A registered letter has been sent to the BMO Board of Directors outlining our concerns regarding the closure of the Westport branch. My correspondence was accompanied by letters submitted by local businesses, community members, and community organizations. In addition to the BMO Board of Directors, I also forwarded letters of concern to the Ontario Human Rights Commission and the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada. I will continue to keep you informed as updates are received.

Today, I attended the BMO Open House in Westport at 10:45 a.m. I personally delivered a copy of the letter sent to the BMO Board of Directors, along with the accompanying letters from businesses, community members, and groups. to the Regional Vice-President Ricardo Campagna. At the time of my visit, I was the only person in the branch and the first to attend the open house to formally express concerns about the closure.

I had a meeting with Mr Ricardo Campagna, Perth BMO Branch Manager Tim Williton, and Westport BMO Branch Manager Yousaf Mansoor. It became clear early in the discussion that Mr. Campagna had prepared messaging from Head Office, including confirmation that the decisions to close the branch and remove the ATM are final. This underscores why our correspondence was directed to the BMO Board of Directors, as they are the ultimate decision-makers.

With limited flexibility demonstrated by the Vice-President, I encouraged BMO to consider options to offset the additional costs residents will incur when accessing cash through the third-party ATM at Circle K. We discussed a couple of potential approaches, and Mr. Campagna committed to raising these options with senior leadership.

I did, however, have a more encouraging conversation with Mr. Williton. He expressed openness to exploring strategies to provide limited personal banking services for Westport residents after the branch closes, including both virtual and in-person options. He also confirmed that there is ample safety deposit box availability for Westport customers and advised that further information will be provided to customers regarding alternative services and supports.

At last week’s meeting, Council directed staff to actively pursue opportunities to attract another financial institution to establish a presence in Westport.

As additional information becomes available to Town Hall, we will continue to keep the community updated.