Town council should obtain OPP

RE February 15, 2023 Amherstburg council votes to keep Windsor police

Maybe no delegates were at the meeting because it was not widely advertised, notification emails weren’t received, and it was held at 5 p.m. on a Wednesday.

I requested council to honour the December 5, 2022 motion to extend the renewal deadline to March 31, 2023; Mayor Prue’s explanation to the public gallery for the extension was so public consultations could be held between directors, in lieu of working, would not occur. Sorry, but that meeting was a joke and a waste of everybody’s time.

Administration believes this is their budget, they are the professionals and that we should simply listen to them.

Concerned resident,

—Rodger Hudson Amherstburg

costing to achieve more savings for community: reader

December 5 and March.

I pictured public consultations like the original Windsor Police proposal or like those for short-term rentals, Co-An Park, budget, ATV use, Howard Industrial Park District, Warren Mickle Eco Park Project, and Economic Development Community Improvement Plan.

Between December 5 and March 31, council will have had about 25 meetings, but the December 5 motion was only to extend, not schedule public meetings.

Without public consultations no one should claim, as Councillor McArthur has, ‘it’s an indication people are fine with the status quo.’ The survey results were only one per cent of 90 per cent of the residents.

As for the savings, the contract renewal is as much a disservice to Amherstburg ratepayers as the original was.

The reported 2023 savings is a paltry $348,441, compared to the 2017 suggested annual average savings of $567,802 or, as Deputy Mayor Gibb mentioned, around $2 million a year savings with the OPP.

Savings of $1,742,205 over five years with Windsor or around $10 million with the OPP – that’s significant savings. Imagine a pool, pickle ball courts, an accessible town hall, better roads, winterized park washrooms, etc., rather than fundraising for parks, welcoming sponsors or approving over expenditures.

In ten years with Windsor, expected savings of $3,484,410, compared to $20,000,000. with OPP.

While the previous council could have set aside more for police reserves, this current council could have honoured public consultation commitments instead of renewing a contract just because it ran out of time.

It is this council that will need to obtain the promised OPP costing during this term to avoid missing any further deadlines and funding for amenities.

—Linda Saxon Amherstburg

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