Vancouver residents have shown their support for two plebiscite inquiries initiated by the outgoing mayor of the city concerning drug utilization and treatment facilities.
Mayor Ken Sim advocated for the plebiscite queries, aiming to enhance the city’s regulations to prohibit open-air hard drug consumption and to urge the province to offer more involuntary care services at a soon-to-be-shuttered downtown hospital location.
Although the city’s inhabitants voted on these questions during the municipal election on October 17, where Sim was defeated by Pete Fry of the Green Party, the outcomes of the plebiscites were only disclosed when the official election results were made public on Wednesday.
Sim contended that enabling voters to express their views officially would grant the subsequent municipal administration a more robust mandate to tackle drug abuse in the city.
Nonetheless, when asked by CBC News, Sim did not specify the particular bylaws that would be reinforced if the plebiscite question received approval. Possessing small quantities of illegal substances is already against the law in Canada, and Vancouver’s municipal regulations forbid smoking in public parks, beaches, and various other locations.
The second plebiscite question revolved around transforming sections of the current St. Paul’s Hospital or another comparable site into a secure medical facility, providing over 100 involuntary care beds for individuals at risk due to severe substance abuse and mental health issues.
St. Paul’s Hospital is scheduled to relocate from its existing Burrard Street site to a new location in the False Creek Flats next year.
At the time of proposing the plebiscite, Fry criticized it as a manipulative election tactic on Sim’s part and highlighted the lack of specifics in the questions.
In total, nearly 207,500 plebiscite ballots were cast, as reported by the City of Vancouver. On average, 63,300 voters opposed the questions, while approximately 136,343 voters favored them.
Vancouver’s civic election saw a turnout of 43.4%, an increase from 36.3% in 2022.