Quebec Considers Relocating Services From Montreal Drug-Use Site Due to Local Outrage

August 21, 2024 TruthUSA

The Quebec government says it wants to address the concerns of Montrealers who are frustrated with a housing project in the city’s southwest that serves unhoused individuals dealing with addiction or mental health issues.

Despite initially supporting the project, Montreal municipal officials are now requesting the province to relocate the day center services at Maison Benoît Labre, which is located near an elementary school and features a supervised drug-use site.

Residents and parents had opposed the center even before it opened earlier this year, and now that it’s operational, they have reported witnessing open drug use and aggressive behavior, especially in the presence of children.

Chantale Rouleau, the minister responsible for social solidarity, stated in Quebec City today that the province is in talks with the city to move the day services, emphasizing that resources must be allocated to support the vulnerable population.

Critics, including federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, have criticized Maison Benoît Labre as an illustration of elected leaders being too permissive of criminal behavior, accusing the mayor of exposing children to drug users.

The executive director of Maison Benoît Labre suggested that the solution is not to relocate the day services but to provide additional resources to help manage the situation, given that the center includes 36 studio apartments for unhoused individuals.