new westminster
Marijuana dispensary proponent gets warm reception
By Grant Granger - New Westminster News Leader
There was no outcry of ruining the neighbourhood when a representative of a medical marijuana dispensary made a case for setting up a "pot shop" on 12th Street in New Westminster to the West End Residents Association (WERA) last week.
WERA president Elmer Rudolph said Justin Cleveland of the West Coast Green Light Society made an impressive 15-minute powerpoint presentation and fielded questions for 20 minutes at an association gathering that included about 15 residents.
"It was either noncommittal, or I would say I would have the general feeling it was positive," said Rudolph of the reaction. "I didn't get any indication that anybody felt very strongly anti-dispensary." Read more »
Marijuana dispensary looks to plant seeds of understanding
By: Mario Bartel - New Westminster News Leader
Like any small businessman Justin Cleveland is passionate about the product he sells.
But when that product is illegal unless it's being obtained by permission of the federal government and with a doctor's prescription, Cleveland knows he has to tread carefully to ease the concerns of neighbouring businesses and residents. Read more »
Drug overdoses up, Hep C high
BY ROCHELLE BAKER, THE TIMES
Numbers in an upcoming Fraser Health report for the City of Abbotsford around injection drug use show relatively high rates of overdose hospitalizations, deaths and hepatitis C rates within the community.
And those rates may be tied to the city's lack of harm reduction services, says a Fraser Health expert.
Abbotsford was second only to New Westminster for the rate of people admitted to hospital because of illegal drug overdoses in a comparison that included Surrey and Burnaby.
Between 2006/07 and 2010/11, New Westminster's overdose hospital admission rate was 23.6 per 100,000 people. Read more »
New Westminster and Abbotsford relatively high in drug overdoses
BY JENNIFER MOREAU, THE RECORD
A Fraser Health Authority report on injection drug use and harm reduction is showing relatively high rates of hepatitis C, illicit drug overdoses and deaths for New Westminster and Abbotsford.
However, the report's author says New Westminster is on par with surrounding municipalities.
The Record obtained a copy of the attachment that was to be included as part of a proposed harm reduction service plan for Abbotsford, which is reviewing its antiharm-reducation bylaw.
The city passed a 2005 bylaw that bans harm reduction facilities such as needle exchanges or injection sites in all zones of the city.
Fraser Health has repeatedly emphasized the need to establish harm reduction measures in Abbotsford. Read more »
