Amherstburg ends all conversations with Windsor over renewing policing agreement

Amherstburg is ending all talks regarding a policing agreement with Windsor. CTV Windsor’s Chris Campbell shares more.

Amherstburg has ended discussions with the City of Windsor over renewing its policing agreement, citing the city’s refusal to give the town a voting seat on the Windsor Police Services Board.

Mayor Michael Prue told council Monday night that the request for a seat was the only condition Amherstburg brought forward.

“We said to Windsor, we want a seat at the table,” said Prue.

“I mean, they allow me to go there now, but I’m mostly just an observer … I don’t really know sometimes what’s going on. And so, we said, we want full status. The CAO took it back to the municipal council of Windsor … When we came back, they said, absolutely not. So, we told them, well, that’s the end of our discussion.”

Prue said there was no point negotiating further.

“There is no sense negotiating with Windsor where they are so intransigent that they won’t let somebody from our town on that board,” he said, calling the situation “unfortunate.”

He added his experience at the board has been frustrating.

“I’m not surprised, the way I have been … treated,” Prue said.

“You can’t have copies of the agendas. You have to leave the room when we’re discussing Amherstburg. It’s just not right.”

The mayor said three options remain: Restoring the town’s own force, joining with LaSalle police, or contracting with the OPP.

Kent Rice, president of the Windsor Police Association, said the development has left some members uneasy. Rice told CTV News he remains hopeful discussions can eventually continue.

“I’ve already had some members reach out to me, obviously concerned because a little bit of stress and anxiety,” Rice said.

“There’s still a lot of time … and hopefully there will be some conversation resuming.”

Rice also praised the officers serving Amherstburg.

“The members are well liked out there … they’re involved in coaching, they’re involved in a lot of community outings,” he said.

“Unfortunately, sometimes politics and some other uncontrollable elements come into play and there’s nothing really the association can do. I will support my members and support all the officers.”

Windsor Coun. Kieran McKenzie said provincial rules determine who can sit on a police services board.

“At the end of the day, it’s the Windsor Police Service Board and that community position should rightly be someone from the community that sits on that board,” McKenzie said.

“If the rules were to change … perhaps there could be opportunities to revisit that. But under the current framework, that’s the circumstances of the law under which we’re operating.”

Former Amherstburg councillor Jason Lavigne, who opposed the switch to Windsor police in 2018, said the lack of representation was never a surprise.

“We knew this from the beginning and shame on any member on council … saying those things,” Lavigne said.

“There would never be representation on the board. And still we’ve got a mayor, a deputy mayor, a bunch of people acting as though they’re all surprised by these decisions.”

Lavigne said Amherstburg gave up a highly effective service when it disbanded its own police force.

“Amherstburg was the safest community in Canada … One of the lowest budgets in Ontario. We were the first police force to introduce body worn cameras full time, and it was a success story,” he said.

He blamed past councils for letting administration lead on the file.

“You know where we dropped the ball is we let administrators run the show,” said Lavigne.

“We have councils that are just blindly following administrations, hiring them on as experts and everything they say is the law, and they’re not leading the way anymore.”

Amherstburg has been policed by Windsor since January 2019, when council voted to disband its own force and enter a 20-year agreement.

The city announced in February it would end the deal when the current contract expires on Dec. 31, 2028, citing rising costs.

- With files from AM800/Rob Hindi/Meagan Delaurier