City of Windsor

What City of Windsor does

The Corporation of the City of Windsor is a municipal government entity established in 1892 under Ontario's Municipal Act, headquartered at 350 City Hall Square West in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The City provides comprehensive public services to residents and businesses of Windsor-Essex, including property taxation, infrastructure management, waste collection and recycling, parks and recreation (206 parks spanning ~2,537 acres), transit, social services (Ontario Works administration), building permits, licensing, stormwater management, and emergency services. The City is governed by an elected mayor and council and operates as a public corporation under Ontario provincial legislation, with no private shareholders or commercial ownership structure.

The City's revenue model is funded primarily through property taxation (billed in multiple installments throughout the year), stormwater management fees calculated by impervious surface area, user fees and service charges (tax certificates, driveway permits, property information requests), licensing (dog licensing), and provincial funding for mandated social services. Digital service delivery is centralized through the MyWindsor Citizen Portal and 311 contact centre (phone, mobile app, live chat, online) supported by Motorola Solutions, with 8 Customer Care Centres co-located in recreation facilities providing in-person service across wards. Infrastructure asset management is built on VertiGIS Studio GIS technology with a custom 'pseudo utility network' configuration that delivers approximately 80% of full utility network overhaul benefits at reduced cost.

The City operates exclusively within Windsor, Ontario, and surrounding Essex County, with no geographic expansion ambitions or external customer acquisition. Recent strategic priorities include the National Urban Park initiative (a multi-stakeholder partnership with Parks Canada, Three Fires Confederacy Indigenous governments, Ontario Ministry of the Environment, and Essex Region Conservation Authority, announced with federal funding in 2025), the VertiGIS GIS modernization, the Circular Materials recycling partnership effective January 2026, and the User Fee By-law restructuring effective March 1, 2026.

Name

City of Windsor

Legal name

The Corporation of the City of Windsor

Website

https://citywindsor.ca

Company type

Public

Founded year

1892

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

The Corporation of the City of Windsor is a municipal government providing property taxation, infrastructure management, waste and recycling, recreation, transit, social services, and permitting to Windsor-Essex residents and businesses through City Hall, 311, and a unified Citizen Portal.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Municipal Government Services

NAICS

Utilities (221), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (221310), Public Finance Activities (92113), Administration of Housing Programs, Urban Planning, and Community Development (9251)

SIC

Water Supply (4941), Refuse Systems (4953), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Mayor/City Manager & General Administration (BPAIACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Public Works & Municipal Infrastructure (Streets, Stormwater, Facilities) (BPAIACAF), Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services (BPAIACAI), Economic Development & Business Licensing (Local) (BPAIACAN)

Keywords

• Municipal government services
• Property tax administration
• Waste collection services
• Parks recreation facilities
• Social assistance programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Windsor

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices16 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Property Tax Revenue: Municipal realty taxes billed in installments (typically February, March, April, July, September, November) for municipal and provincial education purposes. Supplementary tax bills issued for new construction or additions.
2. Stormwater Fees: Property-based stormwater management fees based on each property's water runoff contribution calculated by total impervious area.
3. User Fees and Service Charges: Various municipal service fees including tax certificates, driveway permits, property information requests, development charges, and other administrative services.
4. Dog Licensing: Voluntary dog licensing program at $25 per year with $20 Ren's Pets voucher. Mandatory registration for dogs on risk registry at $150 annual elevated fee.
5. Bulk Furniture Collection: Residential bulk furniture collection service at $15 per item, maximum two items per household per collection period.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The City of Windsor is a municipal government corporation delivering public services, infrastructure management, and local governance to residents and businesses of Windsor, Ontario. Core offerings include property tax billing and administration, a 311 contact centre and mobile app for service requests, waste and recycling collection, parks and recreation facilities (including the WFCU Centre), stormwater financing, building permits and licensing (including dog licensing), Ontario Works social assistance, and an Open Data Portal supported by Esri ArcGIS.

Product overview

The City of Windsor operates a comprehensive e-government platform offering over 20 distinct digital services across a unified Citizen Portal (MyWindsor) architecture. The core offerings include the 311 Contact Centre (phone, mobile app, online) for all municipal inquiries and service requests; property management services (Public Property Lookup, Property Information Request, My Property Tax, tax payment plans); environmental programs (Stormwater Financing with residential/commercial credit programs, waste collection scheduling, bulk furniture pickup); social services (Ontario Works with MyBenefits online portal); licensing (dog licensing); and recreation facilities (WFCU Centre arena complex, community centres, aquatic facilities). Additional services span building permits, driveway/access permits, parking enforcement, provincial offences, and open data access. The ecosystem integrates with ArcGIS for mapping, Active Network for recreation bookings, Motorola Solutions for 311 operations, and Paytickets.ca for payment processing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Windsor 311: Mobile app for reporting municipal service requests and accessing city services
• MyWindsor
• WFCU Centre
• Mackenzie Hall Cultural Centre
• City Parks
• VertiGIS Studio

