Essex Mayor speaks of concerns with ‘huge gap’ in social housing
When receiving correspondences added to the County of Essex meeting agenda for June 19, Essex Mayor Sherry Bondy took note of the information sent from the City of Windsor regarding a recent committee meeting for the Windsor Essex Regional Community Safety & Well-Being Plan.
In November of 2021, members of the previous Term of Essex County Council approved the final report for the Windsor Essex Regional Community Safety and Well-Being Plan for submission to the Solicitor General. It also voted in favour of Essex County Council championing the Plan, recognizing its implementation necessitates, active engagement and meaningful participation of key sectors, residents, and communities across the region.
In addition, all regional municipalities passed a motion authorizing Essex County Council to approve the Plan and any subsequent reports on their behalf, including Council for the Town of Essex.
As of January 1, 2019, the Safer Ontario Act, 2018 required municipalities to prepare and adopt community safety and well-being plans in partnership with a multi-sectoral advisory committee. The local plan had to be submitted and endorsed by City and County Councils by December 31, 2021.
Some of the needs provided from Essex residents through public sessions held while the project was being created included affordable and/or attainable housing, access to affordable leisure activities for children, resident and community safety, in addition to the need for mental health and substance abuse services, employment skills development, and specialized education programs.
Bondy took the opportunity to share concerns around social housing in the area.
“We are missing a huge gap of supportive housing,” she told fellow Councillor members.
Bondy and Tecumseh Deputy Mayor Joe Bachetti, she said, sit on the Windsor-Essex Community Housing Corporation Board. She said individuals are getting placed in housing without the proper support.
“It is really impacting our community safety and well-being,” she said.
She asked where the County sits in terms of the document, and if the County has a voice at the table.
“I just want to make sure our voice is still being carried forward, because I did not see a lot in here about supportive housing and if we don’t get more supportive housing, we are going to see more issues with community safety and well-being,” Bondy added.
CAO of the County of Essex, Sandra Zwiers, sits on the Community Safety and Well-Being leadership table as Co-Chairperson. The County’s Manager of Community Services, Jeanie Diamond-Francis, also sits on the committee.
As the County reps on the committee, they are getting regular updates from the City of Windsor, which has hired staff to manage the Windsor Essex Regional Community Safety & Well-Being Plan and its list of initiatives.“
Those are topics that we have discussed at the leadership table. As we have all recognized, it is a complex issue, with a lot of moving parts,” Zwiers said, adding ensuring agencies primarily responsible for certain aspects of well-being in our community are leveraged and connected through that leadership table.
She noted Bondy’s comments will be taken back to the community.
The Windsor Essex Regional Community Safety & Well-Being Plan committee information is a new item on the County Council agenda. Zwiers said it is important to ensure the message of the work being done as part of the plan is brought to Council through the agenda.
Presentations will come before County Council in the future to provide updates.
Bondy was pleased to see this on the agenda and hopes to one day see the Windsor Essex Community Housing Corporation meeting minutes or briefs added to the agenda. Currently, they are not public and she believes they should be.
Tecumseh Mayor Gary McNamara would also like to have more information provided to County Council as funders of the program.
Sylene Argent, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Essex Free Press
