A public consultation on the plan to convert the Ramada Inn in Timmins into a treatment centre for mental health and drug issues filled the ballroom at that hotel quickly Monday night. Capacity of 200 was reached and there were almost as many left outside, angry.
To handle the overflow, organizers requested the public ask questions of the individual agencies involved in the centre and then leave, so more people could have a chance. Both crowds are decidedly against the plan. Consensus is it will turn the area into another downtown, with a myriad of problems caused by the Living Space homeless shelter.
Among those fielding concerns was Jean Carriere, the health director for the Cochrane District Services Board, who’s overseeing the transition.
“What is your plan to secure this place for like a lockdown?” asked a man who lives nearby.
Carriere replied that it’s not a low barrier, come and go place like Living Space.
“There will be security,” he stated. “There will be rules around coming to stay here.”
Despite offers of more consultation, people weren’t satisfied. Tina Tremblay is a neighbour of the hotel who’s part of a petition campaign against it.
“We shouldn’t be subjecting our kids to this kind of environment,” she says, not accepting what the agencies are saying.
Here is audio of part of the conservation between Jean Carriere and concerned citizens.
