Alberta’s first involuntary drug treatment centre to be built in NW Calgary
Posted Aug 13, 2025 6:22 pm.
Last Updated Aug 15, 2025 6:12 am.
It’s not a jail, but it will sit right beside one.
The province’s first involuntary treatment centre will be built just outside of Calgary’s Royal Oak neighbourhood, near the Calgary Remand Centre and the forensic psychiatry centre.
It’s part of the UCP’s ‘Compassionate Intervention Plan’ which would allow family members, doctors, or even police to force severely addicted people into treatment.
The province confirms the centre will have 150 beds, offer detox and therapy services, and is expected to open in 2029.
A spokesperson from the Ministry of Infrastructure says the project is moving forward as public-private partnership and the successful backer will handle the facility’s design, construction, and maintenance, for the duration of the contract.
A request for qualifications is open and scheduled to close towards the end of October.
The topic of involuntary treatment has been a controversial one, with some saying it’s necessary considering the number of people who aren’t getting help themselves and putting a strain on the medical system or police resources.
“Compassionate intervention centres are essential to delivering safe, secure, and individualized care on-site in a medically supervised environment for the duration of a patient’s treatment,” reads a statement from the Ministry of Infrastructure.
Plans for involuntary treatment centres were introduced by the government in April, with the tabling of Bill 53. Premier Danielle Smith called them a last resort at the time.
Smith has said individuals of “sound mind” will still have the right to choose their own medical intervention, but those who are a harm to themselves or others will not.
The bill allows for people to be held in secure facilities for three months, and for six months in community care centres.
Both Calgary and Edmonton will see an involuntary treatment centre built, with the province committing to building at least 11 addiction treatment centres across the province.
