The Mayor’s Luncheon on Wednesday at St. Anne’s Centre could have been more appropriately billed as A Mayor’s Grilling.
Featuring Southwold Mayor Grant Jones, Central Elgin Mayor Andrew Sloan and St. Thomas Mayor Joe Preston, all attention was focused on the latter in what proved to be one of the most lively such functions in recent memory.
All because of recently adopted Bill 63, the St. Thomas-Central Elgin Boundary Adjustment Act, 2023.
The bill allows for the annexation of a portion of Central Elgin to the City of St. Thomas so that the latter can assemble a 1,500-acre parcel of land to attract a mega-industrial project to the city.
It has resulted in a bad taste in the mouths of the city’s neighbours and many unanswered questions.
And so when the floor was opened to questions from the audience on Wednesday, you had to know what direction the conversation would take.
First to the microphone was former Central Elgin Mayor Sally Martyn who needed no warm-up.

“Mayor Preston, can you explain why, after the County of Elgin and the Municipality of Central Elgin and the city signed an agreement with the terms of reference clearly outlined, on how to negotiate for boundary adjustments, you held only two negotiating meetings and then every time we set a date, you cancelled the subsequent meeting.
“You did not reveal to the other two parties the change in the land considered from 800 acres to 1,500 acres, which was part of the negotiating agreement.
“And then announced the province was forcing a boundary adjustment on Central Elgin, removing not only a very large area of Class 1 farmland from food production but also over 400 acres of Central Elgin’s industrial/commercial land.”
Martyn went on to point out “There has been no forced adjustment in the Province of Ontario since 1998, 25 years ago.
“And, at that time the province signed an agreement that they would not force boundary adjustments on municipalities but would let them negotiate their own agreements.
“After explaining that, what negotiations are taking right now between the city, Central Elgin and the county to ensure that Central Elgin and the county are fairly compensated for the loss of their taxable land and their future industrial growth because 75 per cent of the land in this section is in Central Elgin.”
Martyn wasn’t finished on the question front.
“And finally, if there is no progress at this point, should a local third-party negotiating team be established of public members throughout Elgin county, Central Elgin and St. Thomas.”

“We worked together in the beginning on the conversation of about how much land there was and the negotiation toward compensation on boundary adjustment.”

Well, that’s plenty for Preston to digest after a hearty lunch.
Preston assertively took to the microphone noting, “I can answer each of those questions individually.”
And he began, “We collectively together decided we would create a very large industrial property. The Province of Ontario and the City of St. Thomas and Central Elgin and the county agreed we would accumulate this land in order to find a mega-factory for the land that would create thousands of jobs and a great future.”
It is prudent to pause here and note there did not appear to be anyone in the audience of about 200 people who questioned the upside of job creation.
However, there is a saying in real estate that it is all about location, location, location.
And the issue at stake over the noon hour Wednesday was not jobs but process, process, process.
The process undertaken to transform 800 acres into 1,500.
Something Preston tried his utmost to skirt.
Back to Preston.
“We worked together in the beginning on the conversation of about how much land there was and the negotiation toward compensation on boundary adjustment.”

“The minute we know what that piece is, how much gain there will be in having this large industrial property there, we’d be happy to sit down again.”

Let’s hit the pause button for a second.
You notice in the above statement, Preston stresses in the beginning. This a key admission, because it appears working together, was not a feature as discussions moved forward, as confirmed by both Jones and Sloan.
Preston continued, “Right from the beginning, the conversation was on boundary adjustment. That we would have to put all of the land accumulated in one municipality.”
So, were Central Elgin and the county at the table when the decision was made that municipality would be St. Thomas even though the bulk of the assembled land is in Central Elgin?
“The purchasers of that land want to deal with one entity.”
“The province itself,” continued Preston, “moved forward with Bill 63 for exactly that reason.”
It should be noted the city and Central Elgin share a planning department so how much of a stumbling block is really at play here?

“From my perspective, we’re trying to work together to build a better community, but trust is a big part of that, working together. And in the last six months or so it (trust) has been eroded to some degree, I would have to say. And that goes for the provincial level as well.”

“Even in Bill 63, it talks about us getting together and having that conversation on compensation and it will still continue.
“And yes, we did start right at the beginning of this to start talking about compensation, without us knowing what is being located and no deal is yet signed, although we are significantly closer than we used to be.
“Until a project is located or signed for that piece of property, no one will know what the benefits are.
“The minute we know what that piece is, how much gain there will be in having this large industrial property there, we’d be happy to sit down again.”
It is no secret that the plant being courted here is the Volkswagen battery facility. Even our MPP has alluded to that.
What is also included in Bill 63 is the provision for a facilitator from the province to assist with the boundary compensation negotiations.
At this point, Grant Jones spoke up, not only as Mayor of Southwold but also as a member of Elgin county council.
Of course, both he and Mayor Sloan are extremely handcuffed in what they can reveal as they have had to sign non-disclosure agreements with the province.
“Starting off,” advised Jones, “we were looking at around 800 acres. Negotiations, I don’t think, went along as how they should have.

“Focussing on the future and how we are best represented and how we come to a working agreement, that is my focus at present.”

