Windsor's mayor has directed city staff to go back to the drawing board to simplify the city's stormwater financing plan so it's easier for people to understand the fees they're paying.
Drew Dilkens issued a directive Friday under Ontario's Strong Mayor Powers to have staff show clear and transparent information for all customers with an ability to control costs and ensure large stormwater contributors pay their fair share of stormwater fees but also examine unanticipated issues within the commercial class, at port properties, and in other situations.
In 2024, the city council approved a new stormwater rate system designed to reflect the amount of impervious area on a property that can't absorb water, such as parking lots or other paved areas, as they contribute to more water runoff into the sewer and stormwater system.
The previous system had non-residential users, such as malls and big box stores, paying less than residential properties.
Once the system was implemented in 2025, it resulted in homeowners receiving higher than expected charges, forcing the city to correct the calculation problems and issue rebates.
While the problem was fixed, Dilkens says he wants to simplify it in a way that's easier to understand but maintains the core principle that resident customers should not be offsetting the cost of big users who contribute more to the system.
"I just don't like the way that it's landed. I'm hearing enough friction from port users, commercial customers, some residential customers on septic systems, and some who have different unique circumstances. We've tried to address them, and I think we have, but I want to simplify this," he says.
Dilkens says they have to go back to the drawing board.
"If I were just dealing with residential customers, then I might be able to fine-tune the residential piece. But there's enough friction in the commercial class as well. Some of the port users-I'm not entirely pleased with the way it landed for port users whose water basically discharges into the Detroit River. There's a credit system, but there are some expenses they have to go through to prove certain things," he says.
Dilkens says they need to examine the commercial and industrial class.
"We don't want to do something that's going to drive business away. I just think there needs to be a fine-tuning to this program in a way that makes it easier for everyone to understand how we're making the calculations. Allows residential and commercial customers to control some of the expense by the way we apply the program," he says.
Dilkens adds that the fees for 2026 are already set and it will take the better part of the year to come up with the formula to meet some of the system-wide concerns.
The new system splits the previous sewer surcharges into a wastewater and stormwater line item on bills from ENWIN, so properties with large amounts of impervious surfaces pay more based on the amount of water that ends up in the stormwater system.