The Woodstock Police Service says it’s cracking down on open-air drug use in the downtown. It’s in response to concerns raised by businesses and members of the public, who say the problem is hitting too close to home. And that was exactly the situation bar owner Helen Blackmore found herself dealing with recently. The owner of On the Rocks, on Dundas Street, says she called 911 and did what she could to help when someone overdosed on the sidewalk outside another nearby business. “We had an episode where one person collapsed in front of Telus. And I carried Narcan, so we had to go do Narcan on him to bring him back. Called an ambulance. And it was hard to get him back, we had to shoot him twice with it,” recounted Blackmore. Woodstock resident Kevin Boeaulieu admits to having had his own struggles with substance abuse, but he cautions that there’s much more to it than just addiction. “So, you can see people on the street, but them individuals, their mental health issues aren’t being dealt with properly at the core. And so, you can put a blanket problem over it, but there’s a lot of mental health issues going on,” he explained. The Woodstock Police Service (WPS) says it has heard the concerns and it’s taking action. WPS has conducted a series of enforcement initiatives resulting in multiple arrests, charges, and drug seizures over the summer. WPS Media Officer Const. Pritpal Thind says officers use their best judgement with each situation. “We also have obligation to those members of public visiting downtown areas, visiting public spaces, that the public spaces remain accessible to them. That they feel safe where they’re going, with their children, with their families. That they’re not exposed to illicit drug use or needle use,” said Thind. “Listen, we’ve got issues everywhere, okay,” said Fadel Zabian, the interim chair of the Downtown Woodstock BIA. Zabian says despite problems common to all cities, downtown Woodstock is still a vibrant place to visit. “People like to focus on the negative, but there’s so much more positive that significantly outweighs it. It’s a safe place. People are always downtown. We got music on Thursdays here, and a lot of events at Museum Square, and a lot of stores opening up. So downtown Woodstock is actually bustling really well,” Zabian said.
