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Chalk written outside the Sheldon Chumir supervised consumption site in Calgary after it closed its doors on June 30, 2026. (CityNews\/Jillian Code)<\/p>\nCalgary\u2019s supervised consumption site is closed after more than eight years in operation, marking a shift in the province\u2019s approach to addiction services.<\/p>\n
A chalk message reading \u201cHarm reduction saves lives\u201d sat outside the Sheldon Chumir facility as the province permanently shut the doors on June 30. <\/p>\n
The site had provided a supervised location for Calgarians to use illicit drugs for nearly eight and a half years. Messages of support were scattered nearby, including one that read \u201copioid dependency programs saved my life,\u201d with \u201cMe too\u201d written underneath.<\/p>\n
The province says the space will be converted into a rapid access addiction medicine site offering treatment services.<\/p>\n
Chalk written outside the Sheldon Chumir supervised consumption site in Calgary after it closed its doors on June 30, 2026. (CityNews\/Jillian Code)<\/p>\n
Mayor Jeromy Farkas says he is \u201cpositively encouraged\u201d by the plan but wants stronger provincial support.<\/p>\n
\u201cLooking at some of the peer\u2011reviewed research from other municipalities, it seems to show that as long as there\u2019s a replacement provided for the services that the most vulnerable Calgarians need, we don\u2019t skip a beat in terms of the public safety element,\u201d says Farkas.<\/p>\n
Ward 8 Coun. Nathaniel Schmidt says he\u2019s worried the closure leaves a gap in services.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe thing that\u2019s worrying to me is that although the site itself is going away, the people that use the site are not going away,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Schmidt says he\u2019s concerned the city and province don\u2019t have a robust enough plan to immediately address the resources needed after the closure. One step he wants city council to consider is adding more mobile response units to the Calgary Fire Department, which has seen an increase in overdose calls.<\/p>\n
The facility opened in October 2017 as the first of the province\u2019s supervised consumption sites. It was followed by six others.<\/p>\n
Data from Alberta\u2019s substance use surveillance system dashboard shows that from October to December of last year, more than 9,000 people used the site in Calgary.<\/p>\n
The government has been gradually shuttering such facilities across the province as it shifts to a recovery-centred approach.<\/p>\n
With files from The Canadian Press<\/p>\n
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