Heather Wright/The Independent

Jerry Burns had a simple question of the candidates for Dawn-Euphemia council – why don’t we use rumble strips on our roads?

For Burns, the township’s first fire chief and the organizer of the Sept. 23 debate, it’s a very personal matter.

“My father was killed in an automobile accident 50 years ago, at the intersection of 21 Highway and the Don Mills Road,” he told about 75 people gathered at the Florence Community Centre. He believes on that foggy day, the rumble strips may have saved his father’s life.

Burns has voiced his concerns publicly before and he pressed the matter again as he moderated the all-candidates night.

“That’s my thing – rumble strips – had they been in place, I think it would not have happened. It was really foggy, and he crossed, went on the highway, and hit the embankment …on the other side. That was it.”

Candidate Debb Pitel agreed with Burns about the hazard at the intersection. She and her husband own the horse farm at the corner.

She said she’s aware of five fatalities at the intersection and says safety “was certainly a concern when my kids were young when we first moved here and the speed is a concern.”

Incumbent councillor Jason Meyer, who is seeking re-election, isn’t sure why the measure hasn’t been considered before.

“I know many, many intersections do have not exactly great lines of sight – you could probably identify a few of them yourself. And I believe rumble strips would be a huge asset in preventing accidents and safety in general,” he said.

Meyer said he wasn’t even sure of the costs.

Some of the newcomers to politics had some ideas.

“I’ve looked at it on the internet as to cost-wise, and it’s a few 100 bucks,” said first- time candidate Brad Goodreau. “It’s not something like a couple of million … to put a roundabout in.”

Newcomer Adam McBrayne, who had worked for Dawn-Euphemia’s public works department agreed installing the strips didn’t have to be difficult or costly.

“In Middlesex County, they what they use is they use corrugated steel … instead of cutting the pavement,” he offered.

Residents are also concerned about the prospect of increasing truck traffic through Dawn-Euphemia.

York1 Environmental Services plans a landfill and recycling centre for soil and construction waste just south of where Oil Springs Line turns into Irish School Road.

An estimated 20 trucks a day are expected to travel down Oil Heritage from Highway 402 to Dresden to use the facility – more during the spring months when there are load restrictions on Chatham-Kent roads where much of the traffic will travel.

“I can give you an answer why there’s a north-south route. It’s basically for winter travel only, so they claim, because
most of the Chatham-Kent roads are half load, and 21 (Oil Heritage) is an MTO-rated road that can take that traffic all year round,” said Meyer in response to a question from a resident asking why the trucks would come this way anyway.

Most councillors admitted there was little that could be done to limit their travel in Dawn-Euphemia, adding the county is working with Chatham-Kent, the host municipality, to see if there will be new alternative routes or cash to repair any damage to the local roads.

“It’d be nice if we could have some kind of toll on the trucks, but unfortunately we can’t do that,” said incumbent candidate Paul LeBoeuf, adding he’s concerned the trucks aren’t likely to follow an established truck route if they can find a faster, less expensive way to go.

Incumbent Ann Gray said she’d considered whether the Ministry of Transportation might be able to be called on to patrol Lambton’s roads to keep the York1 trucks where they’re supposed to be. But she says, that could cause other issues.

“If you get MTO involved, then they’re going to stop some of our farmers as well, and limit them,” Gray said.

The candidates also talked about economic development. Candidate Jerry Bijker acknowledged the need for more homes to grow the tax base, but says he, like others, don’t really want new neighbours right next door.

McBrayne voiced concern that the townships water system couldn’t handle too much residential growth.

However, Meyer said a recent report to council outlined there is lots of room for development to help cover the financial hits the township has taken from provincial funding cuts.

“We are down $2 million in provincial funding to help with roads and infrastructure,” said Meyer. “We do need 250 to 400 homes just to compensate for half of that loss and to make this water system that we have in the ground now viable.

“I know nobody wants neighbours, and nobody wants a sprawling concrete jungle. But we also have to recognize the fact that we are half the population we were 40 years ago. We need that community back to make our businesses viable, to make our community vibrant again,” Meyer said.

“You’re either going to see local government that pushes for development and gets it, or you’re going to see higher taxes and reduced services, drastically reduced services” he added.

Goodreau suggested housing is not the only answer for growth in the community.

“I see the future of some of these bigger projects, the solar projects, the green energy battery plants that are north of us and south of us, bio digesters and things like that, and jobs, the promise of jobs – I’m trying to weigh that. We want more people here with good jobs,” Goodreau added. “I would like to see the youth kind of stay here, find a job.”

The debate was the only one organized in the township. The Independent will be providing more coverage in its 2026 Municipal Election special edition Oct. 15.