Blenheim News Tribune

07/23/2025

Special Council meeting scheduled
RE Encampment
In response to the new location chosen by community members for the encampment, the Municipality of Chatham-Kent is taking action to assess and address impacts on neighbouring residents.
Mayor Darrin Canniff has called a special meeting of Chatham-Kent Council for Monday, July 28 to discuss the current location of the encampment, the impact that it is having on the surrounding community and explore potential measures to support neighbouring residents. Council is expected to discuss the current Encampment Protocol and strategies on how best to navigate this evolving situation. The goal of this meeting will be to guide a strategic response to encampments in the community going forward.
“Encampments are an incredibly complex and constantly evolving situation,” said Mayor Darrin Canniff. “While we must show empathy and understanding for those experiencing homelessness, we also have a responsibility to support the safety, well-being, and quality of life for neighbouring residents and businesses. I’m calling this special meeting of Council so we can work together as a community to find an actionable and compassionate path forward.”
Chatham-Kent staff and Council members continue to actively advocate with Provincial and Federal levels of government for funding and resources to better deal with the homelessness issues that are being experienced both in Chatham-Kent and by many communities in Canada. The Municipality is committed to ensuring that our community’s concerns are heard at the highest levels of government.
For information and frequently asked questions about encampments in Chatham-Kent, residents are encouraged to visit

Learn clear, factual information about encampments in Chatham-Kent.

07/02/2025

Cherry Fest just around the corner

06/26/2025

still tickets available for ROCK THE HOOD in Shrewsbury

04/30/2025

Retired Marine Archeologist Scarlett Janusas sat comfortably in the sand recording data at Erieau as volunteers from the Ontario Marine Heritage Committee examined and recorded dimensions of what is believed to be a section of a small schooner that washed ashore several months ago.
Jeff Vidler a Local historian from Erieau and retired Navy vet contacted organizations including government agencies on who may be able to assist in finding the actual ship, the large section broke off of.
There have been experts view the wreck but didn’t have a lot of answers.
Last Wednesday a team of volunteers from the Ontario Marine Heritage Committee were at the site of the piece of wreckage located along the beach at the near the top of the bar.
The team of four volunteers including Marine Archeologist Scarlett Janusas along with Marine Historical author Patrick Folkes as well as field diver technicians including Doug Holmes and Allan Steele meticulously measured and documented the measures of each pieces of the broken off side of a ship.
They recorded the width, the thickness the diameter with hopes to confirm that the piece of wreckage came from one of the historical ship wrecks that occured within the area of the Rondeau shoreline or Erieau harbour.
Patrick Folkes who has written books on Great Lake Shipwrecks and has researched some of the local wrecks suggested that the piece of wreckage is the evidence of a small schooner.
He added “there were two local shipwrecks including the Lewis Ross which was a smallish schooner that was loaded with stone blocks from Pelee Island and it was wrecked in this area by a storm in 1874. He added “the Mary Francis was a Schooner that was wrecked in a storm in 1865 what was reported to be near the Erieau harbour entrance”.
Scarlett is a retired Marine Archeologists.
She said “ the four of us (Scarlett Janusas, Patrick Folkes, Doug Holmes and Allan Steele) are members of the Ontario Marine Heritage Committee , a non profit organization that is celebrating its 50 th year in 2025. The organization promotes the protection, preservation and investigation of Ontarios marine heritage and underwater archaeological sites.
She said “the wreckage that we investigated is part of the side and start of the bottom of what is probably a small schooner. We were able to measure the hull planking, some ceiling planking (ironically the floor and sometimes inside sides of the ship) and the frames. We noted the fasteners and their distribution on the wreckage. The frames are quite light averaging only 4” in width and often doubled. That is paired with another frame to provide strength to the hull.
Sadly this part of the ship did not provide additional clues to its identity or exact rigging. But based on the frames it is likely a mid to late 19th century schooner”.
Janusas added “work at the site is complete for now. I’m in the process of writing up part of the report for Jeff and he will finish the of the report, I’ll review and then the report is submitted to the Ministry. All work was done under a licence held by Jeff.
I have let Jeff know that there is still a lot of the ship buried in the sand so we recorded only what we could access. If the municipality plans on moving the wreckage, there will undoubtedly be more of the wreck to record so another visit may be in order. The hope as I understand it is to move the ship and rebury her”.
The Marine Archeologist told Jeff “conservation of the wreckage is incredibly expensive and the best alternative is to bury the wreckage. In this way it does not pose a risk to people (fasteners could be dangerous) and the wreck would be preserved in an anaerobic environment”.
“OMHC is actually going to do a similar project at Point Farms Provincial Park starting May 7 on a ship found by a father and son two years ago. That ship is completely buried and we will be excavating her.”
Jeff Vidler who was at the site said “ these people bring a wealth of experience and expertise and despite still not knowing what wreck the piece came from it will be chronicled and recorded. Hopefully some more information may come forward”.

