Tag Archives: Windsor Police

Amherstburg Resident On Windsor Police Service Board

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David Hammond, of Amherstburg, is a provincial appointee to the Windsor Police Service Board as of January 16, 2025 and will serve until January 15, 2027.

Mayor Prue might not be happy that his role is to be an Advisor on the Windsor Police Service Board, without a vote, but the terms of the contract were known when town council renewed the contract on February 8, 2023.

I reached out to Mayor Dilkens, who responded by email:

The City of Windsor has a contract to provide policing to the Town of Amherstburg.  Windsor City Council was agreeable to providing their one seat to the Mayor of Amherstburg for the first term of the agreement.  After the first term, the contract specifically allows City Council to choose any other member of the public.  The contract also provides that if the mayor of Amherstburg is not selected, then the mayor can sit as a non-voting advisor to the Board, which Mayor Prue has done since assuming his office.  The City of Windsor is simply a service provider to Amherstburg.  We aren’t jointly governing the Windsor Police Service.  David Hammond is a provincial appointee to the Windsor Police Service Board.  The City has no control over who the Province of Ontario appoints as their representatives.  The City of Windsor can only appoint a single public member to the Board.  The remaining appointments controlled by City Council must be members of Windsor city council. 

The initial Agreement between the Town of Amherstburg and the City of Windsor, signed on October 12, 2018 stipulated:

The following shall determine the role of the Town with respect to the Board:

14. l (a) The City shall appoint the Mayor or his or her designate to the Board for the remaining term of Council until November 14, 2022, starting with the commencement of this Agreement on January 1, 2019.

(b) The City may consider the appointment of the Mayor or his or her designate for subsequent terms of Council provided that the City is providing police services to the Town.

(c) If at any time during the Initial Term or any Renewal Term, the Mayor or his or her designate is not appointed to the Board, the City agrees to allow the Mayor or his or her designate to become an advisor to the Board, as contemplated by the Act with the full ability to attend all meetings of the Board.

For further clarification regarding 14.1 (c), ‘all meetings of the Board’ shall include in-camera meetings and the advisor shall also receive all reports and correspondence as a full member of the Board would receive, subject to the advisor signing a confidentiality and non-disclosure agreement.

Consultation On Policing Missing

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Re RTT article, Town to move on from Windsor police, will explore remaining policing options

It was deeply alarming to read mayor Prue’s statement, ‘we didn’t even ask the price’ and the only question was about a voice and vote on the board, which Amherstburg has with a provincial appointee.

The contract conditions were well known during the proposal and during subsequent renewals.

When council initially decided in favour of Windsor Police it committed that, prior to a renewal decision, it would consult with the community regarding the overall experience with the Windsor Police Service during the first term. 

The original renewal notice date of April 30, 2022 was extended to June 30 and again to December 31. During the December 5, 2022 meeting, council approved the CAO’s recommendation and again extended the deadline to renew to March 31, 2023. The rationale for the third extension was that a new council was dealing with several issues and a ‘fulsome public consultation may not be attainable’ during the holiday season. Mayor Prue made a point of ensuring the public understood the town requested an extension ‘so that we can hold public consultations’ on the police contract which would take place between December and March.

The community wasn’t consulted during the three month extension and instead of waiting until March 31, council renewed on February 8, 2023.

During the February 8 meeting, council learned that the 5 year average cost for policing Amherstburg with Windsor Police was 5.4 million and LaSalle’s was 7.8 million; Amherstburg saved a 5 year average of $1,742,205.

As Deputy Maor Gibb mentioned during the February meeting, Essex County counterparts save approximately 2 million annually with the OPP, or about 10 million compared to our insignificant 1.7 million over five years. 

Given that an OPP costing was not obtained prior to the Windsor agreement, which was a disservice to taxpayers, and two previous council motions to obtain an OPP costing were never rescinded, this council should fulfill promises to consult the community and compare all costs and options prior to making another decision.

Amherstburg’s OPP Costing Controversy Explained

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Revised from a 2018 blog post.

An RTT article, OPP Does Not Give Police Costing to Amherstburg, quoted Mayor DiCarlo, “Instead of getting a costing from the OPP, we got a letter saying they are not going to follow our guidelines.” The OPP “basically said no” when asked for the details the town wanted, said DiCarlo. He said it was “incredibly disappointing” the OPP didn’t want to work with the town’s guidelines, adding it was also “very frustrating” that while Windsor was willing the OPP “couldn’t be bothered.”

A September 14, 2017 letter from the OPP is addressed to Mayor Aldo DiCarlo.

Rather than indicate an unwillingness to follow the town’s guidelines, the OPP reiterated “the OPP utilizes the Information Manual for the OPP Contract Proposal Process for all contract proposals” and explained, “the process prescribed in your Request for Proposal differs in significant ways from the process described in our manual. As a result, the OPP cannot participate in your Request for Proposal.”

