B.C. Health Minister Ravi Kahlon has ordered the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority (VCH) to “stand down” on the agency’s plan to open an overdose prevention site in a vacant building near St. Paul’s Hospital.

Kahlon said Tuesday in a statement over email that he directed the health authority to instead propose “alternative programming for the site” at 900 Helmcken St. that meets the needs of the community, including treatment and recovery supports.

“This work will be informed by engagement with the City of Vancouver, local businesses, resident associations and other community partners, as well as by public health partners and people with lived experience,” Kahlon said.

The news comes after then-health minister, Josie Osborne, announced in May that VCH would not proceed with the site “at this time.” Osborne did not say at the time that the facility was cancelled. She said the ministry and VCH were “committed to taking steps to fully engage with stakeholders and community ahead of any new site opening.”

The health authority had signed a lease with the property owner to begin offering injection and inhalation services for people who use drugs in June. The lease term was to begin June 1. The health authority had anticipated services would be available soon afterward.

‘Listening to the voices of Vancouverites’

The planned opening triggered a public campaign by Mayor Ken Sim, his ABC Vancouver colleagues and several business owners and associations to block the site from opening.

At a May 5 news conference across the street from the proposed site, Sim said opening another site “to use illicit drugs in the middle of downtown Vancouver one block away from Granville Street isn’t an answer to the addiction and mental health crisis that is destroying people’s lives across this great country of ours.”

The mayor suggested the site should be located at St. Paul’s Hospital.

“People need real treatment and real recovery options,” Sim said. “And that’s not what this place is. This same neighbourhood has already been home to previous failed [overdose prevention sites] OPS sites that created street disorder, safety concerns, open drug use, significant challenges and concerns for residents and businesses.”

In a statement Monday, Sim said he wanted to thank the provincial government “for listening to the voices of Vancouverites.” He also thanked Police Chief Steve Rai, the business owners and business associations for their support in pushing back against the site.

“It has been an honour to stand alongside the community and see their passion not only for public safety but also for better, more compassionate care for our most vulnerable,” Sim said. “This is what can happen when a community comes together. Together, we can build a city that is safe, caring and compassionate.”

‘Not the right location’

Jane Talbot, president and CEO of Downtown Van, said in an email Tuesday that she supports the government’s decision to cancel the proposed OPS.

“Our members were clear that this was not the right location for an OPS, and we appreciate the province listening to and acting on their concerns,” Talbot said. “A thriving downtown must be both compassionate and safe, and now it is up to Vancouver Coastal Health and the province to determine the next steps.”

Talbot added: “We look forward to continuing to work with all levels of government to develop solutions that support people struggling with mental health and addiction while also ensuring a safe, healthy and vibrant downtown for everyone.”

Meanwhile, people who use drugs in the neighbourhood will continue to have access to a van that Dr. Patricia Daly told Business in Vancouver in May was not adequate to meet the needs of the people who require addiction services.

Daly is VCH’s chief medical health officer.

“So this [site at Helmcken] is desperately needed,” Daly said at the time.

“This neighbourhood has the second-highest rate of overdose death in our region. Only the Downtown Eastside neighbourhood is higher. It’s one of the highest rates in the province. There were 94 deaths last year. So we need to find a location for this service, and we think this is a good one.”

Plebiscite questions

Kahlon’s decision comes as Sim and his ABC Vancouver colleagues successfully added two plebiscite questions to the Oct. 17 municipal election ballot. Sim discussed the questions in a recent interview with BIV.

The questions:

• Are you in favour of the City of Vancouver strengthening its laws to forbid open-air hard drug use, like heroin, meth, fentanyl and crack, in public spaces?
• Should the City of Vancouver formally ask the province of British Columbia to convert portions of the former St. Paul’s Hospital into a secure medical facility that provides acute voluntary and involuntary care for individuals posing a severe risk to themselves or others due to substance use and mental health disorders?

Kahlon said in his email that the plebiscite is not needed.

“We as the province have already committed to building involuntary care spaces in Vancouver,” the minister said. “I look forward to sitting down with the City of Vancouver and our partners to discuss how we can ensure vulnerable people are getting the support they need, while working together to build a healthier and safer community.”

138 overdose deaths in June

According to preliminary data reported by the BC Coroners Service, there were 138 suspected overdose drug deaths in B.C. in June, about an average of 4.6 deaths a day. A total of 25 occurred in Vancouver.

In the first six months of 2026, deaths among people between 30 and 59 accounted for 68 per cent of drug-toxicity deaths in the province, and 75 per cent were male. Total number of deaths in Vancouver during that period reached 179.

By health authority in 2026, the highest number of unregulated drug deaths were in the Fraser and Vancouver Coastal health authorities—206 and 200 deaths, respectively—making up 52 per cent of all such deaths.

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