METHADONE CLINIC MOVES IN NEXT DOOR

Strickland Avenue is a quiet gentrifying stretch of homes in Parkdale,
hidden from the noise of Queen Street a few blocks away.

There's a ballet school on one corner and a photography studio on
another, but it's the recently vacated building at 21 Strickland that
has residents -many of them professionals, lawyers, architects, and
software engineers -voicing concerns to their local councillor.

The building will soon be home to a methadone clinic operated by
Breakaway Addiction Services. The organization offers a variety of
other services, including a food bank, clothing exchange and outreach
programs, but neighbours are mostly concerned about the clinic, where
addicts will be treated for their opiate dependence on an outpatient
basis.

"Everyone is really concerned," said Stanley Lidon, a 42 year-old
assistant location manager in the film industry, who lives across the
street. "It's been done very slyly, it's been done without any
consultation to the neighbourhood ... and we're going to need some
answers from the city as to how can this happen, and what the city
going to do with regards to the values of our properties."

Ward 14 councillor Gord Perks said the clinic has a legal right to
move into the neighbourhood.

"It's their own business where they establish themselves and the place
they bought they don't require any zoning permission or committee of
adjustment approval, so it's entirely legal for them to just go in,"
he said.

The move came as a shock to most residents of Strickland Avenue, who
only learned of their new neighbour Wednesday night, three weeks
before the clinic is set to open.

"I was informed from an-other friend of mine who is sort of active in
the area ... she heard about that clinic coming in pretty much next
door to me, and informed me right away. So this has all happened very
recently," said Aki Kyrou. "That's when I started contacting people on
the street and informing them, and no one knew anything about what was
going on."

In an attempt to come to a solution, Strickland Avenue residents held
a meeting on Thursday night attended by Coun. Perks as well as
representatives from Breakaway Addiction Services. A few dozen
concerned neighbours shuffled into Mr. Kyrou's garage shortly after 9
p.m.

After a few opening words from Mr. Kyrou, a representative from
Breakaway addressed the crowd to explain the clinic's mandate of
helping those struggling with addiction, which was met with little
sympathy.

While Mr. Kyrou tried to keep the meeting organized, many of those
attending came loaded with questions they answered.

"You've neglected this neighbourhood Gord Perks," yelled one angry
neighbour.

Others resorted to profanties.

While many residents are disappointed by the lack of warning, Dennis
Long, executive director of Breakaway Addiction Services, says he has
been meeting with local representatives in an attempt to get the word
out.

"We were working our way through a community information process which
started with a meeting with the local councillor, and then I met with
local representatives of the Parkdale Residential Association and the
Parkdale BIA a week or so ago, and through those contacts I was trying
to identify folks who would be good to meet with in the immediate
neighbourhood, and was unable to get those meetings together.

"I'm trying to make sure this facility does not create any problems in
the neighbourhood," he said.