04/30/2025

“Good and bad news” was how re elected Chatham-Kent Leamington MP Dave Epp reacted too the results of Monday’s Federal election.
The good news was that Epp was re elected for his second term as local Conservative MP.
Epp working Tuesday morning on three hours of sleep said he was “humbled and honoured to be re elected by the constituents as the representative for the Chatham-Kent Essex riding”.
He won decisively picking up 41503 votes (57.7%) with results from only one of 295 polls in the riding still too be reported as of early Tuesday morning.
He added “nationally we were hopeful of a majority government.
For awhile the numbers were tight for a while but then we realized it would be a Liberal minority so of course we are not quite sure what the next steps will bring”.
In the past there was a coalition between the NDP and Liberal parties and even thought the NDP picked up just seven seats they in theory can again form that coalition and govern as a majority”.
However I would be shocked if that happened given that they destroyed themselves by doing that but stranger things have happened”.
I think a big concern from people were very concerned with the cost of living and people seemed too believe that who was the better leader too handle Donald Trump, I would say people thought Carney was that guy but time will tell on that”.
He added “ to me that was the difference, the Liberals only wanted to stare in Trumps eyes and did not want to re-elect on their last 9.5 years of being in powers despite largely in part the same cast of characters other the Carney at the top and yet he was the parties economic advisor for five years and too me that is what is disappointing”.
The economic record has not changed because the architect of that record no holds the keys to the government again”.
I did notice “in the swing of support the youth came out too support the conservatives and it was actually the seniors who seemed there was safety in Carney perhaps for their assets, perhaps for Canada’s soverinty but they were reassured by Carney and going door to door I had many seniors that told me they have voted Conservative their entire life but that they were going to vote Liberal this time”.
Epp added “none of Canada’s economic problems have been solved in this election”
He added “what policies that they started during the election were actually ours including not raise the capital gains inclusion rate, get rid of the consumer based carbon tax, I think that will be buried and it will show back up again”.
Epp was asked about the fact that Conservative leader Pierre Polievre wasn’t even elected in his riding and what that meant to the party.
He added “ I cannot really speak on that at this time, we are all coming out of a very very long night so those discussions will need to be had yet”
“We have to look at the fact our seat count went up to 144 and the dynamics here is the collapse of the Block and especially the NDP”.
He was asked if the Liberals and Conservatives can work together to make a better Canada”
Epp added “ what never makes the headlines is when parliament approves unanimously or approves 300 to 30 on a piece of legislation, those decisions happenmore than not and constituents don’t hear about that”.
As a party our first priority is Canada and not the Conservative Party, we have to pay close attention to tariffs and if we have to retaliate but we are also concerned with spending that Carney and the Liberals are proposing and most importantly the after affects of that”.
“As a party we have lots to do and I am glad that the constituents of Chatham Kent Leamington showed their support and trust”.
Epps re-election to represent Chatham-Kent Leamington was good news for local Conservatives.
Ed O Brien, Director for the local Conservative party added “Dave’s strength is that he is a true representative in our agricultural community, he is known to have a quick intelligent response when communicating with Constituents.
As for the Conservative leader O Brien indicated “ Im’ sure their will be a leadership review coming but that is too early to say at this point”.
As for the NDP he called their status as being in question, unfortunately there is a chance that the NDP becomes irrelevant there is no doubt that was caused by NDP leader Singh’s unpopular alliance with Trudeau”.

