Regina non-profit hoping to start Saskatchewan’s second safe consumption site

A local non-profit organization is pushing to be the second safe drug consumption site in Saskatchewan.

The Newo Yotina Friendship Centre on 11th Avenue is awaiting approval from the federal government to develop a separate area in the facility to become a safe consumption site.

This push for the new facility comes as Regina has seen an epidemic of overdose deaths throughout the year. Emergency services have responded to nearly 1,100 overdoses and almost 100 deaths in 2020, according to police.

Saskatchewan alone has seen over 300 deaths related to an overdose this year.

Michael Parker, Executive Director of the Friendship Centre, says a safe consumption site is crucial for the city.

“This is an opportunity to save lives. Getting caught in a cycle of addiction is not what anybody hopes for in their life,” Parker said. “We want to keep people alive and give them the opportunity to access the supports needed to recover.

“We know that not everybody’s going to necessarily make that journey and that it could look very different for many people, but I think everybody’s worth it.”

The services would include supervised injection, peer support, as well as the possibility of drug checking in the future.

“We were going with a smaller scale setup, it might not be a permanent thing at the centre,” he said. “There are conversations to be had with all the different kinds of community stakeholders down the road, but we can’t wait for that process to happen to do nothing.”

Phase 1 would have the consumption site operating in Jan. 2021. No minors or first-time users would be allowed into the area.

Regina Mayor Sandra Masters, as well as Regina Police Chief Evan Bray have both written letters of approval in favour of the facility.

In her letter, Masters wrote that “it is imperative we act quickly to employ harm reduction strategies both short and long term.”

Parker hopes to get an answer sometime before the new year.

“We are really needing to hear back from the province,” he said. “This is something that we decided to take some action on and not wait around for.”