The municipalities of Southwestern Ontario need to have a united voice — especially with no MPP in our region belonging to the governing party of the province, says Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens.
“It becomes more important to actually come together,” Dilkens said. “I think we all recognize that — not having representatives who sit in the government — we don’t have the same voice (as we did before).”
Chatham-Kent Mayor Randy Hope in Nov. 2011. (Dan Janisse / The Windsor Star)
At the invitation of Chatham-Kent Mayor Randy Hope, Dilkens and other mayors of the “South Shores” met in Chatham on Thursday to discuss their priorities and the issues they have in common.
The hope is that a collective municipal voice will lead to greater government attention with the approach of the provincial and federal budgets — as well as the 2015 federal election.
Alongside Dilkens and Hope, the meeting was attended by the municipal leaders of Amherstburg, Tecumseh, LaSalle, Lakeshore, Leamington, Kingsville, Essex, London, Sarnia and more.
Dilkens said the discussion led to the identification of several topics upon which the majority of the mayors are in agreement.
“Infrastructure — and infrastructure deficit — is a concern we unanimously shared,” Dilkens said. “When that rose to the top of the list, it certainly wasn’t a surprise.”
There was also consensus on: the need for a strategy on the automotive and manufacturing sector; the need for revision of environmental policies, such as Species at Risk legislation; and the importance of developing transportation infrastructure, such as highways and high-speed rail.
“And, of course — something that’s common to probably every municipality in Ontario — the exploding cost of energy,” Dilkens said.
The final topic of discussion was the province’s arbitration system, particularly when it comes to contracts for police and fire services. Dilkens said “the vast majority” of the attending mayors agreed that the system needs reform.
Ontario’s political landscape after the 2014 election. (Jonathon Rivait / National Post)
But the meeting wasn’t all about commonalities. Dilkens said the diversity of municipalities represented in the room meant there were some subjects that didn’t really apply to Windsor. “There were a lot of rural issues that we don’t experience in the City of Windsor — or Chatham, or Sarnia, or London, as examples.”
In the past — including the recent past — Windsor and Essex County have not seen eye-to-eye on certain subjects. But Dilkens feels his current relationship with the county mayors is “great.”
“That’s been the product of sitting on different committees together — like solid waste, like tourism — and getting to work with one another,” he said.
Dilkens added that just because our current MPPs aren’t part of the government in power doesn’t mean they have no role in advocating for the region.
“In our case, Percy Hatfield (Windsor-Tecumseh MPP) and Lisa Gretzky (Windsor West MPP) — they have voices too. Their voices will lead the way at Queen’s Park, but they need to be backed up … They’re still a critical part of the process.”
Dilkens said he has yet to have any personal communication with Premier Kathleen Wynne.
dchen@windsorstar.com or on Twitter @WinStarChen
Find Windsor Star on Facebook