Products and services

• 311 City Services Municipal contact centre service providing a single point of contact (dial 311, mobile app, or online) for city service requests, information inquiries, and complaint reporting across all municipal departments.
• Windsor 311 Mobile App Mobile application for iOS and Android enabling on-the-spot service request submission with attached photos, GPS location, and tracking of recent report status.
• My Property Tax (Online Tax Portal) Online portal for property owners to view tax bill details, upcoming due dates and balances, request tax statements, and manage account updates.
• Pre-Authorized Tax Payment Plans Automated property tax payment options including End-of-Month 10-Month Plan, Mid-Month 10-Month Plan, and Due Date Plan with automatic bank withdrawals on scheduled dates.
• Property Information Request Online and mail-based service enabling residents to order Fire Department Realtor Letters, Sewer/Permit Letters, Environmental Site Audit Letters, Tax Certificates, Zoning Compliance Letters, and Building Property Information Letters.
• Public Property Lookup Online search tool allowing residents to view public property information including assessed value, estimated taxes, zoning, planning information, permit history, and heritage designation status by street address or roll number.
• Citizen Portal (MyWindsor) Unified online account system providing access to multiple city e-services including stormwater subsidies, building permits, planning applications, and property information requests, with Google sign-in authentication option.
• Stormwater Financing Program Property-based stormwater management fee system where fees are calculated by each property's impervious surface area contribution, including a credit program for qualifying non-residential properties and tree/barrel subsidies for residential properties.
• Waste Collection Schedule Municipal waste, recycling, and yard waste collection scheduling service providing collection calendars by postal code, interactive map tool, PDF downloads, and integration with the Recycle Coach app.
• Residential Bulk Furniture Collection Curbside pickup service for large furniture items at $15 per item (maximum 2 items per household per collection period) with advance booking through 311.
• Dog Licensing Program Voluntary dog registration program at $25 per year providing tags, proof of ownership, and a $20 Ren's Pets voucher, with mandatory registration at an elevated $150 annual fee for dogs on the Dog-at-Risk Registry (effective December 2025).
• Ontario Works (Social Assistance) Provincial social assistance program administered by the City providing financial and employment assistance to eligible residents, with expanded online MyBenefits service for case management, document uploads, and messaging with caseworkers.
• WFCU Centre Multipurpose recreation and entertainment complex featuring NHL-size community rinks, aquatic facilities (6-lane pool, therapy pool, splash pad), sports gym, leisure gym, reception hall, and meeting rooms; home to the Windsor Spitfires.
• Open Data Portal Public access portal for city data including property information, waste collection schedules, parks, council agendas, and various municipal datasets available under the Open Government Licence.

Quantifiable outcome

• Achieved approximately 80% of benefits of full infrastructure overhaul at a fraction of time and cost through 'fit over flash' GIS approach

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered major, minor, core and notable.

• Circular MaterialsmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 December 2025Not-for-profit organization operating Ontario's recycling program as of January 1, 2026. Offering recycling cart exchange program for Windsor-Essex residents with 240-litre carts available for those who received oversized 95-gallon carts.
• University of WindsorminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 May 2025Participating in the city's $30,000 annual goose management program by using a St. Bernard-Mastiff mix named Winston to patrol sports fields and deter geese.
• Parks CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Collaborating on the proposed National Urban Park in the Windsor area to protect the nationally significant Ojibway Prairie Complex. Federal funding announced in 2025. Project advancing toward designation with interim operational plan and public engagement.
• Indigenous Governments (Three Fires Confederacy)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Partnering with Indigenous governments as part of the National Urban Park initiative. The proposed park is situated within the traditional territory of the Three Fires Confederacy.
• Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and ParksmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025One of multiple land administrators for the proposed National Urban Park, holding 67.9 hectares of the 410.8+ hectare park area.
• Essex Region Conservation AuthoritymajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Land administrator for the National Urban Park holding 40.3 hectares. Partnering on conservation and environmental protection initiatives.
• VertiGIScoreTechnology or IntegrationVertiGIS Studio was implemented as the configurable suite of web-based apps and workflow automation tools for the city's infrastructure asset management transformation. The Geomatics team developed a lightweight 'pseudo utility network' using this technology, achieving significant cost savings compared to a full Esri Utility Network migration.
• Canadian Transit Company (CTC)notableOthersOperator of the Ambassador Bridge holding 37 vacant properties in Windsor. City has issued emergency demolition orders against 17 properties for inspection plaza expansion.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• City of St. Catharines: Ontario mid-sized Niagara-region municipality offering comparable water/wastewater, recreation and 311 services; useful peer for capital infrastructure benchmarking.
• City of Hamilton, Ontario: Larger Ontario industrial-heritage city with shared legacy economic dependence on manufacturing and similar brownfield/waterfront redevelopment challenges.
• City of Guelph: Ontario mid-sized municipality with comparable population tier and e-government maturity; a benchmark for digital service delivery in the same provincial regulatory environment.
• City of Barrie: Ontario growth-corridor mid-sized city with parallel stormwater utility programs, active recreation portfolio, and rapidly expanding citizen-base service demand.
• City of London, Ontario: Mid-sized Ontario municipality with comparable service portfolio (311, property tax, waste, recreation), similar population tier, and overlapping regulatory framework under the Ontario Municipal Act. Most directly comparable Canadian municipal peer.
• City of Sault Ste. Marie: Border-town Ontario municipality facing analogous cross-border logistics dynamics and legacy industrial-economy transition challenges; comparable on tax-base diversification issues.
• City of Kitchener: Ontario mid-sized city offering the same suite of municipal services (water, waste, recreation, permitting, 311-style contact center) under the same provincial legislation, comparable in scale and digital maturity.
• City of Kingston, Ontario: Ontario mid-sized municipality with analogous service offerings, university-town demographics, and similar capital program portfolio including waterfront and parks infrastructure.
• City of Oshawa: Ontario auto-manufacturing city (General Motors) with directly comparable exposure to automotive-sector tax base volatility and similar post-industrial transition challenges as Windsor.

Regional players

• City of Windsor (US — Detroit, MI): Detroit sits across the river from Windsor and shares the Ambassador Bridge and Detroit-Windsor Tunnel corridor; comparable in urban core services (water, waste, permitting, parks) but governed under U.S. municipal law rather than Ontario's Municipal Act.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/CityofWindsor
• Xx.com/citywindsoron
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/city-of-windsor

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about City of Windsor