Welcome to
Rose City Politics
Rose City Politics is a weekly, hour-long show about the politics, behind the chatter, and movers-and-shakers affecting Windsor.
Join us as we dissect, debate, educate, and inform on the political happenings in Windsor Ontario.
Latest Audio Episodes
Latest Biz X Magazine Column:

BIZ X Magazine: CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE COMPENSATION
Rose City Politics investigates if council committee composition reflects the community we live in and how committee decisions impact council decisions.
Latest Posts

RCP SHOW: We Still Haven’t Started the Show
Doug, Don, Melinda, and Jon talk about city council remuneration, ABC remuneration, and an expected 5% tax increase…BUT, maybe not if Mayor Dilkens can SAVE THE DAY
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RCP SHOW: Booze Bucks Baby
Melinda, Don, and Jon are joined by Councillor Kieran McKenzie to discuss the latest in the City BIA takeover story. Doug showed up late but in time to engage a discussion about the Downtown Mission and the fortunes of Downtown Windsor in general.
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BIA Brouhaha II: BIApocalypse (RCP episode)
Ford City BIA chair Shane Potvin & Ward 9 city councillor Kieran McKenzie join Melinda, Kiemia, & Jon to discuss Windsor City Council taking over all nine BIAs & refusing to seat their elected members, what comes next, & how this affects local morale.
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Ward 9’s Kieran McKenzie on DMAF funding: Being Nice is also a Strategy
Ward 9 city councillor Kieran McKenzie discusses the conversation about DMAF funding, flooding, empathy, and the need to work cooperatively and collaboratively.
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SafePoint CTS to open without delay
SafePoint, Windsor Essex’s first Consumption Treatment Site, will open without delay following a 7-4 city council vote Monday afternoon.
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RCP SHOW: Rose City Praise
Jon, Don, Melinda & Doug discuss politicians challenging characterizations of the flood and Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund (DMAF), downtown crime, arrests & The Downtown Mission, & QR codes to reduce panhandling.
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MP Irek Kusmierczyk: Mayor Dilkens’ flooding funding claims unfounded; federal government funded region at unprecedented national levels
MP Kusmierczyk says Mayor Dilkens’ flooding funding claims unfounded and the federal government has funded the region at unprecedented national levels.
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Windsor-Tecumseh MPP Andrew Dowie helps alleviate SafePoint CTS ‘delay’ concerns
MPP Andrew Dowie’s office says they’re not aware of any “concerns or delays” regarding the CTS application provincially.
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RCP SHOW: It Looks an Awful Lot Like Hypocrisy
Doug dives into local employment data and we talk what it means, Windsor Police are back at council meetings, & Mayor Dilkens accuses WECHU of Bait and Switch.
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RCP SHOW: White People Shit
Jon, Kiemia, Melinda and Doug talk about Windsor’s agency, board and committee appointments and the public, media and political response so far, plus regular segments “Carry on Kiemia” and “For Your Consideration.”
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RCP SHOW: Turbo and the Baconator
Kiemia, Jon, Don, Melinda and Doug review the fallout from Councillor Agostino’s CTS motion, a possible anti-panhandling bylaw, and Transit Windsor buses running at capacity.
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IT and Sewers
We have been putting up trinkets and shiny lights when we should have been funding critical technology infrastructure. We are pennywise and pound foolish. As is inevitable, those chickens are coming home to roost.
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RCP SHOW: Live from Maiden Lane – Mostly Gristle
Jon, Don, Melinda and Doug discuss local politics over cocktails at Maiden Lane Wine & Spirits. We talk about panhandling bylaw proposal, The motion to reconsider Council’s support for a Consumption and Treatment Services site in Windsor, and the makeup of the Windsor Police Services Board of Directors.
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Rino Bortolin on Safe Consumption Site rescind motion
Former ward 3 city councillor Rino Bortolin opines about newly elected ward 3 councillor Renaldo Agostino’s Notice of Motion to rescind city council support for the Safe Consumption Site’s approved location.
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Hamilton gets a “Bus Barn”? Why not “Garage Mahal”?
Hamilton’s “Bus Barn” is Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens’ nightmare “Garage Mahal”, and while Hamilton is going to see a new transit garage sooner than later, Windsorites are left wondering when we’ll get ours and if more cohesive political support could help…
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CTV Windsor: Windsor’s ‘outdated’ IT system another sign of large orgs leaving tech departments ‘starved of resources’ – Sartori
Software consultant and political commentator Doug Sartori, pictured in Windsor, Ont., on Jan. 20, 2023, says a recent report on Windsor’s IT system is yet another example of large organizations failing to prioritize and invest in their information technology systems “due to a lack of commitment from leadership in all things digital.” (Sanjay Maru/CTV News…
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ROSE CITY POLITICS: Jon Liedtke asks Premier Ford if health changes are enough (VIDEO)
Premier Ford recently said he spoke to a hospital executive who said Ontario’s healthcare system is only comparable to North Korea and Cuba, so I asked him whether his plans to expand access to private clinics will go far enough…
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RCP SHOW: Powered by Millennial Rage
Doug, Don, Jon, Melinda & Kiemia talk about the Windsor’s digital modernization consultation, the Capital Power gas plant issue, and a school naming policy report for the public school board. Rose City Politics is brought to you with the kind support of LiUNA Local 625: Building Better Communities. Support the show on Patreon.com/RoseCityPolitics. Find us…
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BIZ X Magazine: State of the City: A Rose City Politics 2022 Retrospective
For January 2022, three of the panelists take a look backwards, rather than forward, to provide a retrospective on 2022 before moving ahead to what 2023 will bring.
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RCP SHOW: The Marvelous Ms. Munro
New regular panelist Melinda Munro joins Kiemia, Jon, Don, and Doug this week. Kiemia walks us through the upcoming Council agenda and the panel discusses the process, substance and politics of the 2023 City Budget based on initial reports. Add a couple of For Your Consideration items and you’ve got a show.
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