The OPP also stated, “we have made several attempts to schedule an information session to explain to your Council the OPP contract proposal process. Since we have not been provided with the opportunity to do so, we recommend that you and your Council familiarize yourself with the Information Manual, as it outlines all the steps involved in the contract proposal process.”

The OPP required a council resolution by September 30, 2017 if it wished to proceed.

The town confirmed that the September 14, 2017 letter from the OPP to Mayor Aldo DiCarlo was presented five months later to council at its February 26, 2018 meeting when a decision was made to contract Windsor Police.

Therefore, I disagree with the mayor’s position and submit the town did not follow the OPP costing process. How incredibly disappointing.

Windsor Police Contract Controversy: A Call for OPP Costing

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I emailed this to council: I am very concerned about Mayor Prue’s comments in the Windsor Star article re Windsor wanting to end the policing contract.

Prue is quoted as saying, “Council is going to have to look at all the options available to us,” he said. “We’re hoping that our CAO (chief administrative officer Valerie Critchley) can talk to the CAO (Joe Mancina) of Windsor and see if there’s anything that can be done. “And if not, then we have other options we’re going to have to explore.”

Council should first be exploring ALL options and then making a decision. Two previous council’s motions to obtain an OPP costing were never rescinded but also were not fulfilled which was a disservice to the taxpayers. Compared to savings of $1,742,205. over 5 years with Windsor, savings of around $10 million with the OPP would’ve been significant. 

Council’s December 5, 2022 recommendation and subsequent council motion was to extend the Windsor Police contract deadline to renew to March 31, 2023 so public consultations could be held.

No public consultations were held.

Then on February 8, 2023, council moved to direct the CAO to exercise the renewal clause in the contract for a five year period commencing January 1, 2024 to end December 31, 2028. 

During the February 8 meeting, Deputy Mayor Gibb stated there’s a significant cost difference to the OPP of around $2 million a year and he even provided me with the documents to support his statement.

I am requesting council to fulfill its fiduciary duty and obtain an OPP costing.

Comparing Amherstburg To Other Municipalities: Routine Disclosure And Active Dissemination Policies

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In February 2020, former CAO Miceli advised Amherstburg was ‘in the process of creating a Routine disclosure and Active Dissemination Policy’ but one has still not been created.

“Open Government is based on the core belief that the public has the right to access the records and proceedings of government to enable greater openness, accountability, and engagement.” 

Information and Privacy Commissioner ontario

Townships to large cities commit to open government in by-laws, policies or a simple statement on the municipal website.

Blandford Blenheim proactive without formal policy endeavours to provide as much information as possible to the public without the necessity of submitting a formal Request under the Act.

Brockton endeavours to provide as much information as possible to the public without the necessity of submitting a formal Freedom of Information Request.

Wasaga Beach policy
April 19, 2016 

North Perth by-law
September 14, 2015

Northern Bruce Peninsula by-law
January 20, 2021

Grand Valley Most of the time, a formal request for information under the Act is not required to access information from the Town of Grand Valley.

Mono contact first for information

Orangeville contact first for information

Shelburne promotes open government and encourages the routine disclosure of information to the public without requiring a formal Freedom of Information (FOI) request under Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA).

St. Thomas The Act does not interfere with the present open disclosure practice of the City and cannot be used to access information already available to the public

LaSalle
October 9, 2018, reviewed October 1, 2022

Oshawa policy is committed to ensuring the public is provided with Official Records and Information easily and informally, supporting a culture of open and transparent government. 

Increased Police Dispatch Calls

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The November 2 Windsor Police Services Board agenda includes the September 21 minutes that state: A Board member noted a steady increase in dispatch calls for service over the last three months, especially since June, and questioned whether this trend specifically relates to Amherstburg.

The discussion revealed that the rise in June’s dispatch calls is connected to ongoing efforts to maintain integrity within the police force. Each call for service consumes police officers’ time, and the data collected now serves as a more meaningful basis for making data-informed decisions. Overall, there has been an increase in calls for service.

I’m not sure what the motion was but the minutes note the above was moved, seconded and CARRIED.

The audio is a poor quality; captioning didn’t really help.

New Windsor Police Deputy Chief

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Amherstburg Mayor Michael Prue is quoted in a CBC article, “There will be those who will say, ah, look at this, and there will be others who will recognize again what he has done over his whole lifetime,” Prue said. “I think the majority of people will probably understand that, there are some who never will.”

I’m one that never will understand. Crowley wasn’t going 10 over the speed limit. Police officers are not held to a higher standard, but they have to abide by the same behaviour as anyone else that they dole out tickets to for misbehaving; especially when it’s a more serious offence.

CBC reports, Windsor police name Jason Crowley as permanent deputy chief amid possible external review.

