Windsor's mayor says the city continues to push upper levels of government for supports to cover costs related to the Ambassador Bridge blockade.
The federal government will provide the City of Ottawa with $20 million for businesses impacted by the protests in the city's downtown over the past few weeks, but to date nothing has been announced for Windsor.
Speaking on AM800's The Morning Drive, Drew Dilkens says from the very beginning he's called on both the provincial and federal governments to provide dedicated and timely relief for impacted small businesses on Huron Church Road.
"We know what that impact was when all of a sudden they woke up and there's jersey barriers basically from the Ambassador Bridge all the way to the expressway," he continued. "I think everyone understood why that was being done with the urgency of the situation that had been caused by the blockade."
He says that couldn't be allowed to stand for very long in the community, because there's too many businesses along that stretch of road.
Over the past week there's been a relaxing of the barriers along the route, and Dilkens says that will continue with more opening up each day but the impact from the blockade continues to be felt.
"Federal transport minister Omar Alghabra was down here and we talked to him about the need for funding. I know Irek Kusmierczyk has talked to the finance minister and deputy prime minister to say listen, you're providing small businesses in downtown Ottawa with a non-repayable contribution of up to $10,000 for costs due to the occupation in their city, there needs to be something that's proportional for our city as well," Dilkens said.
Dilkens says they're looking for a clear signal from the federal government that businesses in Windsor are going to be treated as importantly as those in the shadow of Parliament Hill.
"Everyone says they're alive to it, everyone's hearing it, everyone's looking at it but I just don't have a firm commitment on two fronts," he said.
"To cover the extraordinary costs we have, and will continue to incur, to make sure that Huron Church Road remains open and accessible to the Ambassador Bridge. And the costs that the businesses have incurred and the losses that they have incurred in the past couple of weeks."
Earlier this week, Windsor-Tecumseh MP Irek Kusmierczyk said he's been advocating for help for local businesses because there has been and continues to be a negative impact on businesses located on or near Huron Church Road as a result of the blockade.