Special town council budget meeting in Essex

Essex town council members are reviewing the community’s 2021 budget and where it will spend tax dollars for the upcoming year. 

On Nov. 30, Essex councillors brought up multiple topics and concerns they will need to deal with in the upcoming year. The council focused on most heavily were replacing several old pieces of fire department equipment within the Essex area. 

Chief Rick Arnel of Essex Fire and Rescue has announced that they will be replacing and getting new equipment for the fire departments within Essex.

This includes getting a new Ice Water Rescue team, the new Station 2 in Essex, hose replacements, pager replacements for volunteer firefighters and purchases of new fire engines.  

A major piece of equipment Arnel brought up was to purchase a new Stock Truck to replace one of the engines in Station 1 and the jaws of life in Station 1.  

The town will also be focusing on developing the Streetscapes project. Kevin Girard, director of infrastructure services, said doing so will give Essex and Harrow a boost in growth and tourism. 

“Council approved the Streetscapes and we’ve been forging ahead on moving this forward. The streetscapes are really going to provide an economic boost that will help connect services and the community and will display the roots of the community and further beautify it and make it a place to come and visit,” said Girard.

 Girard also said the Harrow Streetscapes will be completed in the summer of 2021 and Essex will be completed in the fall of 2022. 

Councillor Sherry Bondy and Deputy Mayor Richard Meloche discussed having a contract with the local OPP to perform traffic enforcement within the Essex community, but are still waiting for approval.  

“We’re looking at radar on a daily basis so that we can get some of the speeding under control in the community, that’s a very large complaint across the whole community,” said Meloche. 

Mayor Larry Snively of Essex has ordered the discussion of the OPP traffic enforcement is to be brought to the town’s roundtable discussion instead on Jan. 25, 2021.

 For more information about the Essex 2021 Budget and what’s being done in the community over the next few months, more information can be found at www.essex.ca/Budget