04/30/2025

The Ridge Line-Kent Bridge Road intersection was transformed into a four-way stop – much sooner than expected.
Chatham-Kent Public Works finished installing the new advance caution and stop signs and painted the 'stop strips' on the roads in all four directions last Thursday.
Motorists are advised to still exercise caution while approaching the intersection – and even advancing after you have come to a full stop.
There were several social media posts complaining about drivers not stopping while heading east or west on Ridge Line, which used to have through traffic.
Chatham-Kent Council approved the change to a four-way stop at the April 7 meeting but Public Works was able to make the transition much sooner than the sometime “in the next three or four months” timeline, which was provided by staff that night.
The intersection has been the site of many serious accidents over the years – 24 since 2017 – which prompted South Kent Councillor John Wright to enter a successful motion at the July 15 Chatham-Kent Council meeting to conduct a traffic study at the intersection to determine the best solution.
Wright's motion was supported by over 660 signatures on petitions that were posted at the Blenheim News Tribune and Ridgetown Independent News offices.
CIMA, a hired consultant, conducted the review and determined a four-way stop was the best solution.

03/07/2025

03/04/2025

Ceccacci wants report on power issues
Blenheim residents have grown increasingly frustrated by the number of power outages recently.
There have been several incidents recently where the power went off but came back on a few seconds later.
While the outages were brief, they were still long enough to be an inconvenience to residential and commercial customers who to resett appliances, alarms, computers and other electronic devices.
A request to Entegrus from the Blenheim News Tribune to provide information on the cause and solution of the frequent outages was not answered by press time for this week's edition.
One South Kent Councillor wants the municipality to get involved.
Anthony Ceccacci entered a notice of motion at Monday night's Council meeting asking that Mayor Darrin Canniff, Council and municipal staff liaison with Entegrus and Hydro One to compile an information report on the recurring power supply interruptions and the plan to reestablish Blenheim's second supply.
“Blenheim is served by Entegrus lines with the power supplied by Hydro One network and has experienced a significant decrease in power reliability, with outages being more frequent,” Ceccacci said while presenting his notice of motion.
“These outages have been driven by numerous factors and compounded by Hydro One eliminating Blenheim's second power supply.”
Ceccacci said these disruptions have become a pressing concern for many residents.
“Blenheim is a growing community and reliable supply is integral for current and future residential, commercial and industrial customers,” he said.
Ceccacci will enter his motion for discussion and voting at the April 7 Council meeting.
Meanwhile, Ceccacci's motion for administration prepare a report providing an update on the status of the ongoing environmental permitting work regarding the 13 acres of vacant industrial land in the Blenheim Business Park was approved in the consent agenda.

02/02/2025

Tarriffs, Expecting difficult times ahead

Today, the Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Finance and Intergovernmental Affairs, and the Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs, announced that the Government of Canada is moving forward with 25 per cent tariffs on $155 billion worth of goods in response to the unjustified and unreasonable tariffs imposed by the United States (U.S.) on Canadian goods.

These countermeasures have one goal: to protect and defend Canada’s interests, consumers, workers, and businesses.

The first phase of our response will include tariffs on $30 billion in goods imported from the U.S., effective February 4, 2025, when the U.S tariffs are applied. The list includes products such as orange juice, peanut butter, wine, spirits, beer, coffee, appliances, apparel, footwear, motorcycles, cosmetics, and pulp and paper. A detailed list of these goods will be made available shortly.

