Beltline residents divided as councillor pushes to close safe consumption site

A Calgary city councillor is preparing to introduce a motion next week that would support closing the Sheldon Chumir supervised consumption site and replacing it with an in‑person, on‑demand opioid treatment centre.

The proposal comes as debate continues over the future of harm‑reduction services in the Beltline and across the city.

The province has already announced plans to shut down the site in 2026. Standing outside the facility, Beltline resident Brad Grainger said he sees the complexity of the issue.

“Generally I think there’s a need for them,” he said. “We need to take care of our homeless, we need to take care of our people that have addictions, but nobody wants them in the neighbourhood… they’ve got to go somewhere.”

Ward 14 Coun. Landon Johnston’s motion calls for transitioning the site into a treatment‑focused model that would offer immediate access to opioid therapy, along with ongoing support services and risk‑reduction education.

Grainger said he understands why some residents want the site gone, but he also believes any replacement must meaningfully support people struggling with addiction.

“There’s a need for them to have it, but there’s also a need to have them stop it,” he said. “It’s a double‑edged sword, but as long as we’re doing something to help them with their addiction and their issues and their problems, I think that’s a good thing.”

A study from McGill University examining supervised consumption sites in Toronto found no link between the facilities and increased crime in surrounding neighbourhoods. Over a decade, crime rates either remained stable or declined in areas where sites were opened.

Calgarian Patti Howlett said the evidence supports keeping harm‑reduction services in place.

“There are lots of statistics in the world and lots of doctors who say that the style of treatment we now have is needed for people who have problems with drugs,” she said. “The province just is on the wrong track all the time.”

Others in the Beltline feel the neighbourhood would benefit from a different approach. Resident John Moura believes a cleaner, more orderly environment could help attract new businesses and residents.

“If you can keep it as tidy as possible for people, it’s a postcard so people can move here and open businesses and so on and so forth,” he said.