Possible addictions transitional house slated for Barrhead's Main Street

BARRHEAD - Barrhead could potentially become home to a transitional house for people who have undergone treatment for drugs or alcohol.

Best Option Health Services plans to open a transitional house facility for up to 20 residents at the site of Red Baron Inn on Main Street.

If things go as planned, Costa Ndlovu, mental health addictions counsellor for Best Option Health Services, a healthcare company specializing in providing mental health and addiction services for those in the Indigenous community, will open its doors to a small handful of clients in November and slowly expand as financing and staffing allow.

Residents of the transition house can stay up to one year. Its clients will mainly consist of Indigenous peoples from Treaty 6 communities, which includes Barrhead.

"It will be a true transition house," he said, adding its residents would only be those who had already successfully going through detox, followed by an addiction recovery centre or similar facility for stabilization treatment.

"The reason why they are in a transitional facility is for them to become stronger in their recovery and to implement the tools they've learned during treatment."

More specifically, Ndlovu said they would offer their clients programming led by qualified, licensed therapists and would include culturally responsive programs such as healing circles, sweats, and smudging with the help of elders from nearby Treaty 6 communities such as the Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation and Alexander First Nation.

He added that the transition house will also offer programming on general life skills, such as financial literacy, nutrition and cooking, resume writing, and other courses to upgrade their education and help them become more employable. The transition house will also feature a small fitness centre for its residents. Due to the facility's programming requirements, Best Option Health Services will need the entire building.

Ndlovu said the transition house would also offer regular on-site Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous meetings in collaboration with local community groups.

"We have already spoken to [Barrhead and District Family Community Support Services] to make sure similar meetings are available for community members," he said.

He noted the transition house would sport a 'zero-tolerance' policy for the possession and consumption of drugs (other than the medications prescribed by the facility's psychiatrist and other medical professionals) and alcohol.

"We will not be operating a 'harm-reduction' type of site. We want to provide an environment where people would like to maintain their sobriety and sustain their recovery," Ndlovu said.

He also noted the facility would be staffed 24 hours a day.

As for why Best Option Health Services chose Barrhead for the transition house, Ndlovu said the answer was two-fold, the first being a matter of practicality.

He admitted that the transition house could go anywhere, but finding the required structure to safely accommodate 15 to 20 clients and one they could afford would be challenging in many other communities.

Ndlovu said they were also looking for communities and neighbourhoods that would be less "overwhelming" for their clients.

"The process of gradual reorientation and reintegration back into the community is easier when coming out of treatments," he said.

Barrhead's location, especially its proximity to Edmonton, also made it attractive, Ndlovu added.

He said his initial conversations with the Town of Barrhead and other stakeholders have been positive so far, adding that Best Option Health Services will hold additional public information sessions as the project progresses.

"Community engagement and the feelings and values that people express are very important to us, and we will do our best to work around those concerns," Ndlovu said.

He also encouraged anyone with questions or concerns to contact Best Best Option Health Services directly. Contact information is available through its website, www.bestoptioncare.com.

However, Ndlovu said they still have a lot of work to do, including finalizing the property purchase, before those public engagement sessions occur.

But one of, if not the most significant challenge Best Option Health Services will have to overcome, Ndlovu said, is to come up with enough operational capital.

He said they would be looking to the federal government, most notably Indigenous Services Canada, First Nation communities, donations from the corporate partnerships and their own fundraising efforts.

The Town of Barrhead approved Best Option Health Services' development application on May 7, following a 21-day period, which nearby property owners could appeal.

Legislative services, economic development and planning director Jenny Bruns said the municipality received the application in mid-April.

"[The property] is zoned commercial, and as such, a transitional house would be allowed for discretionary use," she said.

Before granting the permit, Bruns said administration talked to the "base owners on Main Street.

"We told them what was happening and asked them if they had any concerns and then modelled the conditions in the permit to alleviate them," she said.

Among the concerns Bruns heard included loitering, security, and the potential for unwanted or illegal activities.

To help ease their concerns, she said that planning staff "did some created stuff," ensuring that there would be an outdoor amenity space at the back of the property that residents could use and that surveillance or security cameras were in place.

Specifically, the development permit states Best Option Health Services must install a video surveillance system to monitor the transition house's entrances and outdoor spaces.

Other conditions include hours of operation or quiet hours from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m.;  all operations conform to the town's noise bylaw; adequate parking is on-site, and there is appropriate supervision to the satisfaction of the development authority.

Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com