Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens wants all to access his Facebook
Windsor mayor Drew Dilkens says he's developed a thick skin for people's criticisms
Drew Dilkens is too popular for his own good. The Windsor mayor is launching a new Facebook page because he's maxed out the number of allowable friends on his personal profile.
Facebook has become an important way for the public to contact Dilkens, who said he doesn't want to miss connecting with anyone who wants to reach him.
"Instead of emailing my office, a lot of people will actually send me a Facebook message, so it really is an important tool," he told CBC Windsor Morning host Tony Doucette.
Dilkens will let his current personal account, which only allows him to have 5,000 followers, go dormant at the end of March.
Friend requests pile up
There are about 800 to 900 people waiting to be added to the old page, probably wondering why the mayor hasn't added them, Dilkens explained.
Staff in his office will help him populate the new page, posting some photos and videos, but any of the responses will be his alone.
"When you see posts with my name on it, that will be me making comments," he said.
Dilkens has taken plenty of heat from his followers over the years, including name calling.
"When you're the mayor of the City of Windsor … you start to develop a thick skin to those comments," he said.
If anyone is "extremely inappropraite," Dilkens said he will block them from commenting. So far, he's only used this extreme measure about a dozen times, he added.
"Even though I'm a public official, there is a level of public decency that I think is expected in the community," he said. "I don't have to take that just like you don't have to take that."