Brian Petrie has fond memories of the fall of 2022.
He was the newly elected mayor of Ingersoll, Ont., entering office with a hopeful outlook for the years ahead. At the time, General Motors had announced they would be retooling the local assembly plant to build the BrightDrop, an electric-powered van designed for last-mile delivery of products.
Demand for the high-tech delivery van was expected to be strong with FedEx, Walmart, DHL, Verizon and other companies touted as potential customers. The federal and provincial governments kicked in half a billion dollars to help the company convert the plant, which has operated for more than 30 years. Prior to BrightDrop, the plant produced the popular Chevy Equinox.
The media were invited to the plant to see robotic assembly in action, with talk of the BrightDrop illuminating the way to a bright future of electric vehicle production in Ontario.
“That was a vote of confidence for the workforce here,” said Petrie on Tuesday, just hours after he and workers learned that GM was halting production of the BrightDrop, mainly due to low customer demand.
‘Worst-case scenario’
The company said the plant isn’t closing, but with no plans for a new vehicle announced, its 1,200 unionized workers face an uncertain future.
“It’s devastating,” said Petrie. “There’s been a lot of hard times for the employees and GM on this project, and to hear that it’s going to cease production … it’s the worst-case scenario. ”
CAMI is Ingersoll’s largest ratepayer, accounting for about 12 per cent of the municipal tax base. It’s also the town’s largest employer, and Petrie said the spin-off business activity created by the auto plant is considerable.
“We’re a small community. We’re only 13,000 people,” he said. “When it comes to the smaller businesses, the grocery stores, the coffee shops, everybody can feel when that plant’s not running. My hope is that this is the bottom, and we can have brighter days ahead.”
Although it’s a blow to Petrie, and many others in Ingersoll who spoke to CBC News, he is hopeful GM can find a way to keep the plant operating.
Petrie said the plant’s employees do excellent work, but shifting government policy on electric vehicles and an ongoing trade war with the United States have challenged the auto industry.
Federal Industry Minister Melanie Joly said Tuesday she had spoken with the local Unifor leader as well as Ontario Premier Doug Ford, and that they had agreed to create a response group to push for new production at the plant. Unifor represents workers at the plant.
Business owners in downtown Ingersoll met the news with a mix of disappointment and optimism.
“It used to be a real source of people’s jobs around here. This is just awful news for this town,” said Rosalin Braden while cutting hair at the Ingersoll Barber shop, which has operated since 1909.
“It’s going to be really hard for a lot of small businesses. Those people put money back into this town all the time.”
Becky Tanton is the new owner of Patina’s Gifts of Arts and Crafts, a store in downtown Ingersoll.
“It’s terrible news. It means a lot to people in this town, so it’s kind of heartbreaking,” she said. “It’s one of the backbones of this town.”
Kathy Boyd is in the process of selling her store to Tanton. She remembers when the CAMI plant first arrived in the 1980s.
“It gave a real boost to the local economy. It was substantial,” she said. “And whenever they pulled back employees, you could definitely tell in the morale of the town.”
Chantelle Lackenbauer co-owns Barkin Boujee, a downtown store that sells dog food. She said many of her customers are couples who both work at the CAMI plant.
‘It’s the auto sector, it’s up and down’
She noticed that when the BrightDrop production was first paused in April, it had an immediate effect on her customers.
“We have seen a bit of a dip from that,” said Lackenbauer. “A lot of people are upset. They thought they were going into this with certainty and now it’s grim what their future might look like.”
Gordon Lesser understands the concern, but believes Ingersoll will be able to weather the fallout. Lesser owns a downtown jewelry store, he’s also served on town council.
“Over the past 10 years the council has worked really hard to diversify our economy and attract new businesses,” he said. “It’s the automotive sector, it’s up and down. We know these things are going to happen, so hopefully it won’t hit us as hard as it would have 10 years ago.”
News about GM’s plant in Ingersoll comes just a week after auto manufacturer Stellantis announced plans to shift Jeep production to the United States from its plant in Brampton, Ont.
