TEMPORARY DETOX SITE UNASSAILABLE

Monday marked an important milestone in making Red Deer a healthier
and safer community.

The municipal planning commission unanimously approved a plan to
permit a temporary drug and alcohol detox centre downtown, on the main
floor of a building southeast from City Hall square.

It's stage one of a plan by the Safe Harbour Society to have a detox
centre and an overnight shelter for people who are high on drugs and
at risk set up together.

The mood at City Hall for the hearing on Monday was markedly different
from what transpired in earlier attempts to locate the detox centre at
two different sites.

There was none of the rancour, fear or controversy that scuttled
previous efforts to locate the detox centre in the Scott Block or in
the old EXH building on 50th Avenue.

The vote of the municipal planning commission was unanimous. Questions
from commissioners dealt with details, which were quickly addressed,
rather than the suitability of the site.

That's a credit to the staff and volunteers from the Safe Harbour
Society, who did their homework beautifully, addressing the concerns
of not only City Hall but, more importantly, of nearby businesses and
residents.

Fears that the temporary eight-bed detox location will become a
permanent fixture have been set aside.

It is only authorized to operate for a year. It will only open if the
city approves the second step to permit a joint-use detox centre and
mat program at 5246 53rd Ave. before the end of December. That issue
will come before city council next week, leading to a public hearing
in December.

If municipal approval is not given, both programs will be
scuttled.

The Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission has committed $750,000
for the two programs, but without city approval by the end of this
year, that money will be withdrawn.

That would be a tragedy.

The need for a detox centre in Red Deer is beyond dispute. As the city
grows, and as the scourge of drugs like crystal methamphetamine
expands, the need becomes more urgent with each passing month.

There's no reason now for this plan not to go forward. Safe Harbour
addressed concerns that downtown residents might have had about crime,
loitering or drug abuse adjacent to the temporary centre.

People who check themselves into detox centres are trying to break
their substance-abuse habits. Drug dealers will not waste time hanging
around the site.

People undergoing detox for periods of up to 15 days will not be going
in and out; they won't be bringing drugs into the building; they won't
have cellphones to get a fix.

They will stay in the centre for the duration of their treatment.
Mostly, they will be sleeping. People seeking detox are not only sick,
they are very tired.

When clients leave the building, they will be restricted to an area
surrounded by a solid fence more than two metres high. They will be
supervised at all times in this area.

The detox centre will have staff on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a
week. The area promises to be safer, rather than less so at night,
because of its presence.

People being treated in the detox centre will find a safe place with
supportive professionals helping them to break the scourge of
substance abuse.

They will not get medical treatment there. The hospital is nearby for
urgent medical needs. Addicts who need non-urgent medical care for
their addictions are sent to Calgary or Edmonton.

The increasing seriousness of the drug problem in Red Deer has led to
73 such transfers this year, including seven last week.

The detox centre promises to be a good neighbour and a great asset.
So, too, will the overnight shelter when it moves to a new joint site
at the northwest end of downtown. Police say there have been few if
any troublesome issues at the shelter's current location at the south
end of downtown.

It's so low key that many in the neighbourhood don't know it's there.
That should not change at all, when it moves north next year.

Seven months ago, when the old EXH location was rejected, Mayor Morris
Flewwelling expressed confidence that despite repeated failures to
find a detox-overnight shelter site, a better option would still come
forward.

He has been proven right. The new two-step plan for both is
unassailable.

The Scott Block, at 4816 Gaetz Ave., meanwhile, is on its way to
becoming a treasured civic cultural resource.

Joe McLaughlin is Advocate managing editor.