The City of Windsor will be requesting financial aid from the upper levels of government to help businesses along Huron Church Road.
Since a near week long protest ended Feb. 13, businesses on both sides of Huron Church Road have been dealing with eastbound and westbound traffic restrictions, in some cases, eliminating all access to their business.
Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens says what they see on the ground on Huron Church Road is a direct response to a national security threat and police have done what they need to do to maintain control of the roadway.
Dilkens wants impacted businesses to record their direct losses as a result of what's happening.
"Track any direct costs they see or direct issues they see, so we have a tally of what their loss would be," he says. "What we want to do is pursue those losses, wrap them all up and pursue some support from the federal and provincial governments."
Dilkens calls this a very unique situation, directly related to COVID and COVID restrictions.
"Certainly, one that is worthy of having higher levels of government look at trying to fund and support businesses who are directly impacted by a national security issue," he says.
Dilkens says they want to work with the businesses and amply their voices when it comes to their losses.
"We want to be able to say 'here's the pressure that was over and above what any other business across the country had experienced, as a result of this action that was taken to maintain this sense of national security down here, and we need your help to make these people whole,'" he says.
Dilkens adds there really isn't a practical way for the City to provide any support, even in the way of reducing property taxes, because it wouldn't be material to the bottom line of what pain the businesses are facing.
The Windsor Police Service has restricted the flow of traffic along the road to ensure the movement of cross border traffic at the Ambassador Bridge, although a few east-west access points have slowly been reopened as conditions have allowed.