Non-profit evicted for providing DTES residents cannabis as harm reduction means

published on October 28, 2020 by Sarah Grochowski in Vancouver Is Awesome

Vancouver City council promised to consider making cannabis easier to come by for Downtown Eastside residents to help curb opiate use during a burgeoning overdose crisis.

Last summer, the mayor and council asked staff to devise feasible solutions.

This meant addressing cost and accessibility barriers – such as providing a sliding cost scale for residents and making allowances for legal cannabis shops closer to residents in the community.

Since marijuana was legalized nearly a year ago in Canada, the municipality reported even fewer stores in the DTES now sell the drug, according to city staff.

Only four cannabis retail stores have been permitted to operate. They are located within four blocks of the Main and Hastings street intersection…