A facility for a residential drug treatment centre for youth has been secured in Ottawa's rural west end.
The centre will open in Meadow Creek, on property currently owned by the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group.
The location was announced Friday, days after representatives from the Dave Smith Youth Treatment Centre and the Alwood Treatment Centre publically expressed their concerns about opening the facility at a proposed location in an urban neighbourhood near Baycrest Drive and Heron Road.
Earlier this week, Howard Williamson, chairman of the Dave Smith Youth Treatment Centre, told CTV Ottawa that the area is known for drug activity.
"For a child trying to beat an addiction, that's a toxic environment," he said.
On Friday, however, Williamson said it was unfortunate residents in the Baycrest area were pulled into the debate.
"This has never been about pitting one neighbourhood against another, but rather, highlighting the merits of a rural environment in comparison to an urban setting," Williamson said in a prepared statement.
"In our view, any high density urban environment would be unsuitable for such a treatment facility as too many distractions and negative influences are in close proximity."
Currently, drug-addicted youth in the region have to travel to treatment centres in Thunder Bay, Ont. or the United States to get residential treatment for substance abuse.
