ANTI-LIGHTS PETITION STARTED
Better use for $3M, resident says
With close to 2,000 Windsorites still drying out from Tuesday’s storm that flooded most of the area, the timing of city council’s decision to spend $3 million on Christmas lights for Jackson Park is sparking anger.
Windsor resident Brett Henderson, 21, has started a petition asking council to reconsider its decision. Henderson believes the money would be better spent helping Windsor’s homeless, improving the city’s infrastructure and helping homeowners repair their basements after the flooding. His petition had close to 1,700 signatures on Wednesday.
“When I read about council’s decision, it made my blood boil,” he said.
On Monday night, council voted 6-5 in favour of the $3-million display, which would bring brightly lit trees, sleigh rides and food trucks to Jackson Park during the winter months. Mayor Drew Dilkens and councillors John Elliot, Fred Francis, Jo-Anne Gignac, Ed Sleiman and Paul Borelli voted for the project. Councillors Chris Holt, Rino Bortolin, Bill Marra, Hilary Payne and Irek Kusmierczyk voted against the idea.
It’s the first time Henderson has been vocal about a political decision but he feels council needs to rethink its decision.
“People are outraged that council would even consider putting this money into lights when our basements are all backing up,” he said. “Council members are supposed to be there for us. Everyone is speaking out and that is really showing how powerful a community can be in pushing the people that represent us to do the right thing.”
Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens defended his decision to vote in favour of the expenditure saying he believed it to be a good legacy project. He said through good financial planning and prudent budgeting the city is in a position to be able to consider these type of projects.
“Everything in politics is about timing,” Dilkens said. “We’ve been working on this for a couple of months and we just happened to vote on it before major flooding happened in Windsor. It’s easy political fodder for a lot of folks and they can throw it my way. I’m a big guy. But at the end of the day was it the right thing to do? Yes.”
Dilkens said it’s important for people to realize a $3-million expenditure on lights doesn’t hamper council’s ability to fund the sewer systems. He said from 2001 to 2008, council spent $122 million on sewers and from 2009 to 2016 an additional $273 million. Two months ago, council approved the spending of another $12 million on its sewers. He said council is currently close to finishing its sewer system master plan, which requires inspecting every system to see how the problems can be fixed.
“This is a problem every city in Canada is facing,” he said. “All mayors are trying to figure out how to adapt to climate change, which is happening in great intensity. It’s just going to take more time to get answers. It’s not a simple fix.”
But Dilkens said in the meantime council has implemented different programs, such as the free downspout disconnection program. They also offer the basement flooding protection subsidy. The city subsidizes 80 per cent of the cost of a back-water value and sump pump up to $2,800.
“We’ve spent millions on this and there’s still a long list,” he said.
Coun. Bill Marra voted against the expenditure and has signed the petition. Marra pointed out he’s not “opposing the concept, but the process.” He said normal practice for a expenditure as big as $3 million is for it to be tabled until budget deliberations, which usually take place in November.
“The whole process was flawed,” he said. “It should have be subjected to budget deliberations. We didn’t even have a return on our investment plan.”
He said when the storm hit on Tuesday what it did was “underscored” that there are other priorities in our community that should be considered.
“I’m not surprised at the outrage of the community,” he said. “This validates that it didn’t fall within the high priority of our community. The storm just brought more outrage.”
Coun. Borrelli voted in favour of the Christmas lights because he believes Windsor needs to be promoted and this money will help create excitement for our multicultural community. He said the $3 million on lights wouldn’t have stirred up as much outrage if it wasn’t for the flood.
To sign the petition go to: getpetition.com/petitions/nolightsinjackson.