Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens is reflecting on the past year as Canada marked a national day of observance of the first anniversary of COVID-19 being declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization.
"Things just changed so quickly and everyone was impacted ... no one knew exactly what to do, says Dilkens. "There was so much uncertainty."
The Windsor-Detroit border is closed, Caesars Windsor remains shut down and many people are still out of work.
Dilkens says he's been in office for historic flooding events, a tornado and now a pandemic and for every challenge; there's been a remarkable response.
"I've seen the best come out in people helping people where they would never have had to consider it before," he says. "It's been absolutely remarkable and I'm so proud of this community and the way they've handled the last year."
He says being a border city without a border has hurt more than the economy.
"I think we all intuitively know that because of our geography it's easy to meet folks who live on either side of the border," says Dilkens. "Probably every one of us has some connection to someone in Michigan for example."
The city has lost millions of dollars in tax revenue to go along with the tourism and economic stimulus the casino generates, according to the mayor.
"Certainly I feel for the more than 2,000 people who have not worked since that building has closed," he says. "They've now been out of work for the better part of a year, that is tough, that is very tough and that hits the economy hard."
Flags flew at half-mast and wreaths were laid at memorials and in the Commons Thursday.