As Brockville braces for potential U.S. tariffs, Mayor Wren explains efforts to protect local economy
As the threat of new U.S. tariffs looms over Canadian industries, communities like Brockville are bracing for potential economic fallout. With a rich manufacturing history and close proximity to the U.S., the city could face significant challenges if tariffs are imposed on key exports. Mayor Matt Wren is keeping a close watch on the situation, weighing the potential impact on local businesses, jobs and economic growth. We sat down with Mayor Wren to discuss how local government on a municipal level is attempting to forge a path forward for Brockville in an uncertain global market.
Brockville will surely feel the impact of potential U.S. tariffs with the prevalence of manufacturers and businesses that rely heavily on trading goods and materials with our neighbour to the south. Mayor Wren explained, “Well, we do have manufacturers based here in Brockville that sell a large percentage of the goods they manufacture on the border, so it’s clear that there will be impacts on the local manufacturers if tariffs should move forward. There are also businesses here in the city that require goods and materials from the U.S. to make their products and sell their products. So for these businesses, their exporting and importing capabilities will be impacted.”
According to Wren, the key to navigating these strange economic times is prioritizing strong communication and collaboration among politicians and community leaders from all levels of government. On Friday, Feb. 7, Wren met with the St. Lawrence Corridor Economic Development Commission (SLCEDC) for a special meeting to discuss the situation at hand and hear directly from six local industrial representatives. The commission comprises six municipalities along the river, stretching from Front of Yonge to Edwardsburg Cardinal.
“What I’ve been focusing on is just trying to get an understanding of what impacts could be, but also to be in touch with organizations like the Brockville District Chamber of Commerce and so forth,” Wren told Brockvilleist. “They’ve carried out a survey of their members, and they shared those results with me to just sort of keep my finger on the pulse of what the concerns and potential impacts will be in the community.”
In an effort to represent his constituents, local manufacturers, workers, and families at this time, Wren has chosen to become involved in the national initiative, Border Mayors Alliance (BMA). “The purpose behind that is to really provide a grassroots perspective through the BMA of what the impacts in our local communities could be.”
Mayor Wren has also joined a motion to prioritize municipal spending with Canadian sources.
“MPP Steve Clark is certainly well aware of the concerns of the corridor, and we’ll be keeping both he and [Member of Parliament Michael Barrett] informed on what we’re doing and the initiatives that we’re taking.”
Wren also noted that both the BMA and SLCEDC are junior levels of government and these tariffs provide them the opportunity to consider things like diversifying local export possibilities to become less reliant on the U.S.
“We also really strongly encourage them to put a focus on the border security measure. Being over a border town and halfway between two international bridges, we’re seeing those things unfold and seeing the RCMP patrolling our streets and our waterfront like we’ve never seen before.”
Despite the volatility of the situation, Mayor Wren discussed some potential long-term silver linings that could come out of the U.S. tariffs.
“It seems more than anything else, the U.S. wants their border to be more secure. We realize it’s their responsibility to secure their border, but I think any steps that the federal government can take, along with resources from the province to strengthen that and to root out instances of crime from leaving Ontario and crossing the border to the U.S., then we should do everything we can.”
He continued, “And I think the fringe benefit in all this, if you could possibly see one, is that these initiatives might prove to make all of our communities safer as well. We’ve been hammered with the effects of the drug crisis. It’s destroying families and destroying communities in so many ways. And if, as a result of this, we see less of that, a lessening of drug activity in our communities, a lessening of illegal guns crossing borders, we’ll all be better off if some of those issues can be better managed and mitigated.”
Besides engaging with industry leaders and collaborating with local government initiatives, Mayor Wren realizes that his hands are somewhat tied on a municipal level.
“At the municipal level of government, you don’t have a lot of tools to address threats of this sort of nature. We don’t have financial tools available to us, and we don’t have a lot of policy tools, but one thing we do have is a voice, and as a mayor, as a local leader in the community, I’m going to use that voice as much as I can.”
Mayor Wren told Brockvilleist that a new motion will be brought forward to the General Standing Committee this month for the city to take a closer look at their procurement bylaw.
“This is to see if there are ways that we can prioritize municipal spending coming from Canadian sources, Canadian manufacturers and Canadian companies.”
When asked if he has any sentiments he would like to share with his constituents during this anxiety-inducing time, Wren expressed, “I think unfortunately, we have to take this situation one day at a time, and I think we’re in this for a bit of a long haul. As far as the tumultuousness of the situation, I think there’s going to be a lot of back and forth over the next four years.”
He continued, “And so, we certainly want to encourage people in our community to try not to panic about the situation, and we all need to continue going to work every day and doing the best we can for our community and for our employers.”