Health department survey finds North Richmond residents angry at local injection room

The State Health Department’s own research has revealed North Richmond public housing residents felt unsafe having the supervised injection room in their neighbourhood.

State Health Department research has revealed that North Richmond public housing residents are unhappy with having the supervised injection room in their area — and next to a primary school.

The main complaints tenants on the estate had were the presence of drugs and nonresidents, according to a survey conducted in June last year — a year into the two-year trial of the injection centre. The trial expires on June 29.

The report, obtained through Freedom of Information, found tenants of Australia’s biggest housing estate felt unsafe walking to the community health centre when the injection room began operating out of the same building.

A word cloud from the DHHS report showing the concerns of North Richmond public housing residents.

David Horseman, spokesman for MRAC-MSIR Resident Action Committee, which wants the centre moved, said the tenants’ comments showed the centre had been set up in the wrong place and that it had attracted more dealers and users to the neighbourhood.

“The report clearly articulates what people are saying on the public housing estate,” he said.

Survey comments from residents illustrated the depth of discontent.

“I would like to get rid of the drugs in the area — I just saw two people shooting up in the car park,” one tenant said. “I was with my two daughters.”

Another said: “When they put that building in, the junkies came into my home.”

The drug injecting room has helped thousands of users but community problems remain.

“Every morning I have to pull bloodied syringes out of the tyres of my car,’’ another respondent said.

The survey found an overwhelming number of residents did not feel safe on the Victoria St shopping strip because it was “strewn with dirty needles and worse’’.

Older residents said its reputation as a Vietnamese dining mecca had been taken over by drug dealers and users.

“The young residents particularly appeared to be desensitised from the drug culture around them,” the report said.

Many know that something as simple as sitting in a neighbourhood park is unsafe due to anti-social behaviour and verbal abuse as common background noise.”

A DHHS spokeswoman said the department wanted to understand residents’ concerns and to improve safety.

The public housing flats in Richmond.

“We have introduced significantly improved security measures on the North Richmond housing estate, including additional security patrols, enhanced lighting, improvements to public infrastructure, and more syringe disposal units to reduce unsafe disposal of needles as well as increased syringe pick-ups,’’ she said.

Researchers found 63 of 65 people surveyed felt unsafe.

They used three local agencies — Helping Hoops, Belgium Ave Neighbourhood House and the Richmond Housing Office — to speak to residents aged from seven to 88.

The future of the injection room has divided residents, some of whom say the area had improved since the injection room trial began.

Last month a new group called Supporters of NRCH MSIR appeared with a campaign backing the injection room. Posters, authorised by the Health and Community Services Union, also appeared in support, saying it saved lives.

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Originally published as Health department survey finds North Richmond residents angry at local injection room