Amherstburg Town Council, Ontario, has given direction on how to spend $500,000 in provincial funding with strings attached. The money comes from a $23 million deal between Ontario and Diageo, but council can only recommend where it goes—the final call lies with the province and the company. On May 25, 2026, council settled on five areas it wants to see funded, including a boost for a local charity, a new skilled trades bursary, spruced‑up public spaces, and reopening a blocked street.
The pot of money is tied to the closure of Diageo’s Crown Royal bottling plant earlier this year. The plant shut its doors in February 2026, wiping out about 160 jobs in a town where it had operated since 1971. Of the $23 million settlement, less than a quarter of a million dollars is earmarked for Amherstburg itself: $500,000 for “community projects” and another $500,000 to the regional economic development agency Invest WindsorEssex. Mayor Michael Prue made no effort to hide his frustration. “They took $23 million and mostly for their own benefit,” he said, adding the province didn’t follow through on promises to protect jobs.
At the May 25 meeting, council members handed the province a specific wish list. Their top pick is directing money to Amherstburg Community Services, an organization that has run food bank programs, Meals on Wheels, and mental health support for residents of Amherstburg, LaSalle, Harrow, and McGregor for more than 40 years. Retired Diageo worker Nicolette Dufour, who spent 41 years at the plant, told council that workers had regularly donated to local charities and urged the province to keep that spirit alive through the community services group.
Other recommendations include a $100,000 skilled trades bursary at St. Clair College, enough money to run a municipal grant program for about eight years, an investment in the waterfront to add public washrooms and other amenities, and finally restoring public access to Balaclava Street. The street has been largely closed to through traffic in recent years. Council’s brief, published on the town’s website, lists all five uses as formal recommendations to the province and Diageo.
Despite the detailed list, Amherstburg’s hands are tied. “What this means is that council can only recommend to the province what to do with the funds,” Prue said. “It’s taken out of our hands.” The recommendations will now go to Queen’s Park and Diageo for approval. No timeline has been set for a final decision.
