By Gilles Cyrenne and James Witwicki
Local Journalism Initiative Reporters

Larry Campbell — who spent decades in and around the Downtown Eastside (DTES) during his former careers as Vancouver’s mayor and its chief coroner — says people struggling with addiction and mental health issues today are younger and sicker than they have ever been.

Campbell, who was the city’s chief coroner from 1996 to 2000 and the mayor from 2002-2005, also served as an RCMP officer (1969-1981) and a Canadian senator (2005-2023). Last September her was appointed by the BC NDP government as a provinical adviser — tasked with assessing how to improve quality of life for people who live and work in the DTES.

He was given a six-month contract to engage stakeholders, including community groups and all levels of government, to improve outcomes in the DTES.

According to a Sept. 29, 2025 government press release, “Campbell’s overall focus will be co-ordinating and advancing the Province’s improvements for people, public spaces, infrastructure, health care, housing and economic development in the Downtown Eastside.”

The contract was set for six months, with an end date of March 31, 2026.

Campbell was to be paid $92,000 for the term, with up to $10,000 for expenses.

On March 10, Campbell spoke with members of The Shift peer newsroom at Megaphone during an informal visit to the DTES neighbourhood. He said he will likely ask for an extension of his contract, given the complexity of the task at hand.

When asked to elaborate, Campbell said he was shocked and saddened to see how much younger the street population had become, and noted that — due to the increased toxicity of illicit drugs and resulting overdoses — there has been an alarming increase in brain injuries.

This is a challenge when coming up with possible solutions, Campbell said, adding it is almost impossible to differentiate the medical and housing needs of those suffering with a dual diagnosis of substance use disorder and mental illness. As people in detox start to withdraw from substances, the psychosis numbed by their drug use emerges, he said.

Further on the topic of housing, Campbell noted that many people with a place to live often choose to “not go back home,” preferering instead to stay with friends on the street.

One of the reasons, he said, is that some SROs (single room occupancy buildings) have been taken over by gangs. This results in increased crime, noise and threats of violence.

Campbell could not say if he would table a report on his findings following the completion of his contract.

Campbell is the second DTES adviser appointed by the provincial government. The first, Michael Bryant, a former CEO of Legal Aid B.C. and Ontario attorney general, was originally given a six-month mandate worth $150,000 in February 2025. That contract was terminated just three months later, in May 2025, after coming under fire for its lack of transparency. At the time, BC Premier David Eby said Bryant would be compensated approximately $75,000.

The DTES has long struggled with issues around poverty, affordable housing and mental health. It has been ground zero for the province’s toxic drug overdose crisis — which was declared a public health emergency in April of 2016 — consistently reporting the highest total number of overdose/poisoning events in B.C.