Safe shooting

Downtown needle exchange Cactus Montreal says it will open a safe injection site next year, with or without provincial approval

by ELISABETH FAURE

December 9, 2010

NO MORE WAITING: Jean-François Mary
Photo by RACHEL GRANOFSKY

If a Montreal needle exchange has its way, Quebec will soon become the second Canadian province to offer a safe-injection site—whether the provincial government wants it or not.

Cactus Montreal, a downtown needle exchange site, announced last week that it will offer IV drug users space to inject drugs under medical supervision at their office on Ste-Catherine E. and Sanguinet. Their goal is to reduce HIV and hepatitis C infection and prevent accidental overdose deaths.

“We see people dying (from overdoses) every month,” says Jean-François Mary, Cactus’s director of community organization and outreach.

IV injection is one of the highest-risk forms of drug use. But with immediate medical attention, most overdoses are non-fatal. Most safe injection sites (SIS) provide on-site medical profes sionals, who offer immediate life-saving measures to overdose victims. “That’s one of the main things we want to work on—people overdosing and getting infected from shooting up in public places,” says Mary.

But achieving their goal won’t be easy. Safe-injection sites have a long and complicated legal history in Canada. A landmark SIS case is currently before the Supreme Court, with a decision expected next spring. Although health care falls under provincial jurisdiction, provincial Health Minister Yves Bolduc says he’s waiting for the Supreme Court ruling before making a decision on whether he’ll allow an SIS in Quebec.

The case concerns Insite, a Vancouver SIS. Open since 2003, Insite operates under an exemption to current drug laws. Since 2008, the Conservative government has been fighting to shut it down, saying education and anti-drug policies are more effective ways to combat drug addiction.

Mary begs to differ. “We’ve had drug prohibitions for over 100 years and the actual ‘war on drugs’ has been going on since the ’70s. We see it as a complete failure. Drugs are more available now than ever.”

There are also economic costs. “Hep C is the main infectious disease we see among people who inject,” says Mary. “The cost of treating hepatitis C is $30,000 a year.” CACTUS sees an average of 1,000 new cases of hepatitis C a year.

A new report from Quebec’s National Institute of Public Health (INSPQ) sides with Cactus. Having studied worldwide SIS data, the INSPQ report concludes SIS’s are effective, and recommends Quebec’s government work with police, municipal authorities and sites wishing to establish SIS’s. “We want to put as much information before the Health Minister as possible,” says report co-author Lina Noël.

Whether or not that will be enough to get Minister Bolduc to change his mind remains to be seen. “Right now, the Minister is totally isolated” from expert opinion on the issue, says Mary. But Cactus is leaving the door open to further a dialogue.

“Maybe the Ministry of Health will move forward before the Supreme Court ruling, and that’s what we are hoping for,” says Mary. Ideally, the Ministry will provide financial assistance to help SIS’s hire medical staff.

If the Minister decides against SIS’s, other avenues exist. Vancouver has a second SIS (the Dr. Peter Centre) that operates without a legal exemption.

Regardless, Cactus is moving ahead. “We want to open in June 2011,” says Mary. “Whether people want an SIS or not, they see people injecting in the streets, they see discarded needles and they see people living below the poverty line. People need to care, because this is a society-wide phenomenon.” ■

Save Plateau pets!

Plateau pet-owners are urging the borough not to renew its contract with the Berger Blanc animal shelter when it expires this spring. At a borough council meeting on Monday, residents submitted a petition claiming Berger—which operates in 10 of the city’s 19 boroughs—is violating its contract.

Amongst its complaints, the petition argues Berger makes insufficient efforts to reunite lost pets with their owners, even if the pets have ID tags or microchips.

Anjali Choksi submitted the petition, which had collected almost 1,500 signatures online in less than a week.

Plateau borough mayor Luc Ferrandez is encouraging petitioners to keep collecting signatures. But he said unless another organization makes a bid when Berger’s contract ends, the borough won’t have much choice but to renew the deal.

Jeanne-Mance borough councillor Piper Huggins, who is reviewing the dossier, says Berger won its current two-year contract unopposed.

At the meeting, Projet Montréal leader Richard Bergeron mused that the $65,000 the borough pays Berger annually could instead be used to open a Plateau animal shelter.

“We think that would be a fantastic idea,” said Choksi. In the meantime, the petition can be signed at (petitions24.net/petition_berger_blanc).

Berger Blanc executive director Pierre Couture flatly denied the allegations when contacted by the Mirror.

—ELISABETH FAURE

The saga of the Empress Theatre continues.

The ECC says it won't be deterred from creating a vision plan for the Empress.

Published on December 9th, 2010

Elisabeth Faure

The latest developments in the fight to save the NDG Art Deco landmark include a petition and a legal notice.