Minister LeBlanc also announced that the government intends to impose tariffs on an additional list of imported U.S. goods worth $125 billion. A full list of these goods will be made available for a 21-day public comment period prior to implementation, and will include products such as passenger vehicles and trucks, including electric vehicles, steel and aluminum products, certain fruits and vegetables, aerospace products, beef, pork, dairy, trucks and buses, recreational vehicles, and recreational boats.

In addition to this initial response, Ministers LeBlanc and Joly reiterated that all options remain on the table as the government considers additional measures, including non-tariff options, should the U.S. continue to apply unjustified tariffs on Canada.

Less than 1 per cent of the fentanyl and illegal crossings into the United States come from Canada. We will not stand idly by when our nation is being needlessly and unfairly targeted. The government will defend Canadian interests and jobs. We stand ready to support affected workers and businesses.

The U.S. administration’s decision to impose tariffs will have devastating consequences for the American economy and people. Tariffs will upend production at U.S. auto assembly plants and oil refineries, raise costs for American consumers—at gas pumps and grocery stores—and put American prosperity at risk.

The government is also taking steps to mitigate the impact of its tariff countermeasures on Canadian workers and businesses by establishing a remission process to consider requests for exceptional relief from the tariffs imposed as part of Canada’s immediate response, as well as any future tariff actions. More details about the framework and process will be announced in the coming days.

The government continues to work closely with provincial and territorial governments, as well as business, labour, and other leaders to advance a robust Team Canada response, and to advocate with U.S. decision-makers on behalf of all Canadians to safeguard and strengthen Canada’s economy.

02/01/2025

Ontario election called for Feb. 27

Ontarians will be going to the polls about 15 months earlier than expected.
Premier Doug Ford announced last week he would be meeting with Lieutenant Governor Edith Dumont on Tuesday and will formally call for the next Ontario General Election today (Wednesday).
The early election will take place on Thursday, Feb. 27, well ahead of the 44th provincial election's scheduled date of June 4, 2026.
Ford, who made the declaration during a media conference in Brampton, said the early election is in direct response to U.S. President Donald Trump's 25 per cent tariff that he has threatened to impose on Canada effective this Saturday.
The premier said Ontario's auto industry would be impacted dramatically with over 500,000 jobs in jeopardy if Trump follows through with his tariff plan.
Ford and the Progressive Conservatives have won back-to-back majority governments and currently hold 79 of the 124 seats in Queen's Park.
The opposition NDP has 28 seats, the Liberals nine, Green Party two seats while six members sit as independents.
A party needs to win 63 seats for a simple majority.
Ford will primarily be up against the NDP's Marit Stiles, currently Leader of the Opposition, the Liberals' Bonnie Crombie and the Green Party's Mike Schreiner.
The New Blue Ontario Party, under the leadership of Jim Karahalios, has posted on its website that it is finalizing candidates across the province
The Ontario Party, under the leadership of Derek Sloan, had not announced their election plans on their website as of Monday night.
Trevor Jones, from Leamington, of the Progressive Conservatives, is the incumbent for the Chatham-Kent Leamington riding.
No candidates for the C-K L riding have been announced by the NDP, Liberals, Green Party, New Blue Ontario Party or Ontario Party as of Monday night.
Jones collected 17,389 votes, 47.6% of the 36,503 votes cast, in the riding's 92 polls in the June 2, 2022 election.
Brock McGregor, a Chatham-Kent Councillor, finished second in his first provincial election for the New Democrat Party with 11,024 votes (30%).
Rick Nicholls, who represented the new Ontario Party after being removed from the PC's in August for for refusing to get a COVID-19 vaccine as mandated by the party, finished third with 5,416 votes.
Rhonda Jubenville, of the New Blue Party of Ontario, finished fourth with 1,443 votes (4.0%) and Jennifer Surerus, of the Green Party Ontario, finished fifth with 1,231 votes (3.4%).
The Liberal Party did not have a candidate in the 2022 election as Leamington's Audrey Festeryga, a last-minute replacement for London's Alec Mazurek, stepped down before the election.

