Lethbridge Mayor Chris Spearman. (Lethbridge News Now)

By David Opinko

“I feel angry” – Mayor Spearman on financial mismanagement at SCS

Jul 16, 2020 | 1:33 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – The Mayor of Lethbridge was disappointed to learn Thursday about the extent to which ARCHES was misappropriating taxpayer dollars.

A report was released earlier in the day by the Government of Alberta about a financial audit conducted by Deloitte. It found that over $1.6-million in public money was unaccounted for in 2017-2018.

Some of the money ARCHES was given to help clients at the Supervised Consumption Site (SCS) was instead used to pay for travel in Portugal, unauthorized overtime pay, and thousands of dollars in gift cards were purchased. An unnamed executive had increased their salary from $80,000 per year to $275,000 in 2018-2019.

As a result, the province has pulled its funding to the SCS.

“It certainly impacts the reputation of harm reduction and supervised consumption,” says Mayor Chris Spearman.

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From October 2017 to March 2020, the province dolled out $14.5-million in funding to ARCHES.

While the bulk of the funding for the SCS comes from the provincial government and it falls under the jurisdiction of Alberta Health, the City of Lethbridge supplied $2,500 per month that is used for breaking up encampments.

It is unclear what the long-term future of supervised consumption services will be in the city, but the mayor hopes that it will continue in one form or another.

“I still believe that supervised consumption is part of the four steps, harm reduction is part of the four components that are needed and I think it’s important that those programs are run well. It’s up to the provincial government to provide strategies that work together, coordinated strategies, to assist cities like Lethbridge.”

The province’s release stated that it has asked Alberta Health to set up a mobile SCS in Lethbridge until a long-term solution can be found.

Spearman says he has not been made aware of which services this station will offer or to what extent.

He hopes, however, that it will allow those who use drugs to do so in a safe environment that keeps them off the street.

“What happens if people are just loose in the community, injecting drugs in public parks and schoolyards? We haven’t stopped the problem – the problem still exists with addiction and we need the services to deal with that, so what will clean needle distribution look like? Who will pick up the needles and keep the community clean and safe?”

In addition to the provincial financial audit, there was also a recent operational review that was initiated by the ARCHES Board of Directors and conducted by a third-party agency.

It recommended many changes, such as improved financial oversight, stronger collaboration with police and EMS, and better “good neighbour” policies around improving the look, safety, debris, and the impact of the SCS on the community.

City Councillor Blaine Hyggen weighed in as well, as he has been vocal about issues relating to the SCS and its impact on the community and businesses.

“I ultimately respect the decisions of the provincial government and will remain focused on doing my part in ensuring we have a safe and viable community for the citizens of Lethbridge.”

Hyggen added that he will be “unwavering” in his ideologies that recovery needs to be addressed in Lethbridge in a big way.

Regardless of what happens going forward, Spearman said he will continue to advocate for all four pillars of the drug strategy, which generally includes prevention, harm reduction, treatment and recovery, and community safety.

Below: Watch the full interview with Mayor Chris Spearman and City Councillor Blaine Hyggen.