Downtown Eastside
The Downtown Eastside is a neighborhood in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is generally regarded as the poorest district in the city.
Considered by many to be a problem neighbourhood in Vancouver, the Downtown Eastside (DTES) is home to poor and displaced populations including First Nations people, runaways, prostitutes, petty criminals and
drug addicts. Vancouver's drug problem has grown steadily worse over the last decade, resulting recently in the opening of the first official safe injection site. The Downtown Eastside also has the unfortunate distinction, according to a recent article in The Georgia Straight newspaper, of having the highest rate of HIV infection in the western world, largely attributable to the sharing of dirty needles by intravenous drug addicts. The trial of Robert Pickton, a pig farmer accused of the murders of over 40 women from the DTES is currently ongoing.
The southwest corner of Main Street at Hastings Street continues to be a problem as drug sellers and users frequently occupy the corner, despite recent efforts at increasing police presence at the location. The central police station is only half a block north of the intersection.
According to Court TV's Chinatown (Pender Street) and the Gastown Historical District (Water Street) are popular tourist areas in the Downtown Eastside. Gastown, in fact, is home to many high-end restaurants, lofts and boutiques. While some suggest that some of this gentrification will help solve the area's social and economic problems, for the time being, it serves to illustrate the large gap between the city's wealthy and poor.
