Parkdale residents upset about methadone clinic on residential street

Residents of a quiet pocket in east Parkdale are fighting to stop a methadone clinic from moving on to their street.

They’re also voicing frustration and anger over the fact they found out about the development by word of mouth, and not from their local city councillor, Gord Perks.

A Breakaway Addiction Services clinic is slated to open the first week of July at a commercial building at 21 Strickland Ave., near Queen Street West and Dufferin Street.

Resident Aki Kyrou, who has lived in Parkdale since 1995, said a friend tipped him off about the clinic. When he confirmed it was in fact moving in, he informed his neighbours Tuesday and they began to organize.

“We’re not against the program whatsoever,” he told CityNews.ca “We’re just disappointed with its choice of location. This is better served in a more accessible area on Queen Street, not on this quiet little residential street.

“Everything’s been revitalized; a lot of young professionals are here, lawyers, self-employed people. So there’s no positive impact in the community with putting this clinic here.”

Breakaway director Dennis Long said while the idea of a methadone program conjures seedy images in the minds of many people, his group offers highly professional, low-volume assistance to very “stable” patients, many of whom have been using the program for a number of years. Long added the average patient traffic is about two people per hour.

“I really do understand the concerns of the neighbourhood,” Long said.

“We are very, very interested in being as good a neighbour as we possibly can.”

Long said the Breakaway program includes four social workers, a nurse and a robust counselling program. He promises no queues for treatment in front of the building.

The clinic is also looking for residents to sit on a liaison committee to deal with community concerns as or if they arise.

Kyrou organized a community meeting held Thursday night attended by concerned residents, representatives from the Breakaway clinic and Coun. Perks.

“A lot of people were very angry with the lack of community consultation,” he said.

Perks told CityNews.ca Friday he encouraged the clinic to contact residents directly and that he provided it with contacts for the local residents’ association and business owners.

He said he was told that the clinic did contact the residents’ association but that not everyone is a member of a community group.

“The clinic has an absolute legal right to be here,” Perks told CityNews’ Peter Kim. “This area behind us is zoned a commercial area. They have the same right to operate here as a dentist’s office or a café.”

He said he wouldn’t be upset having the clinic next to him.

“This clinic is a medical services clinic that provides necessary medical services,” he said. “They don’t dispense methadone on site. They have a limited number of patients.”

Kyrou said that Breakaway did take the initiative to contact the Parkdale Residents Association, but neighbours are angry Perks didn’t inform them himself.

But in his own defence, Perks said that councillors have a limited budget set outside for communications, adding it works out to about 15 cents per resident each year.

Concerned residents proposed implementing an “interim control bylaw” that would put the process on hold for a year. Kyrou said Perks dismissed the idea.