Our Park has this issue making it less safe for all park users: especially vulnerable are workers, children and homeless people.
From THE CITY:
“AS THE HEIGHTS STRUGGLES WITH OPIOID USE, NEEDLE EXCHANGE PROGRAM GOES HOMELESS”
By
“As the CORNER Project searches for a new home, area residents say they’ve seen an increase in drug use on local streets, while the nonprofit’s clients say they’re grateful for the help.
On a sidewalk on St. Nicholas Avenue, two men stood near a CORNER Project mobile center and ticked off the ways the group serves them.
Clean syringes are the main thing, said Kirk Marshall, 32, who has used heroin since prescribed painkillers first got him hooked on opioids in 2005.
The van’s fentanyl test kits are also key, he said, to make sure his heroin isn’t deadly.
“They’re welcoming. If you want to get clean, they’ll help you get into detox,” said Marshall, who started using painkillers after a weightlifting injury.
Next to him, a man who gave his name as “Frenchy” piped up: “Help with housing.”
“They get you set up with a doctor,” Marshall added.
Frenchy, who is homeless, says he’d “starve a lot of days” without the CORNER Project van.
“Oh, yeah, they provide food in the mornings, too,” Marshall said.”
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We know what works to assist people – where they are at. It doesn’t mean condoning drug use it means helping people find a pathway forward, and a chance to have some respite and resources as they do – while also protecting the public.
