Greenhouses are an important part of Kingsville’s economy and, increasingly, part of the future of food production. Through controlled growing environments, advanced technology, water recirculation systems, automation, research and innovation, and year-round production, the greenhouse industry has transformed how food is grown and supplied to markets across North America. The sector provides jobs, investment, and agricultural innovation that will continue to shape our region for decades to come.

At the same time, being a host municipality for such a large and resource-intensive industry comes with real challenges that cannot be ignored.

The effects on local infrastructure, increased pressure on drinking water systems, wear on roads, sewer capacity demands, and light pollution are all issues that municipalities like Kingsville are left to manage. Using municipal services is not inherently a problem — provided the industry using those services contributes enough revenue to offset the costs. Unfortunately, we know from Kingsville’s 2019 service review that this is not currently the case.

That means residential taxpayers are subsidizing a portion of the costs associated with supporting this industry.

Throughout my time on Council, I have worked to ensure Kingsville takes a balanced approach, recognizing the importance of greenhouses while also protecting residents, municipal infrastructure, and taxpayers.

One of the first major issues addressed was light pollution. Council passed a nuisance lighting bylaw that, while not perfect, created a mechanism for enforcing dark sky compliance and responding to concerns from residents negatively affected by greenhouse lighting.

Another significant issue was worker housing. The Boarding, Rooming, and Lodging Bylaw was introduced in response to growing concerns about residential homes being converted into high-occupancy bunkhouses for temporary foreign workers. Homes built to accommodate families were increasingly being used to house large numbers of workers, often creating concerns related to neighbourhood character, infrastructure strain and parking.

The bylaw established standards related to occupancy, fire safety, and municipal inspections for housing provided as a condition of employment. While there was considerable pushback from parts of the greenhouse industry — largely because temporary foreign worker housing falls under federal jurisdiction — the reality was that the minimum federal standards often did not reflect what our community considered acceptable living conditions.

The COVID-19 pandemic further highlighted these concerns, as crowded living conditions contributed to outbreaks and delayed reopening efforts in our region.

This bylaw was an attempt to improve living conditions while also protecting the integrity of residential neighbourhoods. Importantly, it does not restrict where any worker chooses to live. It applies specifically to employer-provided housing arrangements tied to employment. Worker rights advocates supported this effort as an important first step toward better standards and accountability.

As a Board Member — and now Chair — of the Union Water Supply System, I have also been directly involved in addressing the growing strain placed on our regional drinking water system.

The Union Water system has maintained a moratorium on new “large water users” for several years, a category driven primarily by greenhouse operations because their water consumption far exceeds that of typical users. The system is now facing the need for significant expansion to accommodate future growth. However, if greenhouse operations were using alternative water sources rather than relying so heavily on treated drinking water, that expansion would not be as urgent today.

Future expansion plans and costs will depend heavily on the industry’s willingness to contribute fairly toward the infrastructure required to support it.

More recently, Kingsville has been dealing with legal action initiated by the Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers regarding the Town’s sewer bylaw and efforts to enforce sewer use agreements that have not been followed. This issue speaks directly to a larger concern: municipalities must have the ability to enforce agreements and protect infrastructure without placing additional burden on residents.

I have also participated alongside other municipal and regional partners in delegations to the Province to explain the challenges municipalities face. Because the province has categorized greenhouses under the agricultural tax rate, municipalities lack the taxation tools necessary to maintain and expand the infrastructure needed to support these industrial-scale operations.

These conversations are not anti-greenhouse. They are about fairness.