Q & A - Councillor candidate - Lorne Dupuis
(1) How would you advocate for affordable taxes while maintaining an adequate level of service for residents?
Affordable taxes start with treating taxpayers’ money with the same care we would give our own. Having built and operated businesses, I know that controlling costs does not mean cutting everything in sight. It means knowing what is essential, questioning what is not, and insisting on value for every dollar spent.
Residents expect dependable roads, safe neighbourhoods, reliable services and a town that responds when something goes wrong. Those priorities must come before projects that are nice to have but difficult to justify. I would push for clear, understandable budgets, closer scrutiny of recurring expenses, and better planning and oversight of major contracts to reduce costly delays and overruns.
I would also ask whether existing services can be delivered more efficiently before approving new spending. There will be difficult decisions, and I will not pretend otherwise. My goal is simple: protect essential services, make every expenditure accountable, and keep tax increases as affordable as possible.
(2) What does “responsible growth” mean to you and how does growth in the commercial/industrial sectors factor into that?
To me, responsible growth means welcoming new homes and businesses without leaving existing residents paying for growth that was poorly planned. Amherstburg should grow at a pace our roads, water systems, emergency services and other infrastructure can reasonably support. Development should strengthen the community, not create problems we have to spend years and millions of dollars correcting.
Commercial and industrial development are important pieces of that picture.
A healthy business sector creates local jobs, provides services residents need and helps broaden the property tax base beyond homeowners. But attracting investment takes more than saying we are open for business.
We need predictable decisions, suitable serviced lands, sensible planning and a willingness to work with employers while respecting neighbouring residents.
I would support growth that brings lasting value, fits its location and pays appropriate attention to infrastructure costs. Amherstburg can welcome opportunity while protecting what makes it a place people want to live. Good growth benefits the whole town, not just the next development.
(3) How would you balance protecting heritage attributes of Amherstburg against the growth of the town?
Amherstburg’s history is one of the things that makes our town special. Our historic buildings and neighbourhoods deserve respect, and I want future generations to be able to appreciate them. But protecting heritage and encouraging growth do not have to be opposing goals. The key is consistency, fairness and clear rules that property owners and developers understand before making major decisions.
I have been particularly concerned about the decision to pursue heritage designation of the former school after it had been sold. Whether or not people support preserving that building, I believe changing the expectations after a sale raises serious questions about fairness and transparency. I would have voted against that approach.
I favour identifying important heritage features early, working with owners, and exploring practical ways to preserve them where possible. We should not put people in a position where the rules seem to change halfway through the game.
Respect our history, respect property owners and plan honestly for the future.
4. What police service is best for Amherstburg at this time and how would you advocate for it?
Policing is, in my view, the biggest issue facing Amherstburg right now, and I will not pretend there is an easy answer. Different policing arrangements come with different costs, service levels, staffing considerations and long-term obligations. Residents deserve to see those details clearly before anyone declares one option the winner.
I am not prepared to name a preferred police service without a complete, credible comparison of the available options. I want to know what each arrangement would actually cost taxpayers, what response and community policing residents could expect, how accountability would work, and what the risks are if our needs change in the future.
My role as a councillor would be to insist on transparent information, ask difficult questions and make sure the public has a meaningful opportunity to speak before a decision is made. Once the facts are on the table, I will support the option that offers the best combination of public safety, dependable service and long-term financial responsibility for Amherstburg.
5. What is the best way to present Open Air Weekends (if at all)?
Open Air Weekends served an important purpose when restaurants and other businesses were struggling through COVID. I understand why the town wanted to help, and I believe the concept still has a place. What I question is whether closing downtown streets as frequently as we have is the best use of public space and taxpayers’ money today.
A successful downtown needs more than busy patios. It also needs accessible parking, customers who can reach every type of business, and events that bring value to the whole community. We should listen carefully to businesses that benefit from Open Air and those that say repeated closures hurt them.
I would favour fewer, better-planned Open Air weekends, with honest accounting of costs and results. Larger events should be considered for locations with more room and parking, rather than forcing everything into the same downtown streets. Let’s keep what works, fix what doesn’t, and make decisions based on community-wide benefits rather than habit.
6. What goals do you have to move the town forward over the next four years?
Over the next four years, I want Amherstburg residents to see a council that listens, explains its decisions and respects the people paying the bills. That starts with tackling our policing decision openly, with full information about costs and services, rather than expecting residents to accept a decision they do not understand.
I also want better coordination of road and bridge projects so we are not creating unnecessary traffic headaches, and stronger oversight to help projects finish on time and on budget. I would push for a more practical approach to Open Air Weekends and keep advocating for improvements to power reliability, even though the town does not operate the electrical system.
Communities outside the downtown core deserve to know their concerns matter too. I want to investigate long-standing questions of fairness, not brush them aside. Above all, I want residents to feel they can speak up, challenge decisions and get straight answers. That is how trust is built.
Q & A - Councillor candidate - Lorne Dupuis
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