LaSalle Police Chief Announces Retirement

Chief John Leontowicz has tendered his notice of retirement to the LaSalle Police Services Board at the June 22 Police Services Board meeting.

“On behalf of the Board, we would like to congratulate the Chief on his retirement and thank him for his dedicated service to our community during his 21 years. His wealth of knowledge of the organization and LaSalle will be missed and we wish him well in his future endeavors,” stated Mayor Bondy, Chair of the LaSalle Police Services Board.

Chief Leontowicz will retire with 45 years of policing experience. He has headed the LaSalle Police Service for over 21 years and is presently one of the longest serving police Chiefs in Canada. He is set to retire in January 2021.

Chief Leontowicz began his policing career in 1976 with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. During his career with the RCMP his duties included uniform patrol, drug enforcement, federal enforcement, organized crime and economic crime. His RCMP postings have been in Red Deer, Ft. McMurray, Regina, Halifax, Toronto, Thunder Bay, and Windsor.

The Chief has been the recipient of the Order of Merit, Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Medal, RCMP Exemplary Medal, Ontario Police Exemplary Service Medal, FBI Trilogy Award, Canada 150 Service Medal and Certified Municipal Manager Designation.

“It has been an honour to serve the LaSalle community for the past 21 years,” said Chief Leontowicz. The Chief would like to sincerely thank the residents of LaSalle for welcoming his family into the community and is grateful to the residents for their support through-out the 21 years. He would like to acknowledge the Knights of Columbus River Canard for their kindness and encouragement.

LaSalle Police Service continues to provide exceptional service to residents of LaSalle and in turn residents have shown their gratitude and support for service provided, said Chief Leontowicz in his retirement statement.

The Board will begin its discussions on a search for his successor and hopes to make a further announcement on the process in the near future.

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LaSalle Approves 2020 Budget in Principle

LaSalle Council has approved a 0% Municipal Tax Rate increase in principle as presented by administration. The Budget Session took place on December 18. The 2020 Budget By-law will be presented at a Regular Meeting of Council in January.

“We have a good Council and a good leadership. We are ‘Team LaSalle’. I know that the budgeting process does not come easy,” said Mayor Marc Bondy. “Council and administration are all on the same page when it comes to the budget.”

The Town of LaSalle’s administration recommended a 0% Municipal Tax Rate increase in the 2020 Budget. The budget requires a $2.3M levy increase over the 2019 Municipal Budget, bringing the general levy to $36.7M. Those funds are being accounted for through an increase of $0.9M in new construction, and an additional $1.4M from phased in re-assessment on existing properties. The approved budget allows the Town to continue to invest in service level increases such as those identified in the Fire Master Plan and other ongoing Master Plans, as well as investing in long-term capital infrastructure of the Town.

“Growth is important to keep tax rates affordable. The growth in LaSalle over the last five years has allowed the Town to keep tax rate increases low or at zero.” – Dale Langlois, Director of Finance/Treasurer

An estimated 93% of the tax base in LaSalle is from Residential Taxes. Growth in LaSalle through new development has allowed the Town to set the tax rate change at less than 1% for four consecutive years, including 0% for 2019 and 2020. For every tax dollar billed in LaSalle, about 60% or 60 cents stays in LaSalle, 30% is transferred to the County of Essex and 10% is transferred for education. LaSalle continues to be in the middle of the pack when tax rates are compared across Essex County.

Even with a 0% Municipal Tax Rate increase, most residential tax payers in LaSalle may see an increase in their 2020 taxes as a result of the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) reassessment. MPAC’s assessed value of individual properties was done is 2016 and took effect in 2017, and that increase is phased in over a four year period (2020 is the last year for this cycle of reassessment). MPAC will be reassessing property values in 2020 and that will start a new four-year cycle in 2021. For more information about the MPAC.

At the Budget Session, each department presented their proposed budget, along with their goals and objectives for the coming year. The goals and objectives are tied to LaSalle’s Corporate Strategic Plan, and are often developed based on feedback from the community and members of Council throughout the year.

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LaSalle Launches Citizen Request Portal

Customer service is important to the Town of LaSalle. In an effort to provide a convenient option, the Town has implemented a Citizen Issue/Request Portal on their website. Requests and inquiries can now be submitted to the Town and will be sent directly to the appropriate department. This will result in fewer call transfers, faster resolution and overall great customer service.

