In the summer of 2023, overwhelmed by violence linked to crack, the quay 9 injection room behind Cornavin station, had prohibited consumption. Consumers of this drug are welcomed again with a new dedicated space that was inaugurated on Tuesday.
After seven months of work and an investment of one and a half million francs, 150 square meters of extension were added to the quay 9.
Open two weeks ago, this new space was designed specifically to respond to the problem of crack. It includes a rest room, a new sanitary block with toilets and showers, and especially a room dedicated to the consumption of crack, equipped with four individual boxes and a collective space. Users can prepare and smoke their products away from other consumers, with whom cohabitation had become impossible.
Three times more users
Since the opening of the extension, the attendance of the Quai 9 has tripled, going from 90 to almost 300 passages per day. According to Thomas Herquel, director of the first line association, the place has found a peaceful climate. “There are still a lot of issues outside, with phenomena of violence, but inside, the atmosphere is good,” he said Thursday in the morning of RTS.
Igor, a Crack consumer, says he feels more safe than outside. He appreciates the relaxed atmosphere, the exchanges between users, music and the lack of vulgarity. For him, this is a real plus.
Give a positive image to caves
The objective is to bring consumers back to the premises, from which they had been excluded two years ago, but also to appease fears as well as tensions in the neighboring cave district. For Frédéric Bouvard, baker and member of the association of merchants, the new space of the Quai 9 represents a hope for the district.
According to him, the cave district sometimes suffers from a bad reputation, but there remains a lively and pleasant place that visitors rediscover positively. “Once there, they realize that it is a super pleasant neighborhood,” he said.
>> Listen to the entire interview with Frédéric Bouvard in the morning:
Sujet radio: Davy Bailly-Basin
Adaptation web: Miroslav Mares