Topics :

Empress Theatre , Empress Cultural Centre Board , SNC Lavalin

Two months after a new board took over management of the Empress, the C.D.N./N.D.G. borough and board members remain at loggerheads over the theatre’s future.

The ECC wants to move ahead with a “visioning process”, bringing together different stakeholders to hammer out a plan for the Empress’ future - followed by a full-scale renovation. In the meantime, they want to move ahead with essential repairs to as a temporary measure to keep the theatre from deteriorating further.

But the borough would prefer to see a concrete plan of action from the Empress Cultural Centre Board (ECC) before proceeding. They say the building poses a danger to the public, and is in need of immediate repairs.

On December 2nd, the ECC was served with a legal papers by the borough, demanding a list of repairs within the next five days (and a deadline of only 24 hours to fix a crumbling chimney).

ECC President Paul Scriver says the move took the Board by surprise.

At a November 15th meeting, the Board discussed repairs to the Empress with borough Mayor Michael Applebaum. A November 26th press release from the ECC described the meeting as, “constructive,” and said the ECC and the borough were in agreement the theatre, while not in danger of collapsing, did require numerous repairs.

Following the meeting, the borough’s Empress project director, Amar Bensaci, came to the theatre with a plumber, to repair a leaky interior drain in front of the theatre. Bensaci also promised to return with an electrician to fix the theatre’s interior lighting.

However, “no one ever showed up,” says Scriver. Instead, the ECC found themselves on the receiving end of an "avis de non-conformité" (notice of non-compliance). “We were told to expect "a letter" within a few days (at the November 15th meeting), but it was not specified what that letter would be exactly,” says Scriver. “In any case, the letter did not arrive, only the inspectors (with a day's warning) and then the avis.”

On December 2nd, the ECC was served with a legal papers by the borough, demanding a list of repairs within the next five days (and a deadline of only 24 hours to fix a crumbling chimney).-

Scriver says the repairs the borough is demanding are costly and impossible to accomplish overnight. And the ECC has yet to see the inspector’s report upon which the demands are based.

The borough’s report, prepared by SNC Lavalin, has so far remained under wraps. After repeated demands, the borough has agreed to let members of the ECC view the report, on the condition they cannot have their own copy of the document.

At a December 6th meeting of the borough council, the ECC submitted a petition urging the borough to declare the Empress a heritage site, and support its revival as a cultural centre.

“It’s their democratic right,” says borough spokesperson Michel Therrien. “And there’s no question we all want to save the Empress - it’s a question of how viable the project is.”

Scriver has now received a lawyer’s letter from the borough, holding each board member directly responsible for any public hazard posed by the building. He is discouraged by the recent "belligerence" of the borough, but says the ECC won't be deterred from creating a vision plan for the Empress.

With the winter here, and the Empress still in need of repairs, here's hoping the borough and the ECC will be able to move beyond their differences and find common ground.

’I’m a Westmount boy!’ – Paul Almond

Paul Almond is still a Westmount boy at heart.

Published on November 9th, 2010

Elisabeth Faure

November 17th, Westmount welcomes home a celebrated son in style. Filmmaker and author Paul Almond will be honored with a reception at Victoria Hall. Almond is in the midst of the book tour for his first novel, “The Deserter”. The period adventure/romance is set on the Gaspé coastline, and is inspired by Almond’s own family history. It is the first in the eight-book “Alford Saga”.

Topics :

Balliol College , CBC , BBC , Westmount ,Gaspé , Roslyn

Almond’s award-winning biography in Canadian and British television and movie-making is so expansive, there isn’t room in this article to list all of his achievements (indeed, in this entire paper). He has enjoyed a distinguished career at both the CBC and BBC, and has directed over 130 television dramas. He has directed acclaimed feature films (some starring famed Canadian actress (and ex-wife) Genevieve Bujold). He also created the iconic documentary series, “Seven Up!”, about a group of British schoolchildren, aged seven, from diverse social backgrounds. The series has returned over the years to check in with original cast members at seven-year intervals. The documentaries have inspired a devoted cult following.

But for the past decade, Almond has switched gears, focusing on writing. Almond is now married to Joan Almond, whom he describes as “the love of my life,” and, “my beautiful Californian wife” (“The Deserter” is dedicated to her). The couple divides their time between Joan’s Malibu home and Almond’s family home on the Gaspé coast. It is during summers there that Almond penned the Alford Saga.

“It’s so beautiful here - the fog is rolling in, the rain is pouring down, the garden is beautiful, with leaves blown over it,” says Almond, speaking by phone to the Westmount Examiner from his Gaspé home. The house, built by his great-grandfather, is over 200 years old, and is the oldest house inhabited to be continuously by a single family on the Gaspé coastline.

