00:00:00.000I want to talk about another dimension of this, which I feel is the part of the story that's not as often told, and that is the local dimension, because these are local communities that oftentimes have had to deal with this influx, which isn't just at Roxham Road, but I think all around Ontario and Quebec near the New York-Vermont border.
00:00:26.540I want to welcome onto the show the Mayor of Niagara Falls, Jim Diodati. Your Worship, good to have you on the show. Thanks for coming on today.
00:00:36.720So this is not often, because it's immigration, been seen as a municipal issue, but in your city it really has been one.
00:00:43.960Yeah, it was something that just kind of happened to us. It started out pretty mild last summer.
00:00:50.840They brought 87 people to Niagara Falls, and they said they'd be asylum seekers staying in town.
00:00:57.120They'd be part of the federal government's program just to kind of keep it low-key, and we did, and it seemed pretty nefarious.
00:01:04.900And next thing, we went from 87 to 387 to 600 to 1,200.
00:01:10.600You know, we're up over 2,000 rooms now and upwards of more than 5,000 asylum seekers here in Niagara Falls.
00:01:17.520So for a community of 95,000, when more than 5% are asylum seekers, that's a big number.
00:01:24.560That's an overnight impact, and it's been difficult because we're trying to absorb the social services, Ontario Works, and all the other things that go with it.
00:01:33.800And I've been on regular conversations with IRCC as well as the province today just trying to sort out our role in this matter.
00:01:42.740And again, let me start by saying, Andrew, I know we're a nation of immigrants. We get that, and I know generally these are good people coming from bad situations.
00:01:50.300We're grateful to do our part, but we feel that we're doing more than our fair share, and we need a little bit of help.
00:01:56.660Well, no, and I think that's a point well taken, Mayor, because when you talk about the broader landscape,
00:02:01.420you could find the immigration numbers and divide it into a country of 38 million, and it doesn't sound that bad.
00:02:07.220But when you look at the fact that so much of that is concentrated along border communities, it does change the dynamic.
00:02:13.600And Niagara Falls in particular is a lovely place. It's a tourist city.
00:02:17.160You've probably got better use for a lot of the hotel rooms that you have there.
00:02:21.000And it just, it occurs to me as you were talking with that, have you actually had issues where hotel occupancy rates have been artificially inflated and elevated,
00:02:29.320and you don't actually have room to accommodate the tourist demand?
00:02:33.040Well, you know, that's a great question, and yes.
00:02:35.620So, of course, it's the economic model of supply and demand.
00:02:38.880And we've got big inventory, and in the shoulder season, a lot of it's vacant during the week.
00:02:59.000Some said they're going to leave the city.
00:03:00.800I can tell you, too, Andrew, we've had some situations, and this is some of the unintended negative outcomes of a good idea.
00:03:07.740We've had some of our local Niagara homeless who public health have put up in our local motels who have been evicted to make room for asylum seekers.
00:03:15.960So, you know, you try to solve a problem, and it's not by creating another problem or kicking the can down the road.
00:03:22.040So I asked three things of the federal government.
00:03:24.240Number one, I asked that we have a seat at the table.
00:03:26.780I said we need to be part of the discussion if we're going to help with the solution.
00:03:40.380The federal government is going to have to pay some of the bills here, our peripheral expenses.
00:03:45.420I mean, our food bank, our soup kitchen is up 85%.
00:03:48.880You know, our local community groups, the churches, mosques, temples, and whatnot are giving coats, boots, hats, gloves, and things like that.
00:03:55.960So secondly, the second request is for money.
00:03:58.460And third thing is we'd like to be made privy to the plan or plans.
00:04:02.000And I know they're evolving, emerging, and they're changing, and we get that.
00:04:10.500We need a physical plan because my bigger concern, Andrew, is, you know, I've got this one train coming down the track of thousands of silent seekers, and I've got this other train coming down the other track.
00:04:19.840We've got 14 million tourists coming back.
00:04:39.480Last year, domestic tourism returned to pre-pandemic numbers, but international, we're below half.
00:04:45.180So now that the Arrive Can app is gone from the borders, and it's a favorable exchange rate for our American friends, this is the year of international recovery we're counting on.
00:04:55.120And if we don't have the inventory, we're going to have some challenges.
00:04:58.000And, I mean, when we talk about the change that came out last week to the Safe Third Country Agreement, I think, obviously, for the illegal border crossing aspect of it, there's a bit of a resolution there.
00:05:08.960But part of the government's response to that is increasing or widening the pipeline for asylum claimants.
00:05:15.380So the problem that you're describing in Niagara Falls is pretty much unchanged and perhaps made even worse by this change, is it not?
00:05:22.940Well, it could be, and that's the thing.
00:05:24.960The devil's going to be in the details, and I know that.
00:05:27.240But I'm just glad they're addressing it, not ignoring it.
00:05:30.580Roxham Road's a legal loophole, and it's not even fair to the other asylum seekers who are going through the proper channels because they're jumping the queue ahead of people doing it the right way.
00:05:41.320And, you know, it's only a matter of time.
00:05:42.700And if you look at the path of least resistance and water, we'll take that.
00:05:46.740Wherever the low point is, wherever the opening is, that's where the water goes.
00:05:49.820And eventually, it'll force that opening bigger until there's no water going anywhere but that place.
00:06:04.960Yeah, I'm just curious about whether there has been a seat at the table for any of your counterparts in other municipalities because, as the old line goes, there's safety in numbers.
00:06:15.140And I know that other communities are dealing with this.
00:06:17.620You probably get unfairly targeted because, as you mentioned, you have the hotel inventory.
00:06:21.780So you're more of a natural pick there.
00:06:24.160But have other mayors in other cities really seen the same thing here?
00:06:49.040Just to interject there, Mayor Diodati, so when you say they added 500, is this something that the federal government can do unilaterally just by going to the hotel and saying,
00:07:07.300So they're using a third-party group who's putting out requests for a proposal.
00:07:11.180And then all the hoteliers that are interested can put in a bid.
00:07:14.620And, of course, rates are going higher because we're getting closer to the tourism season.
00:07:18.460And, you know, right now it's probably around $140, $150 a night for a hotel room plus $75 a day for food, three meals a day, and snacks for kids in school.
00:07:29.980Then they get another $350 a month for incidentals.
00:07:33.620And, you know, there's some other fees that they get.
00:07:37.560And, of course, if I'm a hotel unit, it's the shoulder season, and I can get seven-day-a-week occupancy, and I don't have to clean the room, and I don't need to be preparing meals because they're using, a lot of them are using third-party cafeteria-type meal processes.
00:07:52.420I mean, I understand the allure of it, but it's not sustainable.
00:08:02.180Nobody really seems to have these answers.
00:08:04.180Well, hopefully, you'll get them, and we'll have to have you back on to see if you have any luck on that.
00:08:09.460I mean, this is not a new problem, and every time it comes up, it's like everyone asks, it's the first time they've ever had to consider it.
00:08:14.880So I'm glad that you are on the ground and willing to share that, Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati.