Needle exchange will move because of Kennewick neighbor worries

A controversial syringe exchange is once again looking for a new home.

Dr. Jeff Allgaier, founder and president of Ideal Option, told the Herald on Thursday that he will heed the concerns of Vista Way business owners and find a new spot for the Blue Mountain Heart to Heart needle exchange program.

The decision came after Allgaier and his team encountered fierce resistance from business owners in central Kennewick and a lackluster welcome from city officials.

Blue Mountain was evicted from its Pasco offices last week after its landlord, Franklin County, became concerned it was not giving out one clean syringe for every dirty one it collected. It was giving out packages of 10 clean needles.

The exchange will open Friday on a temporary basis at a small building Allgaier and his business partner, Dr. Ken Egli, bought near Vista Way and Highway 395.

In the exchange’s 10-month run in Pasco, it served more than 330 people, passed out 20,000 syringes a month and distributed free doses of an overdose reversal drug that was used 98 times last year to save lives.

Allgaier said the program is too important to public health to allow it to lapse.

He told the Herald the exchange will move once his team finds a location that is accessible to clients but far enough from neighboring businesses to avoid harm.

“We will find a new location,” Allgaier said.

His search will cover the entire Tri-City area, with an emphasis on locations served by Ben Franklin Transit.

Needle site rushed to open

The decision comes a day after Allgaier apologized to Vista Way neighbors for the rush to open there.

Ideal Option now plans to only post doctors and counselors at Vista Way during the exchange hours, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Fridays.

“They want us there a minimal amount of time,” Allgaier said.

They were unprepared for the backlash when they announced Monday the clinic would open Friday.

City leaders expressed dismay that the exchange was moving to a neighborhood trying to overcome problems with homeless camping.

Area business owners and the city of Kennewick spent more than a year cleaning up the neighborhood through new laws and enhanced police patrols. Many feared the exchange would fuel a return of the problems.

Allgaier and Egli founded Ideal Option seven years ago to provide medication-assisted treatment for drug addiction. Ideal Option operates 64 sites in 11 states.

This story was originally published March 7, 2019 at 7:10 PM.