Just finished an extensive bike ride along the Riverwalk, including East Village. I’m just going to go ahead and say it because I don’t care anymore, but they need to remove the DIC ASAP and relocate it somewhere else more on the fringes. Can’t believe the city renewed its existence for another decade. I try to be sympathetic to the plight of others, but it isn’t fair to everyone else trying to live their lives, buy a home and enjoy their surroundings. The DIC is the sole reason why the East Village has not exploded and been completed. I don’t blame people for not wanting to live around there. Such a beautiful area is being wasted away. It’s depressing to see.
We wanted to eat lunch in East Village and there really aren’t many options or choices. There should be a Cactus Club in the building next to the Simmons or something along those lines. But with tweekers congregating all over the place who wants to set up a restaurant there? Ended up going to Chix Diner. $3.50 for a can of beer was a good deal!
If we move it, where will it go?
I've been pondering this for a bit, as its obvious the facility is both holding the area back, and not really succeeding in its mission.
Firstly, the mega facility may make some sort of financial sense from consolidating services, but the negatives from concentrating a large amount of vulnerables like that more than offset any cost savings.
Breaking up the DIC into smaller facilities in dispersed locations would address that, perhaps have one in each quadrant, like the hospitals are spread. In fact, locating these smaller facilities near the hospitals might be a good idea..
Banff trail area could work for the NW, somewhere east of Chinook for SW, plenty of options in the NE, and iirc there is already a new facility in the works in Highfield which could cover the SE, although not exactly close to the hospital. All these areas are also good locations for supportive housing developments, being near employment and transit nodes
Of course that's only half the equation. Until more is done to address the immediate sources and root causes of the problem, no amount of new facilities will fix this.
I know most Canadians are more comfortable with softer solutions, but you can't hug your way out of an opium war.. And yes, we're in one.
Personally I think we need to start treating the producer and trafficking problem the way the Chinese do. They do have a lot of experience with such things and know what works.
On the flip side, I think the feds should also look at increasing the full legalization and regulation of more less harmful drugs. Canada has had legal weed for almost a decade, maybe its time to add a few more things to the menu to further take away from the black market
As for what to do with the growing army of lost souls, I'm supportive of the forced treatment idea, at least in theory. IMO if treatment is going to be successful, it needs to be done outside of the city, so maybe its also time to bring back the funny farms. Let the permenantly brain fried wander in peace and let those with a chance to recover do so in quieter environs.