Each Citizen Issue/Request Submission will be given a service request number. This will allow both the customer and Town officials to track the progress and follow-up as required. Requests submitted after hours (outside of Monday to Friday from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm) will be addressed during business hours. All requests will be acknowledged within two business days.

For after-hours service requests that may require immediate attention such as a traffic light not working, road flooding or other possible dangerous conditions please call the after-hours number at 519-969-4143. If the issue is about an immediate threat to public safety, call 911 for emergency assistance.

The Citizen Issue/Request Portal can be found on the Town’s website.

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Construction at Heritage Park in LaSalle Expected to Take 4-5 Months

Construction at Heritage Park (on Heritage Drive) in LaSalle started on July 5. Road and sewer construction within the Heritage Estates subdivision, along with playground and landscape renovations to the park should take approximately 4-5 months to complete.

The work includes constructing underground and above ground storm water storage in Heritage Park. This will help alleviate flooding that occurred in the area in 2015 and 2016. It will also include the replacement and alteration of select existing storm and sanitary sewers on some streets within the subdivision, renovations to Heritage Park, along with the installation of a new walkway along the outer perimeter of the park.

The Town was successful in receiving a $1.5 million grant from the National Disaster Mitigation Program, and the Town will be matching that funding 50/50, providing a total of $3.0 million for the project. Given the extent of funding available, the Town will be proceeding with the first phase of the flood mitigation measures, that being the work within the Heritage Estates area.

The existing play equipment along the north side of Heritage Park will remain open until Labour Day weekend. After Labour Day weekend, the entire park will be closed to facilitate the construction of new equipment, a new parking lot, a shade structure with accessible picnic tables, a basketball court, two pickleball courts and a soccer pitch. Once complete, the playground will be designated a Playcore National Demonstration Site for meeting best practices for design.

The new playground will be a fully accessible and inclusive 5,000 square-foot structure geared for children between the ages of 1 ½ years to 12 years old. The play structure will incorporate interactive panes and ramps to allow users to easily get from one level to the next. The swings will include a Mom-and-Me swing, an accessible swing and a Tri-Runner swing making the design unique to this area. The whole playground will sit atop a rubberized surface.

Residents adjacent to the park may experience intermittent disruptions of access to driveways through the construction. Please keep in mind that construction areas can be dangerous, especially to individuals who are not trained to work in this environment. We ask that residents avoid the active work sites and keep a safe distance from equipment and workers engaged in their daily activities.

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LaSalle and Louisville Proclaimed Sister Cities

At the June 13, 2019 Louisville Metro Council meeting, the city council meeting of Louisville, Kentucky, a proclamation was made naming LaSalle as a Sister City honouring our shared histories. LaSalle Mayor Marc Bondy, CAO Joe Milicia and Director of Culture of Recreation Julie Columbus, travelled to Louisville, Kentucky to attend the city council meeting.

“It is great to partner with Louisville as a Sister City,” said Mayor Bondy. “We were able to tour Louisville, meet with members of the Metro Council and city officials. We have established a friendship and look forward to learning more about their city and working together on joint initiatives.”

In 1669, French Explorer, René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, travelled the Ohio River, and made it to the falls at the future site of Louisville. Likewise, the Town of LaSalle was named after the French explorer, who established settlements and trading routes along the Great Lakes and rivers throughout North America in the 17th Century.

“The Town of LaSalle has the oldest continuous European settlement in all of Ontario because of the French explorers. We are excited to commemorate our history at our Rendez-vous Voyageur Festival in September. The French Explorers shaped Ontario and Canada through the waterways and fur trading routes so our festival will have both local and regional appeal,” said Columbus.

Members of the Louisville Metro Council, Sister Cities of Louisville and Alliance Française de Louisville have been invited to visit LaSalle during our Rendez-vous Voyageur Festival that is being held on September 20 and 21. The event will step back in time to the 1600-1700’s to commemorate our French and Native history. The two-day event will feature authentic entertainment, re-enactments, interactive displays, traditional cuisine, vendors and a pyro musical show.

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