MYNORTHWEST NEWS

King County councilmember surprised by what she finds at injection site

Nov 20, 2017, 10:44 AM

safe injection site, insite, injection sites...

Injection booths at Insite, a safe injection site in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Jonathan Hayward/The Canadian Press via AP, File)

(Jonathan Hayward/The Canadian Press via AP, File)

When Jeanne Kohl-Welles witnessed the Vancouver BC injection site with her own eyes she was surprised by what she saw.

The area around Insite wasn’t the wasteland the King County councilmember was expecting.

RELATED: Seattle poised to spend $2M on safe site

“I went up there with the anticipation that it was going to be a post-apocalyptic scene out of some movie; that it was so horrible there,” she said. “I didn’t find that.”

What she did find was a place for people to do drugs, in a safe, controlled environment, without having to worry about being arrested. She told KIRO 7 that fear and controversy over injection sites have been generated by “some stories.”

There are two injection sites slated for King County, one in Seattle and one elsewhere in the county. Kohl-Welles says Capitol Hill is the perfect place for the Seattle location.

“Capitol Hill is one that seems the most obvious for here in Seattle because the neighborhood wants to have it,” she told KIRO 7.

Meanwhile, the Snohomish County Council will hear public comment on a proposed ban of injection sites in unincorporated parts of the county. The Snohomish County Council passed a six-month moratorium on injection sites in September.

RELATED: Dwindling options for second safe site

Other cities in King and Snohomish counties have already issued temporary or permanent bans. Auburn, Bellevue, Burien, Federal Way, Kent, Renton, and Sammamish have all passed temporary or permanent bans.

Jeanne Kohl-Welles tweeted the following during her visit to Insite

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King County councilmember surprised by what she finds at injection site