The president of the Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce is making a run for the mayor's seat in Windsor.
Matt Marchand has officially thrown his hat in the ring.
Speaking in front of a group of supporters at Charles Clark Square on Tuesday, he says the city needs a leader who can bring people together and achieve results.
Running under a campaign slogan of 'Vision, Plan, Action', Marchand says his run for mayor isn't a slam against the current mayor but rather a new direction and approach to the city.
"We need action," he says. "Our roads and sewers are crumbling, our basements are flooding, our downtown needs help and despite a decent economy, many of our fellow Windsorities are not participating and they are being left behind."
He plans to keep his campaign positive and will hold extensive consultations with the community before laying out the specifics of his platform.
"We are going to be laying out a very specific campaign, a specific platform and we are going to generate ideas," he says. "We are going to put them out to the community and we are going to have community feedback, we want the community to develop our campaign platform. It's not about what I think necessarily but it is what the community thinks."
Marchand has 12 years of experience working in the mayor's office under Mayor Mike Hurst.
As for his job at the chamber, Marchand says he is on vacation for a few weeks, and then he will sort out his post at the chamber.
But in a news release issued by the chamber Tuesday afternoon, Chair of the Board of Directors John Clark announced Dr. Janice Forsyth will step in as acting president and CEO.
Forsyth is the past-chair of the chamber and the board believes she will make a seamless transition into the role.
Ernie Lamont, Tom Hensel and Frank Dyck have already filed their nomination papers to run for mayor of Windsor. Incumbent Mayor Drew Dilkens has yet to announce his intentions.
The municipal election is October 22nd.
--With files from AM800's Rusty Thomson