The Town of LaSalle has been invited to join the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative.
The coalition of more than 425 government leaders on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border works to advance economic prosperity across the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River region while protecting the globally significant freshwater resources.
Mayor Crystal Meloche says she met with the group twice over the past year and introduced officials from the organization to groups across Windsor-Essex.
Meloche says LaSalle is a waterfront community on the Detroit River, which is a big part of the community’s identity and economy.
“By doing this, it really helps with the investments we’re making in the community. Our stormwater management, flood mitigation, waterfront development, and infrastructure that we’re putting in to support our future growth,” she says. “This is really going to help us with all of those things; it gives us a seat at a much larger table.”
Meloche says this gives them access to hundreds of municipalities dealing with similar issues.
“We kind of get the opportunity to learn from projects that work elsewhere. It also gives us stronger advocacy with senior levels of government. There’s some access to potential funding and technical assistance programs. So, it’s a really good tool for us to have,” she says.
Meloche says LaSalle is a waterfront community, and protecting their water isn’t someone else’s responsibility; it’s theirs.
“I think with the growth we’re experiencing, for them they focus a lot on environmental stewardship and responsible growth. I think those things right now go hand in hand with the Town of LaSalle. We often say we can grow while protecting the natural assets that make LaSalle such a desirable place to live. I think they can help us with that,” she says.
The initiative aims to support healthy lakes and rivers, safe and affordable water for all residents, climate-resilient communities, and economic transformation to build the Fresh Coast Economic Corridor from Lake Superior to the Gulf of the St. Lawrence.