Deputy Mayor Gibb Comments On Windsor Police Activities Report

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Two Windsor Police reports were on the June 26 agenda:

15.1 WPS 2022 Amherstburg Annual Activities Report
15.2 WPS Q1 Amherstburg Annual Activities Report

Deputy Mayor Gibb asked if anyone from Windsor Police Service Amherstburg detachment was there. He mentioned the average number of tickets increased in 2023 and wondered if there’s more enforcement and asked or has everyone started speeding three times as much?

Staff Sergeant Caffarena stated that since around October they are enforcing more.

Gibb said that was fantastic to see and that it’s much appreciated because that was one of the biggest things knocking on doors – everybody’s speeding on everyone’s street so hopefully the illustrious reporters in the room get the word out that Amherstburg detachment is on the prowl, so Drive Safe. Listen to the audio.

During the February 8 WPS contract renewal discussion, Gibb said, in part, he felt the Windsor Police Amherstburg detachment does a great job protecting Amherstburg and every indication he sees is that the people of Amherstburg are happy with it. So he personally felt that they’re going to have to vote to go with the recommendation. Listen to the audio.

Gibb made the motion to receive the report and go forward with renewing the Windsor Police contract for the next five years.

The December 5, 2022 recommendation, and subsequent council motion, was to extend the deadline to renew to March 31, 2023 so public consultations could be held.

If public consultations had been held prior to contract renewal, Gibb could have shared road safety concerns he heard from residents; and those residents would have had an opportunity to do the same. And maybe before the next contract renewal term, an OPP costing will be obtained, as it was supposed to be, so Amherstburg taxpayers could save $2 million annually for all the amenities we currently go without.

Comparing Amherstburg To Other Municipalities: Inclusive Communities Grants

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The Town of Amherstburg applied for, and received $60,000. from the provincial Inclusive Communities Grants Program that helps communities become more inclusive and accessible for people of all ages and abilities.

Ontario.ca:

“The Inclusive Community Grants Program helps ensure local governments and community organizations consider Ontarians of all ages and abilities at every stage of community planning and development. Inclusive communities respond to both the opportunities and challenges of an aging population by:

  • creating physical and social environments that support independent and active living
  • enabling older adults and people with disabilities to continue contributing to all aspects of community life

Ontario’s Inclusive Community Grants Program supports community projects that:

  • benefit local communities
  • promote accessibility, safety and active living for people of all ages and abilities
  • meet the needs of seniors and people with disabilities.”

In a report to council, then-Clerk Paula Parker stated, the primary purpose of this initiative is to help Amherstburg to become an age-friendly community by ensuring that the needs of the residents of all ages and abilities are considered in every stage of community planning and development. The Town will engage a consultant to complete a Needs Assessment and Action Plan which will involve obtaining direct input from those most affected, seniors 55+, older adults 65+ and persons with disabilities and disenfranchised populations in the immediate region, community stakeholders, including municipal officials, local businesses, and providers in the recreational and health sectors.

At the Regular Council Meeting Monday, April 12, 2021, Councillor McArthur congratulated town staff for getting up to $60,000 from the province to be spent on seniors’ initiatives and asked what are we going to spend the money on?

Then-CAO Miceli explained we are going to be spending money basically developing a Seniors Master Plan showing the services and the needs of seniors in our community, a more inclusive and welcoming community for our seniors. The work plan will develop a significant amount of public consultation with our seniors groups, throughout various locations in Amherstburg. At the end of it all we’re going to have a plan that’s going to be a guiding document for council on what our seniors would like to see in our community of Amherstburg.

McArthur said we’ve been after this seniors master plan for a while and asked what the timelines was. Miceli said the timeframe to complete the project would be spring 2022. 

A committee was formed, a consultant was hired and the Inclusive Community Program (ICP) Final Report and the 2022 03 23 ICP Needs Assessment and Action Plan were presented to council on March 28, 2022. At the same meeting, it was recommended that: The Seniors Advisory Committee composition BE REDUCED by one lay member.

OTHER MUNICIPALITIES USED THE GRANT for a variety of projects, including accessible kayak launch, beach access mats, inclusive picnic tables, accessible pathway,  several accessible washrooms, upgrade accessible trails to meet AODA standards, making outdoor spaces and public buildings more accessible, accessible charging stations in local parks, accessible (CNIB) approved signage and resting benches,

Read the full listing: A total of 55 projects received an Inclusive Community Grant.

Comparing Amherstburg To Other Municipalities: Ontario Land Tribunal Cases

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Amherstburg currently has six cases listed at the OLT website:

  • Consent – Proposing to sever a new lot 69 North Street
  • Extension of the ICBL development of Howard Industrial Park District 7809 Howard
  • ZBA – six-storey, 28-unit condominium 639 Front Road N
  • Minor Variance – Construction of a Single Detached Dwelling 490 Dalhousie
  • Seminary of Sacred Knowledge, student residence 6101 County Road 20 W
  • ZBA – Dog breeding and boarding facility 6136 Concession Road N

Other local municipalities’ cases at the OLT:

Essex 0
Kingsville 0
Lakeshore 0
LaSalle 0
Leamington 0