New Resource Centre

COMMUNITY SERVICES GROUP

City of Vancouver, 250 West Heritage Bldg, 555 West 12th Ave. Vancouver, BC., Canada V5Z 3X7 Tel: (604) 873-7487 Fax: (604) 871-6048
Social Planning Department

M E M O R A N D U M
To: Vancouver City Council
Copy to: City Manager
City Clerk
General Manager of Community Services Group
From: Director of Community Services Division, Social Planning Department
Date: April 2, 1998
Subject: New Resource Centre
Further to Council’s request on March 24, 1998 on the terms of operation and activities planned for the new resource centre, this memo outlines what we know to date.
In September 1997, Dr. Penny Parry completed her public consultation and submitted a report to the Vancouver/Richmond Health Board, Ministry of Health and the Downtown Eastside Community on the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The report contained a series of recommendations for action to interrupt the epidemic of HIV/AIDS among injection drug users in the Downtown Eastside.
Since November 1997, consultations lead by the Vancouver/Richmond Health Board and Health Canada have continued on how best to respond to the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the conditions that give rise to the epidemic.
The proposed resource centre is one component in the strategy to interrupt the epidemic among injection drug users in the Downtown Eastside. The resource centre would be a partnership between the Vancouver/ Richmond Health Board and Health Canada. The proposed model would provide a safe and supportive environment for those I.V. drug users most at risk in the community.
The concept of a resource centre was introduced to the Vancouver/Richmond Health Board at the January meeting of the Health Board. A motion was introduced that called for the Vancouver/Richmond Health Board to "commence searching for a location and the resources to open such a facility on a rental or lease arrangement and that this be a first priority now in addressing our public health emergency....". The motion was tabled to the February 26th Vancouver/Richmond Health Board meeting and staff were instructed to prepare a full report and recommendations relative to the motion for the February meeting.
At the February 26th meeting of the Vancouver Richmond Health Board, the following motion was carried: "That the Vancouver/Richmond Health Board authorize Bud Osborne and Robyn Woodward to undertake the process of establishing a community advisory committee with appropriate terms of reference and the mandate to:

develop a plan for establishing a resource centre
secure the essential partnerships of the City of Vancouver and Health Canada
ensure a stakeholder and community consultation process
develop an RFP (request for proposals), specifying the process and the expected outcomes of the resource centre and recommend the contract to the Board
ensure ongoing evaluation of the resource centre.

In discussion with the Vancouver/Richmond Health Board, we have learned of the following (see attached letter from Robyn Woodward, Board Vice-Chair) about the Centre:

no location has been chosen for the resource centre
a public consultation process will be undertakeN
a community advisory committee will be established to oversee the planning and development of the resource centre
the City of Vancouver has been invited to nominate someone to the advisory committee
the resource centre will not allow drug dealing or the injection of drugs to occur on the premises.

With regards to City by-laws, the centre as we understand it at this time would be classified as a social service centre. In the Downtown Eastside Oppenheimer District (DEOD) and the M1 area to the east of the DEOD, this use would be a conditional use. Under conditional uses the centre would require a Development Application which takes from 6 - 8 weeks to process. A public notification within a two block radius is required.
Planning for the resource centre is at a very preliminary stage and staff will keep Council informed of developments with the project. The structure and composition of the steering/advisory committee is not yet known. The City of Vancouver has been approached to participate in this project. The Vancouver/Richmond Health Board and Health Canada are committed to a public process to help determine the location of the centre and to address any concerns about the operation and impact of such a centre.
_________________________________
Jeff Brooks
Director of Community Services Division
Social Planning Department
attach.

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