SALVATION ARMY PROJECT DECLINED

A nine-bed bridge house for recovering addicts and a 12-bed emergency
shelter will not be allowed at the Cyril Street centre of the Salvation Army.

Citing concerns over the downtown location - already plagued by addicts,
petty thieves and prostitutes - and saying it was not the right one, the
majority of city council voted yesterday to deny a development variance to
allow it.

A bid by Coun. Chuck Wiebe to approve the variance was supported by
councillors Ed Fast and George Peary and Mayor George Ferguson, but was
voted down by the rest of council.

However, a committee tasked with finding an alternative to the Cyril
proposal will continue its work - and may consider an offer from Central
Heights Church to use some homes the church has acquired.

Said Wiebe in support of the variance: "We're fortunate that we have a
caregiver who is willing to pick up the torch. Who among us would make that
attempt, other than the people making this application?''

Salvation Army Major Ron Cartmell estimated about $60,000 was spent in
trying to transform the bridge house and shelter into reality, which
ultimately comes from donations.

He said the issue of the bridge house and shelter was first one of the Army
attracting the wrong kind of people to downtown, now it appears to have
become one of the Army using valuable commercial space.

He said 90 per cent of the people who eat at the meal centre live withing
six blocks of the Army, and are not drug addicts: "They are the
unfortunates of our community.

"The reality is, it's not much different on the other side of town.
Addiction is a sickness, but it's not just the poor people who get
addicted,'' he added.

Cartmell said three years are left on the Army's lease for the old shopping
centre on Cyril. For most of the summer, they have had to turn people away
from their existing shelter on Morey Avenue, because it has been full.

Opposing the bridge house and shelter as a citizen and on behalf of the
Abbotsford Downtown Business Association was Mary Reeves, who said she had
many calls of public support on the ADBA stance.

"What do we want downtown Abbotsford to look like,'' she asked councillors
yesterday. "Downtown Vancouver's East Side or Fort Langley?''

Coun. Mark Warawa was voted among those who voted against the variance,
said he was "leaning towards finding another location.''

"I pray for wisdom that we make the right decision around this table,''
added the councillor, saying Central Heights Church on McCallum Road is
very interested in the situation faced by the Army.

He showed digital photos of several homes and a multi-bay garage recently
acquired by the church that may fit in with the bridge house/shelter proposal.

Warawa's proposal will be referred to the committee charged with finding an
alternative location.

The issue has wound its way through council for the last four and a half
months.

After weeks of deferral, a visibly impatient Mayor George Ferguson last
month set yesterday as the day for final debate.

Alternatives considered by the committee include the DeKwant property,
rural acreage in Bradner, considered too far from transportation; the
Strumpski property behind Red Robin, which was already leased; Abbotsford
Christian School Heritage campus, of which the school was not in favour;
land at the south end of the Mission Bridge, considered too remote; the old
Homestead nurseries property and the Upper Fraser Valley Child Development
Centre.

Fast said some committee members felt that in addition to the two
alternatives of saying yes or no to the application, council may want to
consider conditional or limited approval for several years, to "enhance the
prospects of redevelopment'' of Cyril Street and area.

The bid by the Salvation Army to open a nine-bed bridge house residence and
a 12-bed emergency shelter at its Cyril Street premises was adamantly
opposed by many of those who spoke at a public hearing on the issue in May.

The Army planned to lease an additional 8,000 square feet in a former
shopping centre at Cyril and Essendene (owned by 5 Diamonds Development
Inc.) for offices, the emergency shelter and the bridge house.