Windsor’s Dry House has to move to stay in business

By Tamas Miko

A recently opened recovery home in Windsor needs to move down the street to continue running. John Button bought the house at 1052 Drouillard Rd. with plans to turn it into a recovery
home called Dry House. City Council opposed it because they had other ideas for the house.

Button, a recovering drug addict, is now living clean with a higher purpose – to help other people overcome addiction. After his idea of a recovery home was rejected, he decided to
look for the positive in the situation and is moving forward.

“I’ve been blessed by the grace of God to recover from a drug habit you couldn’t even comprehend and because of that grace, I want to help other people,” said Button.

Button plans to move the Dry House down one block in the Drouillard area. He said the neighbourhood needs a recovery centre. His goal is to help as many as 30 people at the
recovery centre daily. In 2014, he started working with the Recovery Day Windsor program to break the stigma of addiction.

Button uses the 12-step fellowship program used in other recovery programs such as Alcoholics, Narcotics, Cocaine, Overeating and Gambling Anonymous. He also teaches a twelve-step

Christ-centered recovery program at Dry House. Outside of Dry House, he works with Feeding Windsor to provide 1500 to 1700 community meals per week for homeless Windsorites.

Button is also part of the New Life Prison Ministries and Dismas. The Dismas Fellowship is a Christian program for ex-prisoners to help them reintegrate into society. Button is also
involved with the New Song Church, which offers Narcotics Anonymous and codependency meetings to help people understand addiction and recovery.

“Everybody disowns the addict because the addict does stuff to burn their bridges, to burn their relationships,” said Button.

He said people progressively become addicts after stressful life changes or when struggling with mental health issues. Button said most service providers are in the downtown area and
there are some on the west side of Windsor, however there is nothing on the east side of the city.

Executive Director of Drouillard Place Marina Clemens has concerns about Dry House. She supports the idea of a recovery home but not the location in the commercial area. According
to Clemens, the Business Improvement Association and Ford City Renewal are concerned about Dry House’s location because the building has always housed a business.

“They’ve stated in the community plan to keep that concentration there, to help do some facade work to make the businesses look better, nicer and more attractive,” said Clemens.

Clemens said if Dry House gets approval, other businesses could come in and also go against the zoning the city of Windsor has for the neighborhood. She said they do not want to let a
business that has been there for 38 years become residential.

“There is no consistency,” said Clemens. “You set a precedent and it does not help to improve the area.”

There are a few dry houses across Windsor people do not know exist according to Clemens. She said allowing Button’s Dry House on Drouillard Road would take away the possibility of
a new business in the Ford City Business District.

“We had two other people who wanted to buy that building that we are going to make into a business,” said Clemens.

Dry House will continue to operate after moving down the block on Drouillard Road.