Ward 2 – McGregor area candidates take hot seat in Essex Municipal Election Debate

by Sylene Argent, Local Journalism Initiative

The 2026 Essex Municipal Election Debate Night on Tuesday, September 29th was an evening dedicated to being engaged in local politics and learning about the platforms of the local candidates before heading to the polls later this month.

The Debate Night, which took place inside the Essex Center Sports Complex, was hosted by the Essex Free Press and moderated by Editor/Lead Reporter Sylene Argent, who was pleased with the around 100 individuals who took the time to attend in person to hear what candidates had to say.

The event invited Ward 1 – Essex Center, Ward 2 – McGregor area, and Mayoral candidates to share their platforms and ideas. Three sessions were offered during the evening, allowing candidates vying for the same position to debate one another. 

Leading up to the debate, the Essex Free Press welcomed community members to provide questions, and an impressive number of well-thought-out questions were forwarded ahead of time. 

Two out of the three Ward 2 – McGregor area candidates for the one position dedicated to this geographical area on Essex Council attended the debate: incumbent Kim Verbeek and challenger Ben Orlando. All three candidates were contacted by the Essex Free Press via the information available on the Town of Essex webpage dedicated to certified candidates. 

Orlando said he is a husband and father of three. He's always enjoyed being involved in the community, helping to organize events, including a large car show. He supports local sports through sponsorships and has helped raise money for some great charities. He is a General Manager at a major retailer. He leads a team, manages a large operation, works with budgets, and deals with challenges every day. That has taught him to be accountable, make decisions, and most importantly have a real drive for results.

Verbeek said it has been a pleasure to serve on Essex Council since 2018. She has lived in the area with her husband for 43-years, and raised five children in Ward 2. Spending her adult life advocating for and volunteering in the community, municipal government was an obvious next step. She has served on the Essex Fun Fest Committee, the Co-An Park Committee, Striking Community, acted as Chairperson of the Landfill Liaison Committee and the Personnel Committee, and was a member of the Affordable Housing Task Force and Climate Adaptation Committee. In McGregor, she works to host the annual Stroll by Santa.

In speaking to the first question about their plans to tackle flooding and drainage issues, Verbeek is looking forward to getting the Pelee Coastal Resilience Project flood mapping back to see the recommendations made about flooding. At the beginning of this term, she was part of a meeting with several Essex reps and the Essex Region Conservation Authority to look at potentially getting some assistance with the River Canard drain. ERCA has agreed to do some drone work and look at potential work that could be completed along the drain to help with drainage issues, she said. 

Orlando says it's obvious there's been enough planning and understanding of the areas that have the most need when it comes to drainage issues. The biggest things he's looking for are the priorities, what it will cost, and execution with tangible results. Planning, he said, is all great. He wondered when they would step in and actually do what needs to be done. 

In answering what would be the biggest decision in the first year if elected that would benefit all four communities, Orlando said the biggest thing he can do to impact all four communities would be event planning and bringing people together. That is one of his specialties and something he does in his business day-to-day. He has an understanding of how to rally residents, bring community events forward, and ensure community events take place that everyone can be a part of. 

Verbeek noted that no matter the outcome of the election, she and Orlando should work together, with the two taking a moment to shake hands. People who know her know she is all about event planning and bringing the community together. 

The candidates were also asked whether or not they would support a Municipal Accommodation Tax (MAT) if elected. This was an initiative that Tourism Windsor Essex Pelee Island (TWEPI) brought forward to all County municipalities earlier this term. The idea is for the municipalities to adopt a 4% or 6% MAT Tax that would be charged to visitors by hotels or short-term accommodation providers. The funds would be split between the municipality and TWEPI to support tourism initiatives as a new funding stream. The current Term of Council decided this would be decided with the new Term of Council during the 2027 Budget deliberations.

Verbeek noted that initially she was not in favour of the MAT Tax, as she didn't want to add any more cost to individuals who wanted to come and help build the tourism industry. She is, however, warming up to the idea. She said she has warmed up to other ideas in the past that will help the municipality stabilize taxes. This would be an alternate source of revenue that would be less of a burden on taxpayers. 

Orlando noted the municipality does have to look for different avenues as to where taxes can be imposed that do not burden residents. He recognizes that there is a great deal of financial hardship currently, and because of that, it is something that continues to need to be looked into. Fiscal responsibility is one of the biggest parts of his platform. When it comes to tax dollars, he said he will ensure they are used in the best appropriate way. 

The candidates were asked additional questions. The link to the live stream a resident filmed of the debate can be found at essexfreepress.com.