to create a report on how the Downtown Business Association cleans up needles.

He says he's planning to meet with the deputy minister of Alberta Health before drafting a motion for a safe drug consumption site. He plans to present the motionto Red Deer council in the New Year.

With files from the Calgary Eyeopener