Pubdate: Fri, 29 Sep 2006 Source: Prince Albert Daily Herald (CN SN) Copyright: 2006 Prince Albert Daily Herald Contact: http://www.paherald.sk.ca/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1918 Author: Barry Glass, Herald Staff REHAB FACILITY PUT TO A VOTE A proposed youth treatment facility got a welcome from Birch Hills town council, but citizens have demanded -- and are getting -- a vote on it. Over the past year, the Prince Albert Grand Council has looked at locations in the area for the facility, which would have 15 beds for youths aged 12-17 who have substance addictions. It now has 20 acres of raw land lined up in the southwest corner of Birch Hills, said chief executive officer Darrell Haysom. The town is about 40 kilometres southeast of Prince Albert and has about 1,000 people. A public forum in early September gave people a chance to find out what the facility would be like. "I have to commend them," said Haysom. "They asked intelligent questions, listened to the answers and then made the decision." Citizens gave it the green light and since then, town council has approved the zoning and the purchase of the land, he said. But a petition with 226 signatures was dropped off at the Birch Hills town office on Thursday asking for a yes-or-no vote on the matter, said Mayor Gordon Dyck. So, in accordance with town bylaws, Dyck said a binding vote will be held on Oct. 25, the same day as municipal elections. "Our council is behind (the facility) 100 per cent," he said. An agreement for the PAGC to purchase the land has been signed, he said, but council will have to abide by the vote. The petition asking for the vote does not indicate whether the signatories are for or against the facility, just that they want to vote on it, said Dyck. For Haysom, just reaching this point has been frustrating because of the hurdles involved getting acceptance from future neighbours. "With any type of project such as this, we're going to have people for it and people against it," he said. Some people think substance abuse is a problem everywhere except where they live, he said. But he said a high school student stood up at the forum to tell people the youth in Birch Hills are dealing with substance abuse as much as those in any other community. A deal was close just a few months ago to use land in the Rural Municipality of Buckland for the facility. However, Buckland's council voted in August against allowing the land to be used for such a facility. - --- MAP posted-by: Elaine