GROUND BROKEN FOR ADDICT HOUSING PROJECT

Eighteen months after it was announced, construction of a
controversial addict-housing complex officially began Thursday.

About 80 dignitaries and supporters of the downtown building attended
a ground-breaking ceremony that featured politicians and a former drug
addict who once pushed a shopping cart and lived on the street.

Today, Robyn Williams has a home, a two-year-old daughter and the
satisfaction of beating her mental illness and addiction, she said.

"This facility would have been a godsend for me and will be exactly
that for many individuals facing similar challenges. It will provide
them with . . . a safe place with a key, a sense of dignity, belonging
and ownership," said Williams.

The three-storey building, with 30 small suites above ground-floor
office space, will be built on city-owned land at 1436 St. Paul St. A
project of Interior Health and B.C. Housing, Cardington Arms will
provide accommodation for people with addictions and/or mental illness
who want to get better.

Critics say the residents will be allowed to use drugs or alcohol
without being evicted. A group of downtown business owners opposed to
the project launched a civil action last fall on grounds the city
failed to provide public notice that it intended to dispose of
city-owned land.

B.C. Supreme Court Justice Richard Brooke dismissed the lawsuit. He
ruled last week that the city had followed a "transparent" process
that involved significant public input in the project.

Jim Carta, the opponents' main spokesman, attended Thursday's
groundbreaking. He said the likelihood of an appeal is "very remote,"
but business owners will closely monitor how residents behave in the
area.

"Yes, there is a homeless problem," he said. "How do you measure
success with this facility? . . . The jury will be out on it for at
least three years.

"Now our role is caretaker."

Alan Dolman, board chair of the Interior Health Authority, said any
major health-care decision invites controversy. He asked people to
imagine being an alcoholic with no home or ability to shower, bathe,
eat properly or take medication.

"Oh, and at the same time, we'd like you to kick your addiction," he
said. "A facility like this will help real people try and become
productive members of society. You're not going to save them all. This
is never a 100 per cent project.

"We as a society deserve to give these people a second chance, a third
chance, a fourth chance, to try and get back into the
mainstream."

The $6.75 million building, expected to open next May, will be managed
by the local John Howard Society. Residents must agree to a code of
conduct and work toward a tailor-made path to recovery. They can fall
off the wagon but repeat drug and alcohol users will be evicted.

The federal government is providing $2.25 million, the province will
contribute $225,000 a year toward the operation and Interior Health
will staff the facility around the clock for $500,000 a year.

The city is providing the land, recently assessed at $783,500, for a
nominal fee on a 60-year lease.