Kingsville isn't the only local municipality calling on the Windsor Essex County Health Unit to revoke the measures laid out in its latest Letter of Instruction.
Last week Town of Essex councillors voted unanimously to support sending a letter requesting that the Letter of Instruction be revoked so businesses can operate on an equal playing field.
Councillor Sherry Bondy moved the motion, and says they respect and have followed the safety measures for almost two years now, but their bars and restaurants have had enough of having their business impacted.
"You can go to sporting events, you can go across the border, and now there's additional restrictions here in our local restaurants that are checking vaccination records? It's just not fair. It's time that we look at this again, this is a good month for our businesses they really depend on the Christmas season."
The letter also states that many of their local business owners and operators are mentally exhausted, having suffered personal financial hardships over the last two years struggling to provide for their families and pay their bills.
Bondy says she's heard from businesses that say they've taken a hit from doing the right thing and enforcing the vaccine certificates, who are now worried that capacity limits will really hurt.
"It's just enough is enough and they're tired of it, they are mentally and physically exhausted. The Town of Essex has spent a lot of money in our downtown cores. We want our downtown cores to be full, we want our restaurants doing well, and so it's up to us to be their political voice and support them," Bondy stated
It's not just Essex and Kingsville that have raised the issue either, as councils in LaSalle and Tecumseh are both scheduled to speak about the Letter of Instruction at their regular meetings of council on Tuesday night.
Bondy says they sent out copies of their letter to the health unit to all of the local municipalities to see if they share the same sentiment.
"Because our residents and business owners are reaching out to us, and hopefully we can be a united voice and say hey can we look at something else. We understand that COVID-19 is real and that the ICUs fluctuate and that at times they're at higher capacity. So we have to look at a holistic approach for our communities."
Bondy has asked the health unit for additional information and data, to be able to see where the cases are coming from.
Because she says one or two cases shutting down a whole industry doesn't make much sense when the big box stores are full of people, almost shoulder to shoulder, nearly every day.
- with files from Rob Hindi