OUR DETOX SAFETY CONCERNS ARE LEGITIMATE SAYS DAWE

I am writing with regards to the proposed shelter for intoxicated
individuals (a mat service), with a detoxification centre, in the former
EXH Engineering Building. I am an owner of a house literally next door.

Despite some people's claims, we who live and work in the area have never
said we are against treatment facilities.

We know that there are significant drug and alcohol abuse problems in Red Deer.

What we have consistently said is that the mat service is not appropriate
for a neighborhood where families with young children live.

A mat service is not treatment. It is shelter for people who are currently
intoxicated or high on drugs who need a place to sleep for the night.

The statement has been made that having the mat service with the detox
centre will encourage some of those who are addicted to seek treatment.
However, I have talked to addictions experts who feel that a mat service
should not be operated with a detox centre.

People who are taking the first tentative steps towards treatment can be
lured back to the old life by those who do not wish to deal with their
addictions.

We have legitimate safety concerns. What happens if the mat service is full
and intoxicated/drugged people are turned away? What happens to people who
are evicted from the centre for inappropriate behaviors?

For those who are actively addicted to drugs, when they leave the shelter
in the morning, they will be looking for their first fix of the day and the
money to pay for it.

The Safe Harbour Society has said that the safety plan for the EXH
Engineering building will be developed and I understand that there are
significant costs to developing such a plan.

However, would any of you consent to something like a mat service/detox
centre next door if you did not know the details of the safety plan?

We are not irresponsible parents, as some have claimed. We do not let our
kids play in the alley. We do think that they should be allowed to safely
play in their backyards.

We deeply resent those that tell us that we should not be afraid to live
next to a mat service/detox centre -- we should already be terrified to
live in our neighborhood.

That is truly cruel. Beverly and I have never found needles or intoxicated
people sleeping in our backyard. We have had the truck broken into, but who
can say that has not happened in their neighborhood.

Damaged vehicles can be fixed. However, if a child is injured, can that be
fixed?

Are you prepared to tell a parent from our neighborhood that if something
happens to their child that you are truly sorry, but the circumstances that
led to that situation were for a greater good?

The Safe Harbour Society has asked people to support treatment facilities
and a detox centre. I strongly agree.

However, I strongly disagree that because such a service has to go
somewhere, it has to go somewhere inappropriate. There are still other
options, despite what you are being told.

We are on the front line and will have to live with the consequences of
having this centre next to us. We have done our research and believe more
than ever that a decision to locate the overnight shelter next door to a
neighborhood with small children is fundamentally wrong.

Please remember us as you make up your minds.

Michael Dawe

Red Deer