City of Montreal wants to relocate day services for homeless at supervised drug inhalation site

The City of Montreal wants to relocate the day services for homeless people at Maison Benoît Labre, a supervised drug inhalation site in Saint-Henri.

The centre is located less than 100 metres away from the Victor-Rousselot elementary school and the city announced its intentions days before the start of the new school year.

The shelter opened on April 15 and has been facing heavy criticism from parents and concerned residents in the area.

For many residents like Michael MacKenzie, who is also a McGill University Professor in social work and pediatrics, the day centre has been causing harm.

He says it’s “become a magnet concentrating largely agitated men from around the community in psychological distress,” adding that, “children are being exposed to sexually indecent acts in the school ground and in our alleys, rampant drug use on our doorsteps and in our alleys and in the schoolyard.”

Sud-Ouest Mayor Benoit Dorais said the move would not affect the site’s drug consumption rules but rather the centre’s services for the homeless population throughout the day.

“Despite everything that has been done by the organization, by the borough, by the city of Montreal, by the health community, by the SPVM, we have to admit that there is a major feeling of insecurity in this sector of Saint-Henri,” said Dorais in French. “Social cohabitation is difficult, and before students return to school, we are concerned.”

“There’s too much homeless right now for the day service, that’s the principal problem, so that’s why we have to move it,” Dorais said.

“I don’t think this is a time for ‘I told you so,'” says MacKenzie. “I think this is a time to welcome people who are who are seemingly finally listening to their constituents.”

Maison Benoît Labre is the city’s first supervised drug inhalation and injection site. It has 36 housing units for people experiencing homelessness.

“We’re not asking for the drug consumption site to be moved. What people are noticing in public spaces are the difficulties associated with having a large concentration of people seeking services from the day centre. That’s what we need to relocate,” explained Dorais.

Maison Benoît Labre Executive Director Andréane Desilets said in a statement that the organization has put numerous measures in place to limit the impact on the public.

“La Maison Benoît Labre is a key player in the community. We’ve been helping the most vulnerable for 75 years, providing services that are essential in a context where homelessness and mental health needs are being felt in many large cities,” reads a written statement in French. “In recent months, we have put in place several measures to limit the effects on our neighbours, in collaboration with the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux, the SPVM, the CIUSSS and the Direction régionale de santé publique. We continue to ask for the full cooperation of all our partners, including the City of Montreal, so that we can continue to provide essential, life-saving services.”

A lawyer living not far from the site was preparing to pursue legal action on behalf of residents because of the issues.

“As long as we see that there’s developments happening It decreases the chance that the lawsuit will be deposited,” said Jérémie John Martin, a Montreal lawyer with Champlain Lawyers. “Opening homeless centers in areas where there’s a lot of children — that should be a lesson for the future and frankly I think the centre should be open in maybe in more industrial areas.”

The City of Montreal is also considering installing modular housing to help accommodate homeless people, due to a lack of affordable housing and shelter space.

#WATCH: “I don’t think this is a time for, ‘I told you so,’” says St-Henri resident and social worker Michael MacKenzie, as the City of Montreal is planning to move homeless day services from a supervised inhalation site due to cohabitation issues.

READ: https://t.co/KNhUK4z5qk pic.twitter.com/ezN3zuI75j

— CityNews Montreal (@CityNewsMTL) August 20, 2024

In a statement to CityNews, the office of Lionel Carmant, Quebec Minister Responsible for Social Services, says they back the plan.

“We support the relocation of the Maison Benoît Labre day services and observe that cohabitation issues remain despite all the efforts that have been made,” said the statement. “We will continue to work with all the [partners] involved to enable the relocation of the day centre. However, we expect the city to propose several alternative sites to avoid a concentration of services.”

Dorais says, “We have to collaborate to find the the appropriate site for the day services and that’s what we are doing with the minister.”

“The solution is really to increase the number of services and housing. We must be able to get people off the streets, give them a roof over their heads and invest heavily,” concluded Dorais.

For the City’s Official Opposition, the move is a little “too late.”

“They didn’t plan for the implementation on the first go when they implemented this resource and now we’re they’re talking about a move,” said Benoit Langevin, Official Opposition Spokesperson on homelessness for Ensemble Montréal. “I’m not hearing from Mr. Dorais, when is that move gonna happen before school after school?”

There is not yet a timeline for a new location for the services.

“I’m not willing to say it’s a win yet, I think it’s a welcome promise,” says MacKenzie. “I want to see if that’s met with action. We have school starting next week, our kids are going to be catching the bus, our kids are gonna be walking to school — this has to happen.”