An Open Drug Scene has formed in the parking lots of 7-Eleven gas station and The Hotel Ithaca on Cayuga street, within sight of Ithaca City Hall. Open drug scenes are gatherings of drug users who publicly consume and deal drugs. The Hotel Ithaca was also the site of a recent shots fired incident.
Drug users have been sleeping in the corner of 7-Eleven’s parking lot for several weeks.
On Thursday afternoon at about 1 PM, a partially masked woman appeared to be smoking a substance off of foil in the corner of the parking lot of 7-Eleven.
Evidence of intravenous drug use is apparent in corner of the lot. Orange hypodermic needle caps were visible around the dumpster. The odor of urine was also noticeable.
Shopping carts, bicycles, furniture and trash are a frequent sight in the corner of the parking lot.
A male individual could be seen ‘nodding out’ next to the dumpsters in the parking lot of The Hotel Ithaca around 2 PM on the 2nd of August. Nodding out is the action of passing in and out of consciousness while taking drugs, most often opiates.
The area behind The Hotel Ithaca dumpsters also showed evidence of intravenous drug use, including needles and distilled water ampoules.
Syringes and distilled water are distributed by harm reduction clinics like the Southern Tier AIDS Program (STAP) on State street, located only a few blocks from 7-Eleven and The Hotel Ithaca.
The porch of STAP is also the site of an ongoing open drug scene. Recent attempts by STAP management to better control the site, including bright lights on the porch, may have driven individuals further afield.
An individual was seen sleeping on the porch of STAP around 7:30 AM on August 9th.
STAP does not maintain control of its property overnight. What remained in the morning was trash, a shopping cart, a stripped bicycle and empty beer bottles.
STAP management recently received permission to enclose the property with a fence.
Hotel Ithaca and 7-Eleven management are aware of the issues on their properties.