St. Catharines councillors voted unanimously Monday to begin the process of potentially removing Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s name from a residential street.
The motion, moved by Mayor Mat Siscoe, calls for a process to review and consider renaming Prince Andrew Court to include public consultation with affected residents and stakeholders, and have staff report back with recommendations, including options for alternative names and associated financial and administrative implications.
An amendment to the motion Monday night will also have staff report back on a policy regarding street renaming and city asset scenarios.
Siscoe told Global News last Thursday that Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest was the last straw for him.
“St. Catharines councillors and I have been having discussions for some time about whether the court should be renamed,” he said in a statement.
“Given today’s news of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest, I would say there is no reason to continue discussing.”
Mountbatten-Windsor, the former prince who was stripped of his royal titles because of his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, was arrested Feb. 19 on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
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He was released later in the day after 11 hours in custody; he remains under investigation, Thames Valley Police said.
While Mountbatten-Windsor has consistently denied any wrongdoing in connection with his friendship with Epstein, concerns about his links to the late financier have dogged the Royal Family for more than a decade.
Siscoe said St. Catharines council has a responsibility to ensure that municipal place names reflect community values and maintain public confidence in civic institutions.
Several Canadian municipalities have landmarks that are named after Andrew, and St. Catharines is just the latest to seek a renaming.
In August 2022, Prince Andrew High School in Dartmouth, N.S., was renamed Woodlawn High School.
Mississauga, Ont., council passed a motion in November 2025 to disassociate the name Duke of York Boulevard from the former prince. The motion included removing all plaques, honours and non-critical signage tied to the former royal on city property.
The late Queen Elizabeth II forced her second son to give up royal duties and end his charitable work in 2019 after he tried to explain away his ties to Epstein during a catastrophic interview with the BBC.
But more details about the relationship emerged in a book published last year, and Charles stripped him of the right to be called a prince and ordered him to move.
Then came the unprecedented announcement last week that Buckingham Palace was ready to co-operate in the event of a police inquiry into Mountbatten-Windsor’s links to Epstein.
Charles was forced to act after the U.S. Justice Department released millions of pages of Epstein documents that revealed the extent of his relationship with Mountbatten-Windsor and showed that their correspondence continued long after Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to soliciting a minor for prostitution.
Epstein was arrested on sex trafficking charges brought by federal prosecutors in New York in 2019. He took his own life in jail while awaiting trial.
— with files from The Associated Press
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