Flinders St injecting room will be ‘catastrophic’ for nearby businesses

Businesses already struggling because of COVID and Metro Tunnel works say putting an injecting room on Flinders St would be “catastrophic”.

A supervised injecting room on Flinders Street has been declared “catastrophic” for a complex of businesses next to the likely site.

Major hotel chain Hilton has also flagged safety concerns.

But the head of Sydney’s injecting room says such centres must be near a city’s drug problem if they are to succeed.

Teska Carson senior owners corporation manager Mark Laurence, who oversees the 250 Flinders Street building on the corner of Degraves Street, said putting an injecting room in the Yooralla building next door would be a disaster.

The three-storey complex Mr Laurence manages houses 10 businesses including United Backpackers, a gelataria, waffles store, restaurant and stationery shop.

One owner had just spent $1.5m doing up the facade.

“It’s just catastrophic on all levels,’’ Mr Laurence said.

“Being such a hub in the city we don’t see why it needs to go there right slap bang in the commercial, transport and tourist precinct of Melbourne. We deem it unsafe.”

City Injecting Room

Businesses were already struggling because of COVID and Metro Tunnel works.

“They’ve copped it in every which way,’’ Mr Laurence said.

“They are scared. Drugs are coming right next door to you and it’s compulsory if it goes through.

“We had no consultation, no choice. It beggars belief.

“There are other areas where this could be put.”

DoubleTree by Hilton’s operations manager in a council submission said the area around the Flinders Street hotel already had a high amount of homelessness and drug use.

“I am concerned the injection room would contribute and increase concern for safety,’’ she wrote.

Dr Marianne Jauncey, medical director at Sydney’s supervised injecting centre, said certain criteria had to be met if such facilities were to work.

“Like any health service, a supervised injecting facility should be located where people will use it, where it is needed,’’ she said.

“This means being close to where people are already purchasing/obtaining and using drugs.”

The Kings Cross centre, run by the Uniting Church, managed more than 10,500 overdoses since opening in 2001.

Ambulance call-outs fell 80 per cent.

Inside the Kings Cross medical supervised injecting room. Picture. Nathan Edwards

“Drug addiction is a long term, relapsing and remitting condition,’’ Dr Jauncey said.

“A medically supervised injecting centre is no more able to magically ‘cure’ people than an emergency department is able to ‘cure’ heart disease.

“We are a safety net, and our job is to start the person on a journey engaging with other health services and improving their own life and wellbeing.”

Melbourne City Council has backed a safe injecting room in the municipality with a motion to oppose one voted down.

Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton on Thursday said “you’d have to be living under a rock” not to be concerned about the impact of the North Richmond injecting room on local amenity.

This was despite an independent evaluation aired by Greens councillor Olivia Ball finding it hadn’t been adverse.

“It’s common sense there’s been an impact down there,’’ Mr Patton told radio 3AW.

“The extent of the impact is differing as to who you speak to.

“We’re doing everything we can to make it safer there as we will in the city.”

Police were aware the state government had a preferred city site but weren’t privy to the exact location.