Fort Erie advances ‘Reimagining Douglas Memorial’ plan
September 29, 2026 at 5:00 AM
In what he described as a show of good faith, a Fort Erie councillor has withdrawn a motion calling for the resignation of Niagara Health leadership on the same day municipal leaders agreed to move forward with the Town’s “Reimagining Douglas Memorial” plan.
With consultants Santis Health identifying the importance of partnerships and collaboration for the success of the Fort Erie health care plan, Councillor Tom Lewis said he didn’t want his motion–which was first brought up more than a year ago and has been deferred multiple times since–to get in the way of any potential progress.
“I would hate to see a motion like this get in the way of potential partnerships and services that can stay within our community,” he said, of the motion that would have called for the resignation of Niagara Health President Lynn Guerriero and its board of directors.
At the Monday, September 28 meeting, councillors approved a staff report that recommended moving ahead with the Reimagining Douglas Memorial plan. It came after an in camera session that lasted just over an hour and included, among other items, an update on the health care plan that was being undertaken by Santis Health.
The open session report passed without comment before Lewis told his colleagues he was withdrawing his motion.
The public report from Santis Health calls for the creation of a “community health hub” as a way to keep vital services in Fort Erie when the planned closure of the urgent care centre closes in 2028.
“The evidence is clear: strengthening primary and community care is the most effective and sustainable way to improve primary care attachment and access to care for Fort Erie residents,” the report said.
“A community health hub that includes interprofessional primary care, non-hospital urgent care services (such as walk-in and after-hours care), diagnostics, specialty clinics, and co-located community supports, among other services, represents the strongest pathway forward.”
But for that to happen, the consultants acknowledge the need for partnerships, singling out Niagara Health, the Niagara Ontario Health Team and others.
The accompanying staff report summarized the consultant’s findings to six main points, among them identifying primary and community care capacity as the central gap. Having more than 13,000 residents unattached to a local family physician limits their ability to access routine, after-hours and community-based services.
Other findings include that the local plan supports the broader regional health care system, could help with physician recruitment and retention, and the need to honour the Douglas Memorial site’s legacy.
Council’s support, in principle, of the plan is based on a phased community health hub model, but requires further analysis for feasibility, potential partnerships, governance and sites.
Next steps include “service-model development, partner and funder engagement, site and facility due diligence, implementation planning and preparation of a detailed business case,” the staff report said.
To do that work, councillors approved taking another $118,000 from the South Niagara Hospital reserve.
Lewis said he never wanted to put the resignation motion to a vote.
“The intent, at least from my perspective, has never been to pass the motion but rather to keep pressure on to keep our urgent care services local within our municipality,” he said.
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About The Author
Luke Edwards
Luke Edwards is a longtime Niagara community journalist who has covered a variety of beats, including business, agriculture, the wine industry and politics. When not writing, there's a good chance he can be found at a baseball diamond or curling rink.
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