No issues reported at Winnipeg supervised consumption site 1 week after opening, province says
Posted August 19, 2026 5:11 pm.
Last Updated August 19, 2026 7:41 pm.
The Government of Manitoba says operations have gone smoothly during the first week of the province’s first supervised consumption site.
The long-promised facility in Winnipeg opened its doors Aug. 11 after lengthy delays.
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Advocates say the site will help to prevent overdoses and save lives, while critics have expressed concerns about safety.
“My hope is that for all of the media attention and controversy and whatever that people have tried to kick up around this, now that it’s open, it just fades into the background and becomes another part of our health-care system where people with severe, problematic substance-use issues can just go and get their health-care needs attended to,” Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said Tuesday at an unrelated press conference.
Kinew says the site has already served more than 125 clients. He adds security and Winnipeg’s Downtown Community Safety Partnership (DCSP) are in the area during operating hours.
Some of the volunteers at the site have backed up the province’s claim of no recorded incidents.
“It’s been fairly quiet. Not a lot different that nine days ago,” said DCSP outreach worker Mitch Bourbonniere.
Some residents who have long opposed the facility remain frustrated.
Their complaints are about a lack of consultation and the cancelled tour of the facility for residents and business owners of the area prior to the opening
“It’s frustrating,” said North Logan resident Isidro Zapata.
While construction on the permanent building is still ongoing, there are no concrete timelines for opening.
As for outreach and first responders, they say they are seeing record numbers of drug-related calls and overdoses.
“It’s been an unprecedented summer with the amount of folks that are struggling,” said Bourbonniere.
