B.C. scraps plan for overdose prevention site in downtown Vancouver

VANCOUVER — British Columbia’s newly appointed health minister says he has directed Vancouver Coastal Health to stand down on a plan to establish a new overdose prevention site in downtown Vancouver, a move applauded by the mayor.

A statement from Ravi Kahlon says the decision was made in agreement with the health authority, which would propose alternative programming to meet community needs at the site at 900 Helmcken St., near St. Paul’s Hospital.

The confirmation on Monday comes as Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim, who had fought against the plan, says Kahlon had called to inform him of its cancellation.

Sim says in a statement that he was “incredibly grateful,” while thanking Kahlon’s predecessor, Josie Osborne, for pausing the project last spring.

At the time, Osborne, now the finance minister, issued a statement saying she’d heard concerns from the community and there was no set date for the site to open.

The proposed new site was meant to replace the Thomus Donaghy overdose prevention site that closed in January this year, with Vancouver Coastal Health calling it the only such site open to the public in the city centre area.

A statement from the health authority in May said the site saw more than 149,000 visits and responded to 480 overdoses since 2021.

It said a temporary, mobile overdose prevention site had been providing limited services since the closure, but the interim solution wasn’t enough to meet the need.

The location on Helmcken Street was identified after “a lengthy search and feasibility assessment of all potential sites in the area,” it said.

The lease at the new site was to begin on June 1 before the plan’s cancellation.

Sim had introduced a motion last May to “use all tools available” to prevent the opening, saying the city had a “responsibility to maintain public order, safety and the reasonable enjoyment of neighbourhoods” and take steps against developments that “may materially impact surrounding residents and businesses.”

The mayor’s statement on Monday said Vancouver faces “serious challenges with street disorder, open-air hard drug use, severe mental illness and addiction.”

Sim said he looked forward to working with Kahlon “as we move forward to increase secure treatment and involuntary care capacity.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 24, 2026.