Degradation and addiction: life at Atwater and St. Catherine

Derelicts leave mess inside Atwater metro at Alexis Nihon

   A van belonging to an organization designated to help Montreal-based Inuits recently pulled up outside the depanneur on St. Catherine just west of Atwater.
  Out popped the driver who cheerfully purchased 50 metal pipe cleaners, 10 crack pipes and a carton of cigarettes.
  "Let's party!" says one of the people in the van.

Urinating? Smoking crack?

  Such is life around Atwater and St. Catherine, a troubled area full of drug dependency that has recently worsened since the semi-secluded Cabot Square (aka Pigeon Park) was closed for renovations, forcing the habitues into nearby streets where they are frequently seen drinking, urinating and even having sex in public.
  One mother of a teenage boy recounted me her shock when her 11-year-old son stumbled across a fully-naked couple of a couple of years ago.
   The Inuit centre that was previously based on St. James St. W. was transferred to the old Reddy Memorial Hospital on Tupper a couple of years ago, which has led to some intensification of the disturbances.

Handy depanneur caters to party needs

  One frequent witness tells Coolopolis that about half of the chronic celebrants appear to be Inuit and the other half a variety of other backgrounds.
   A white anglo friend once told me that he and his wife abandoned their two children to live with their elderly parents so that they could live homeless in the park one summer about 10 years ago.
   He said that they had good times but was unhappy when their children were taken away by authorities.