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Amherstburg’s deputy mayor scoffed at the town’s obligation to consult global alcohol company Diageo on how to spend $500,000 from a provincial settlement tied to the closure of its Crown Royal bottling plant

Chris Gibb said the money “should belong to the people of Amherstburg,” questioning on social media why the company needed to be consulted at all.

Diageo shuttered its bottling plant earlier this year, laying off about 200 people, eventually coming to an agreement with the province in February that would see the company provide a $23-million settlement to ensure its products remain on the shelves at the LCBO. 

Citing a diminished urgency for additional cross-border capacity, Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens says he would rather see the Gordie Howe International Bridge opening delayed than have Canada accept a “bad deal” with Canada–U.S. trade negotiations.

His comments stem from recent conversation with U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra, which Dilkens said took place in Ottawa last week when the two crossed paths.

“He said that there is a deal being put forward to Canada, but he’s not sure we’re going to like it,” Dilkens told the Windsor Star Wednesday. “When I hear something like that, it just makes me think, don’t accept a bad deal to open the bridge.”

The mayor said the warning reflects his concern that Canada might give up leverage in exchange for speeding up the opening of the bridge that has been more than two decades in the making.

“I would hate to see my leadership and my country falling on bent knee and giving in on something and giving up any leverage that we might have,” he said.

With approval of $69 million to replace sewage lagoons in Stoney Point and $7 million for the Belle River sanitary sewer expansion last week, Lakeshore has now planned almost $175 million in spending on sewage and water infrastructure. 

That spending, which covers three projects — $92 million was approved last year for a sanitary trunk from the pollution control plant in Bell River down the County 22 corridor to the edge of Lakeshore — will replace old infrastructure dating back to 1978 and allow for about 14,000 new homes and accompanying commercial development. 

Much of that development will be focused along the County 22 corridor in the Wallace Woods area. 

The projects address the major capacity problems Lakeshore has experienced, especially in the municipality’s eastern communities, where handling of sewage has been a significant problem. 

A message of perseverance and the power of education anchored Women United’s annual Celebrating Women Who Inspire Us Luncheon on Wednesday as community members gathered to support programs for local youth.

Presented by LiUNA!625, the event featured keynote speaker Lynn McLaughlin — an award-winning educator, author and brain tumour survivor — who shared reflections on her career in education and her personal journey of resilience.

The luncheon also served as a fundraiser for United Way’s On Track To Success program, which provides wraparound supports for students from low-income households to help them stay in school and complete high school, with pathways to college, university or skilled trades.

Months after inviting higher-density development along a major South Windsor artery, city council backed plans for a three-storey apartment building this week, warning resistant residents that more neighbourhood change would come.

“It could be something that’s actually more intrusive than this,” Mayor Drew Dilkens told members of the public during Monday’s council meeting. “It could be something worse, when you start getting into types of developments on land this size.”

In an 8-3 vote — and after nearly three hours of discussion — council agreed to permit a three-storey, 29-unit apartment building on land currently occupied by two single-family homes at 1141 and 1175 Cabana Rd.

Home renovations and new builds along Windsor-Essex shorelines may be forbidden under Ontario’s conservation authority merger, the Essex Region Conservation Authority’s top official warns.

Speaking to city council Monday, ERCA CAO Tim Byrne, a 41-year veteran of the local conservation authority, said shoreline development is generally prohibited in Ontario, most of which has an undeveloped Great Lakes shoreline.

However, since most waterfront property in Windsor and Essex County is already developed, ERCA had “tailored” local policies to accommodate reconstruction.

A new $700,000 investment will help Family Services Windsor-Essex (FSWE) expand financial support programs at a time when more residents are struggling with the rising cost of living and growing economic uncertainty.

The multi-year funding will support free financial empowerment services in Windsor-Essex, including tax filing assistance, benefits access support, financial coaching, and financial education.

The funding is delivered through Prosper Canada’s Resilient Futures initiative and funded by the Government of Canada through Employment and Social Development Canada.

Windsor-Essex business leaders are calling Ottawa’s new $1.5-billion support package an “important first step” for companies hit by recent changes to U.S. tariffs on products containing steel, aluminum and copper.

But while the support could provide short-term relief, they warn it does not solve the deeper trade uncertainty facing the industry.

“This is a positive and necessary first move,” Windsor Essex Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Ryan Donally said in a media release.

Sherry Bondy will seek a second term as mayor of the Town of Essex in the upcoming municipal election.

Bondy announced her re-election bid on social media last week, saying she wants to continue work on infrastructure, flooding concerns and improving municipal services.

After serving three terms as a councillor, Bondy was elected mayor in 2022, defeating incumbent Richard Meloche by 583 votes.

She received 3,794 votes to Meloche’s 3,211.

The future of Amherstburg’s historic Belle Vue Manor remains in limbo after talks to restore the centuries-old property have ended.

During a closed-door meeting on April 13, town council voted not to move forward with a proposal by Amico Properties Inc. and the Loop Family of Kingsville to transform the run-down manor into a hotel and convention centre.

The in-camera decision was made public earlier this week.

“We couldn’t come to an agreement,” said Coun. Linden Crain. “I’m not at liberty to share the specifics … but I support the decision of council and the direction we’re headed.”

With about six months left in the current term, Crain said council felt it would not have been appropriate to make a “major decision” on the property and suggested a new council should determine what comes next for the historic site.