CTV News found many concerns when it visited the Works, just off Yonge-Dundas Square in downtown Toronto near Ryerson University. The Works became the city’s first supervised-injection site last November, with support from former Liberal premier Kathleen Wynne and Toronto Mayor John Tory.
Mark Garner, from the Downtown Yonge Business Improvement Area, says the BIA has found more discarded needles in the first half of 2018 than in all of 2017. On Monday, he found a stash of five in a plant box outside a pub.
The BIA supports efforts to save lives, but businesses have paid a price. They’ve had to increase security, paid to clean up needles, and dealt with plumbing problems due to needles discarded in toilets, according to Garner.
“This is the number one tourist destination in Canada,” he said. “How do we integrate that into the neighbourhood, what resources are needed and how do we make it safe for everybody?” he said.
Igor Ponizoe, whose shop is near the site, has had to put up a sign asking men not to urinate on his doorstep. Every morning, he has to clean up garbage and drug debris.
“It just affects the whole energy in this area,” Ponizoe said. “It doesn’t make this area more attractive.”
