Public split on location of Windsor's proposed supervised consumption site, survey suggests

There's no clear preference between the two sites being considered to host a supervised consumption site in downtown Windsor, according to preliminary survey results presented Tuesday night.

There are two proposed locations: 101 Wyandotte St. E.  and 628 Goyeau St. They are located just metres away from each other. 

Among everyone who participated in the survey, 41 per cent indicated "very large support" and 15 with "large support" for the Wyandotte Street site versus 42 per cent and 13 per cent for the Goyeau Street site.

Twenty-two per cent indicated no support of the Wyandotte site, while 20 per cent did not support the Goyeau location.

The results were revealed at a town hall meeting on Tuesday night. The event, the first of four this week, was intended to allow community members to ask questions and hear from experts.

There were 448 respondents to the survey, 127 of whom said they lived, worked or attended school in the downtown postal code where the site will be located. 

Of the respondents, 171 of those people are family members, friends or loved ones of someone who use drugs and 43 have had or currently have substance use issues.

A site is expected to be selected in the early fall. The proposal would then go to Windsor City Council for approval, then officials would seek permission from the federal and provincial governments. 

Officials with the Windsor-Essex Community Opioid and Substance Strategy hope to see the site open up some time in 2022.