Amherstburg council votes to keep Windsor police

By Ron Giofu

The Windsor Police Service –Amherstburg Detachment will continue to operate in the town.

Town council voted to authorize administration to exercise the renewal clause with the Windsor Police Service Board for another five years, meaning that Windsor police will stay in Amherstburg from Jan. 1, 2024 to Dec. 31, 2028.

The renewal came as part of a special meeting of town council held last Wednesday evening.

Councillor Don McArthur was among those voting in favour of renewing the contract with Windsor police. He recalled it being a “massive issue” two elections ago but not so much in 2022.

“There was hardly a blip on the radar screen,” said McArthur. “It was hardly discussed at all.”

McArthur didn’t believe the public at large was “up in arms” about the police service, and that if there are not many issues raised, it’s an indication people are fine with the status quo.

“Some people don’t believe the savings are there,” said McArthur. “The savings are there. It’s in the administrative report.”

McArthur disagreed with Mayor Michael Prue not being a voting member of the Windsor Police Services Board but noted it was a contractual agreement. He also believed someone with an Indigenous background or a person of colour should have representation.

“The contract saves us money,” he stated, adding the level of service is protected in the contract.

The identity of the town has not changed since the switch, he believed, as he judges the community based on such things as its people and events. Now that things have “settled down” at town hall as it relates to staffing, McArthur didn’t feel it was the time to make changes with policing in Amherstburg. He also didn’t believe it was right to add a Request for Proposals (RFP) onto the workload of town administration.

“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” he said.

Going back to the Amherstburg Police Service would be “extremely expensive,” he added, and that it comes down to annual operational savings.

Councillor Linden Crain said the savings have been over $300,000 per year since the switch and believed the town was getting good service. He said a recent survey showed about 90 per cent of respondents were fine with Windsor police.

“It comes down to savings and the level of service,” he said.

Crain said there is not enough in reserves to restart Amherstburg police unless the town increases the tax rate, something he said residents don’t want to see. Additional services are offered through Windsor police, he added.

“If the next term wants to consider (switching), they can do it then but right now it’s not a smart financial decision to reinstate Amherstburg police or any other routes like OPP,” he said.

Time constraints are also a factor as it pertains to getting costings and making a potential switch.

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