Windsor council has given the green light for a safe consumption and treatment services facility in the downtown core.
In a narrow 6-5 vote Monday, council approved a request from the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit to host the facility at 628 Goyeau St.
Health unit officials say the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the opioid crisis increasing the need for a site in the region.
Councillor Rino Bortolin voted in favour and says he'd like to see the same urgency as what's been applied to the pandemic.
"We moved to create a vaccination centre in record time. We didn't talk about whose responsibility was what and how we were going to staff it or do those things. We put all hands on deck. The simple thing that's being asked is to approve this site so the application can move forward to the federal and provincial governments."
He says there's no question surrounding business owners may be upset, but he's confident the city can work with them.
"Those concerns are warranted because you can hear the different types of fear mongering and things that happen even from people in positions of leadership. But we're not bystanders on the sidelines here that will allow this area to degrade into an area of the city that we've seen in news reports and different websites."
Bortolin says this is about dealing with a harsh reality.
"Whether we like it or not, when I ran for council, never would I have wanted to be advocating for a safe injection site, but there are realities. I've had to use ward funds to buy needle boxes. While other people are buying slides for their playgrounds, I have to worry about needle boxes to help ensure that those parks are safe."
Mayor Drew Dilkens was among those against the location and says there's has to be a better spot for it.
"Any reasonable person would have to admit that the behaviours on display are not good and in some ways it has created the sense that downtown is somewhat unsafe. This location, in my mind, will only further feed that feeling in our community. It will have an impact and we should be working to find a solution at a location that won't cause more difficulties."
He fears the site could be bad for nearby businesses.
"I have concerns based on what I've seen around some of the safe injection sites in the Toronto area and I don't want to see it replicated here. There were a lot of voices speaking for those who are addicted to drugs and I think someone also needs to speak for the businesses who have a reasonable view that this type of operation in their block may cause issues affecting their livelihoods."
Dilkens says the focus should now to shifted to ensuring a solid safety and security plan is in place for the area.
"You can give me stats about what happens in other communities and the number of times they call police, but I'm really interested in the safety and security plan here making sure that I'm giving comfort to the people who have their life savings invested in those buildings, that they have the comfort that they deserve to feel like this is a good move."
Dilkens was joined by councillors Fred Francis, Jo-Anne Gignac, Ed Sleiman and Jeewen Gill with the rest of council voting in favour.
With council's go ahead, the health unit will now send its application to Health Canada and the provincial government for approval with a goal of having the site up and running by the end of 2022.
There were 358 drug-related overdoses in the region in 2020 resulting in 64 deaths — final statistics for 2021 are not yet available, but health unit officials say early numbers indicate they'll be higher.