“With this new announcement (of 1,500 acres) it starts to question how things are happening. And, I guess I’ll leave it at that.
“From my perspective, we’re trying to work together to build a better community, but trust is a big part of that, working together.
“And in the last six months or so it (trust) has been eroded to some degree, I would have to say. And that goes for the provincial level as well.”
Let’s reiterate, process, process, process.
And, the erosion of trust. Is that how you get along with neighbours?
Do you remember Coun. Steve Peters’ campaign in the fall municipal election. He is a huge proponent of positive relationships with neighbouring municipalities.
And he stressed, “I would really like to see us re-engage our discussions with the County of Elgin on how we can better work together.”
Not a sentiment embraced by all members of city council, it would appear.
Sloan added, “The province has put forward a facilitator. We will have representation on that and those discussions I believe are imminent.
“We’re at a spot where something has happened, it’s concluded (Bill 63). Focussing on the future and how we are best represented and how we come to a working agreement, that is my focus at present.”
What stood out was a comment from one of those at the microphone who suggested the feeling amongst the residents of Central Elgin is “Joe has pulled a fast one.”
And is that what is at play here, stroking an ego and crafting a legacy?

Do you reside in the subject area? Have you been impacted by what has transpired so far? What are your thoughts on what could be a substantial industrial development in your backyard? Feel like talking, please get in touch.

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As Woody Guthrie sang, ‘This land is your land, this land is my land’

SOME RANDOM THOUGHTS

Where is the county CAO in all of this?
Oh, that’s right she had to declare a conflict of interest because the family farm is smack dab in the middle of this parcel.
How many hundreds of trees are being felled to clear this land?
Remember the outcry at city council when several trees were mistakenly cut down at Alma College?
Where’s the hue and cry on what will transpire on this property?
Of course, when you have little concern over the loss of 1,500 acres of farmland, why would you give a tinker’s damn about some trees.
Will the city’s tree bylaw come into play and these lost trees will have to be replaced elsewhere in the community?
Is this all of the land needed for this industrial expansion?
What about additional land north of Ron McNeil Line in Central Elgin? Would this be required for future residential purposes?
And who pays for additional infrastructure? Things like improvements to roads north to the 401 to handle increased traffic?
Those are county roads. Is that where the facilitator comes in?
Did the property owners in the first round of land negotiations receive the same amount of compensation as those in the second round of negotiations?
Those property owners also had to sign non-disclosure agreements so very little if anything will be revealed about how intensive those discussions were.
Expropriation wasn’t required, but how heavy-handed were the land negotiations?
And Volkswagen is being courted by many suitors in North America. How much money and concessions are being dangled by the province and the feds to convince them to locate here?
With numerous American cities/states in the game, no doubt the stakes are astronomical.

ADOPTING HARM REDUCTION

With Southwestern Public Health undertaking a feasibility study on consumption and treatment services, city council on Monday (March 13) will delve into just how serious the rate of opioid-related deaths has become.
We are approaching four deaths every month from opioid overdoses.
According to Public Health Ontario figures, not only is there an increase in deaths, hospitalizations and emergency department visits are trending upward, particularly the latter which is exhibiting a steep upward slope.
Further taxing a stressed healthcare system.
In a report to council, Taylor Mooney, the city’s strategic initiatives manager, peels back the layers of consumption and treatment services.
“CTS services, often called supervised or safe consumption services, are health services/harm reduction programs that provide a hygienic environment for people to inject pre-obtained drugs under the supervision of trained staff.”
Taylor continues, “In addition to supervised injection, individuals are often provided with sterile injection supplies, education on safer injection, overdose prevention and intervention, medical and counselling services, and referrals to drug treatment, housing, income support and other services.”
Keep in mind there are members of council who have not embraced harm reduction up to this point nor openly supported groups like The Nameless who have provided such services for some time.
According to the health unit, there are four main goals for consumption and treatment services:
• Save lives by reducing the number of fatal and non-fatal drug overdoses.
• Reduce the spread of infectious diseases like HIV and hepatitis C among people who inject drugs.
• Connect people who use drugs with primary health care services, addictions treatment, and social
services like housing and other supports.
• Create a safer community by reducing drug use in public spaces and providing options for proper needle
disposal.
You can find such centres now operating in London, Kitchener-Waterloo, Guelph and Hamilton.
No doubt council will delve into whether there is a need for such a centre in the city, the support within the community for a centre and what would such a facility look like here and how would it operate.
Feedback from council will be forwarded to the health unit as a component of its feasibility study.

GREATER AESTHETIC APPEAL COMING TO DOWNTOWN

The past couple of summers has seen several outdoor patios pop up along Talbot Street.
This summer could see the addition of street cafe seating if approved by council on Monday.
Justin Lawrence, director of environmental services, suggests in a report to council “There may be an additional and manageable layout for on-street café seating with no permits, costs, or agreements that occurs in many other cities.
There are numerous recommendations outlined in the report including up to eight chairs with tables in a single row, eligible from April 1 to Nov. 15 between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m., and the proposal only applies to the DDB area in the city’s core.
With a long stretch of Talbot Street to be dug up beginning later this month, can such an initiative be accommodated this year and if so, what about the noise and dust associated with construction?

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And a reminder, I can be heard weekday afternoons as news anchor and reporter on 94.1 myFM in St. Thomas. As always, your comments and input are appreciated.