Almond professes a profound attachment to the Gaspé, but his Westmount roots run deep. “I’m a Westmount boy,” says Almond. He went to Roslyn and Westmount Jr. High before attending Bishop’s College and McGill (he remembers taking the 24 there from Westmount on a daily basis). He went on to study at Oxford University’s prestigious Balliol College. Childhood memories of Westmount include hours spent in the children’s section of the Westmount Public Library, which Almond considers, “the best library, anywhere”.

He notes it’s ironic that he decided to write a series of historical novels, as history was his worst subject in school. “I nearly flunked!” he laughs.-

Almond is excited for his reception, and the opportunity to connect with Westmount friends. He says he’s having lots of fun on his book tour, which is jam-packed - so far, he’s made multiple stops in B.C, Ontario and Quebec.

He says it’s ironic that he decided to write a series of historical novels, as history was his worst subject in school. “I nearly flunked!” he laughs, saying it was only due to his high marks in other subjects that he got into Oxford. “But now, I've written these books where you can get all the history you could ever want, but in a very exciting adventure format, with a lot of romance. And it's not, unfortunately, full of sex, violence, hoodlums, druggies - none of that,” jokes Almond. “They're proper books, and kids can read them too.”

Almond’s reception is open to all. For more information or to obtain free passes, phone 514-989-5265, or pick up at Victoria Hall, 4626 Sherbrooke St. W.

This was such a fun interview - I went to J-School with her sister!

Westmount designer Eugenia Leavitt talks about making the cut

Westmount designer Eugenia Leavitt works full-time at designer Astri Prugger’s Westmount boutique, while maintaining her own studio and an original line of women’s wear.

Published on October 28th, 2010

Elisabeth Faure

“I never imagined I’d be on a reality show!” laughs fashion designer Eugenia Leavitt.

Topics :

La Collection , TVA , Westmount

But the 29-year old Westmount native says she has no regrets about being on TVA reality show “La Collection”. “It meant facing some fears that I have, but I’m so happy I did it,” says Leavitt.

“La Collection” is a “Project-Runway”-style show. Leavitt is one of 10 young designers competing to be the last one standing.

Leavitt, describes herself as a quiet and introverted person, and says her decision to join a reality show took people by surprise. “I was kind of shocked myself, that I did it,” she says. “I decided to apply and see what would happen, after several people suggested I should do it,” she says.

The audition process was intense. “There were three or four rounds, we were interviewed a lot, so they could get a sense of our personalities. We had to bring in work samples, and there were mini-challenges - things like making a dress out of tissue paper.”

Language was an additional challenge - Leavitt is the only Anglophone cast member on the show.

“It was frustrating in the sense that I couldn’t always express myself the way I wanted to, on the spot,” admits Leavitt. But she says she got nothing but support from her Francophone cast-mates - “I always felt totally accepted.”

When Leavitt learned she had been chosen, she says she was “terrified, but I thought - I can’t say no to this - it’s such a good opportunity.”

It meant leaving her newborn son, Theo, at home for the duration of the shoot.

“We were secluded in a hotel, we couldn’t call our friends or family - only my husband knew about the show while we were filming,” says Leavitt.

The show’s second episode featured a dramatic scene of Leavitt in tears, saying she missed her son - complete with melancholy background music.

When Leavitt learned she had been chosen, she says she was “terrified, but I thought - I can’t say no to this - it’s such a good opportunity.”-

“I used to laugh so hard at people who cried like that on reality shows!” jokes Leavitt. “But, when it’s the end of a long day, and people are in your face, prompting you with difficult questions, it’s very hard.”

Leavitt says that now Theo is a bit older, it’s easier to balance her work and mom duties - she’s even working on a new line of children’s smocks and aprons, called “Doozy”. “It’s for kids helping Mommy out in the kitchen,” says Leavitt.

In the meantime, Leavitt has plenty to keep her occupied. She works full-time at designer Astri Prugger’s Westmount boutique, while maintaining her own studio and an original line of women’s wear. “I use environmentally friendly fabrics, and I do mostly cocktail wear,” says Leavitt. “But I also do custom work, wedding dresses or made-to-measure items.”

Leavitt is tight-lipped about what’s next on “La Collection”. “I am not allowed to talk about that!” she laughs. But she guarantees there’s lots of fashion and drama left to tune in for. She’s still in touch with many of her cast-mates, and her memories of the show are positive. “We were all thrown together in this competition...we all share the experience of this reality show, which is a crazy experience - even watching the show on TV is not the same as living it!”

How far does Leavitt make it? You’ll have to tune in to TVA on Wednesday nights at 9 p.m. to find out.

To view more of Leavitt’s work, visit her website: eugeniadesigns.com