01/30/2025

Rondeau cottagers pleased with revised lease agreement

BY MIKE BENNETT
The change is in the mail – and the Rondeau cottage owners couldn't be happier.
A revised lease agreement was mailed out recently from the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks to the 270-plus cottage owners to review and sign.
Cottage owners, the Municipality of Chatham-Kent and stakeholders received notice in late December that the Ministry was extending leases on cottages in Rondeau Provincial Park for 14 years, good until Dec. 31, 2038.
However, the wording in the original agreement caused some major concern to the residents, who own their cottages but rent the land from the province.
“They set the rates for 2025 but it said that over the 14-year life of the lease, the landlord has the sole, unfettered ability to increase the lease by any amount they wanted,” said David Colby, President of the Rondeau Cottagers Association.
“Who would sign that?”
Colby said if you're going to rent an apartment, you're not going to sign a lease that says the landlord can raise the rent every year by whatever amount they wanted.
“If we signed and agreed to that, we would be stuck with those conditions ... and we weren't going to do that,” Colby said.
Colby and Brian French, Vice-President of the RCA, participated in several zoom meetings with Ministry officials over the last month and were happy to announce late last week that the lease agreement had been dramatically rewritten.
“They realized it wasn't an appropriate condition and they addressed the corners of the Rondeau cottagers,” Colby said.
“They softened the language and have given us the opportunity to have input into any proposed rent increase.”
Colby said cottagers will receive a year's notice of any increase, which will now need approval from the Treasurers Board, rather than the Ministry imposing rent hikes at will.
“I think this is the best deal we're going to get, it's a vast improvement,” Colby said.
“Basically were just looking for something that's balanced and fair and to their (Ministry's) credit, they recognized the original offer was not balanced and fair.”
Colby said the cottagers understand leases can be increased every year.
“As long as increases are reasonable, we would never challenge it,” he said.
“But if they came in and said 'your leases are going up by 70 per cent' or something like that, then we would challenge.”
Cottagers will have to the end of February to sign and return their revised lease agreement to the Ministry.
The Rondeau cottage leaseholders' 50-year lease agreement with the Ministry expired in 2017.
The Ministry granted a two-year lease extension in November 2017, followed by additional short-term extensions.
In 2021, the Municipality of Chatham-Kent offered to purchase the existing 279 cottage lots from the province for the assessed value of $29.2-million and sell the lots back to the cottage owners at the same purchase price.
This plan, however, stalled at the provincial level as the Ministry instead entered into a two-year lease extension to the end of 2024.
Colby said the RCA still hopes there will be an opportunity to purchase the land in the future.
He said on the Environmental Registry of Ontario website, ERO 011-1300 was posted in December 2019 – which was nine years in the making – stating that a new long-term proposed solution would be coming.
“We've been waiting for five years for that to arrive,” Colby said.
“I would consider this 14-year extension as a place holder until this long-term solution comes through.”
Colby said the RCA would consider long-term solutions to be either a 99-year lease agreement or the cottagers being able to purchase the land.

01/29/2025

Sidewalk plowing
Council approved a by-law amendment in the consent agenda to place Catherine Street, between Talbot St. W. and Marlborough St. S. in Blenheim, and seven other streets in four other communities to be included on the municipality's downtown sidewalk winter maintenance list.
Council passed a motion at its Feb. 26, 2024 meeting to include Catharine St., along with two streets in Chatham,Wallaceburg and Tilbury and one in Wheatley to get winter sidewalk maintenance.
The cost to add these eight sidewalks is approximately $15,000 per year to the Public Works Operating Budget.
Administration was also directed to complete a review of the winter sidewalk maintenance program in its entirety, including public consultation, to be completed prior to the 2028 multi- year budget process.
Public Works conducts sidewalk winter maintenance in house and as well as by hired contractors.