The debate over Maison Benoît Labre has been ongoing since the supervised consumption site opened in Saint-Henri in 2024.
Residents and merchants are once again speaking out, raising concerns about the impact the site is having on the neighbourhood.
“I’m in my 40th year running my business and the past two years have been something I’ve never seen before,” said Peter-Erik Kristoffersen, the owner of Strata-Gym.
“Benoît Labre itself is not a problem, inside what’s going on. It’s not like a chaos. It’s well run, I think, inside. The problem is the spilling over in the neighbourhood.”
At a press conference Thursday, a Saint-Henri residents’ committee unveiled details of a protest set for Sept. 15 concerning the disruption and safety concerns of the site.
Under Quebec rules, supervised consumption sites cannot operate within 150 metres of schools and daycares. Maison Benoît Labre is currently inside that restricted zone and under the province’s rules, it will have to move by 2029.
“Our issue is that why do we have to wait until 2029? We can do it now if they’re already breaking the law,” said Herman Alves, a Saint-Henri merchant and landlord who is organizing the protest.
Alves says break-ins and theft have become a growing concern, and he’s taken extra steps to secure his properties.
“They jump the fences,” he said. “I already put fences here that are like seven-feet high, but they’re not high enough.”
Philippe Rousseau, the owner of Boucherie Notre-Dame, says dealing with disturbances has become part of the daily routine.
“It’s almost every day,” he said. “When the weather is OK, I mean, when it’s raining, they mostly stay inside, we don’t see them too much. But when it’s nice, I mean, it’s always something going on.”
During his interview with CityNews, a confrontation between two people broke out outside his business. Maison Benoît Labre workers stepped in to intervene, followed by Montreal police.
The SPVM says no one was injured or arrested, and the situation was resolved verbally.
“It’s not because we don’t want to help those vulnerable people, we just want balance in the neighbourhood,” said Rousseau.
At Bar Notre-Dame, manager Caitlin Marchand says the impact is also being felt by her staff, with incidents happening at least once a week.
“My staff has a lot of problems with Maison Benoît Labre. And they have to close their doors in the morning. They have to buzz people in because they’re scared. They have to make a judgment call whether or not the person is OK to come in or not.
“When my staff go to their cars at nighttime, they run to safety because they don’t feel comfortable walking the streets. Even during the daytime.”
In a statement to CityNews, Maison Benoît Labre says the needs of those using its services and growing and exceeding available resources.
“Currently, we must turn away two out of every three people seeking support from our supervised consumption service,” the statement reads, in part.
“Our commitment remains the same: to address the most pressing needs while actively contributing to coexistence efforts in the neighbourhood.”
In an email to CityNews, the City of Montreal says the bigger issue is a lack of resources. It is calling on Quebec to fund thousands of new housing spaces and specialized care centres across the city, so that no single neighbourhood bears the full weight of the crisis.
CityNews also reached out to Lionel Carmant, Quebec’s minister responsible for social services and the fight against homelessness, but did not immediately hear back.
“For sure, we always say not in our backyard,” said Rousseau. “I mean, that’s not the place to be. That’s been a bad decision by the political people.”
“We as residents and merchants cannot… we are also victims,” added Alves. “We are also vulnerable now because they’re coming after us.”
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