SF Otago manager Jackie McKenzie told about 100 people gathered at the King's and Queen's Performing Arts Centre in South Dunedin last night her support service had been significantly affected by the shop.
She said she had witnessed adults selling synthetic cannabinoids to minors, there had been lots of rubbish and graffiti/tagging in the area and the front window of her premises had been smashed by people in balaclavas with baseball bats.
She said it was having an effect on her clients, some of whom were trying to recover from the effects of synthetic cannabinoids.
Last night's meeting was aimed at highlighting the negative effects of synthetic cannabinoids in the community, and she called on other organisations in the city to also lobby the Dunedin City Council about making sure shops retailing these products were not allowed to set up near schools or ''other sensitive areas''.
Sergeant Greg Dunne, of Dunedin Police, Joanne Lee, of Public Health South, and former legal high consumer Dennis Rutherford spoke at the meeting to illustrate the damage synthetic cannabinoids were doing.
Sgt Dunne said 5% to 10% of the crime he attended in Dunedin involved synthetic cannabinoids in some way.
He described the life of an 18-year-old, who typified the trouble people got into when dabbling in legal highs.
''He wasn't a bad chap. All in all, he was not someone you would regard as a criminal.
''But when he started using synthetic cannabinoids, they became his sole focus for the day. He quickly went through his savings buying the stuff, then he sold his assets. He then became withdrawn and isolated from his friends.
''He lost perspective of what he was doing to himself and others around him - he began to burgle houses to support his habit.''
It ended with him being killed after consuming a large quantity of the legal high and driving head on into a truck, Sgt Dunne said.
''It affected his family and local community. It only took 18 months.''
