NEIGHBOURS UPSET BY UNANNOUNCED ARRIVAL OF NEEDLE-EXCHANGE SERVICE

CHILLIWACK - For property and business owners along Alexander Avenue, the
problem over a needle exchange moving into their neighbourhood boils down
to one of communication.

About 30 of them gathered for an information meeting Monday morning at city
hall. At one point, one person even threatened to stop paying city taxes,
and it was clear most were unsettled by the prospect as well as the lack of
notification about the move.

"I just found about it this morning," Ken Popove, a local business
operator, said. Another man described the development as a "real
cloak-and-dagger little deal."

The program had been running from a site in the Southgate area but had to
move because of renovations. With little time to find a new home, program
co-ordinator Samantha Mohan managed to locate a spot on Alexander.

Mohan made the point that the exchange and counselling programs are run out
of inconspicuous locations.