BETRAYAL: Is DRTP North Back?

And you thought that DRIC buried DRTP! Well start worrying again especially if the Conservatives win given Jeff Watson's comments about DRTP previously and those of Belinda Stronach before she jumped ship!

Ppppsssshaw you say, Council and the Mayor will not permit it. Why didn't we hear Eddie on Face-to-Face the other day slamming the idea of international trucks on E C Row. He won't talk to Dennis DesRosiers because of it. No trucks on E C Row is his mantra.

Well if that is what we are supposed to think, then why did we have the two strange stories in the Saturday Star. Are citizens of Windsor about to be "betrayed" again if we are not vigilant?

The first dealt with a plan by Air America Logistics "to make Windsor Airport an international transportation hub for freight arriving by air, ground and rail." Councillor Halberstadt, the only Councillor to endorse the Mayor publicly in the last election said:

• ...the idea of creating a transportation centre at Windsor Airport is worthy of consideration.
  
  "If you had a customs zone there, you could do it all there and you wouldn't have to have" long truck lineups along Huron Church Road waiting to clear customs on the other side of the Ambassador Bridge, Halberstadt said.
  
  He said one of the obvious routes for international-bound trucks cleared at the airport would be along E.C. Row Expressway to the bridge."
  
  

The second story talked about Via Rail looking for possible sites for a new rail station in Windsor. The story said:

• "The government funds will twin a CP Railway line from two to four tracks...
  
  Relocation of the Via station in Walkerville is part of the plan. A site near the airport and the old CP Rail depot near Wellington Avenue close to the entrance of the Detroit River rail tunnel are among options being discussed....
  
  A cargo facility at the airport where air, rail and truck freight can be exchanged will also become a reality under the deal.
  
  Construction and servicing of the property off Lauzon Parkway where the CP tracks cut through the airport's northeast corner has an estimated cost of $30 million to $40 million, according to city officials.
  
  "There have been a lot of talks between Transport Canada, the mayor and myself on the (cargo facility) and rail consolidation," said MP Joe Fontana, the labour and housing minister from London...
  
  A solution has been agreed upon by the railways, city and feds, but final terms continue to be negotiated, the minister said.
  
  "It's an opportunity for win-win for everybody," Fontana said. "Windsor is an important gateway to North America. We need to make sure it functions well. It's never been a question of money, but a question of doing it right."
  
  

There you have it folks ... another deal done in secret by the proponent of open and transparent Government that will impact the entire City and no one knows a darn thing about it!

Am I concerned ...obviously. Wasn't the PM supposed to come down here and announce it? Wouldn't the Liberal candidates who are desperate for some good news have wanted something positive announced to help get them elected. Instead a hush, nothing other than this story that demands that a whole bunch of questions be asked but no answers will be given by this Mayor and Council.

Remember the Mayor and Council "betrayal" of Windsor in 2003. That was Councillor Brister's word when he was NOT on Council. You know, the betrayal where Councillor Halberstadt was "bushwhacked." Ex-Mayor Hurst and Council at the largest Special Council meeting in 20 years turned down DRTP in its entirety yet a month later, in secret, they apparently reversed themselves and seemed to suggest that DRTP North was acceptable.

ARE WE SEEING THE SAME THING ALL OVER AGAIN?

Francis says no trucks on E C Row and Halberstadt suggests that is how they get to the Bridge...OR perhaps a precursor to DRTP North! What is going on here? Has something changed? Is this a trial balloon to see our reaction like the remarks of the Chrysler President last summer when he mentioned E C Row? Are trucks on E C Row now part of the deal that is being negotiated with the Feds?

I sent a note to the Councillors in Ward 2 since the their area is impacted. Here are some excerpts from it so that you will understand my concern.

"I heard that the public DRIC meeting last week in Detroit was "ugly" with accusations that DRIC were just "humouring" people ie they admitted that Citizen's views are not binding on them no matter how much the public may think and no matter what comes out at the public sessions and workshops!

I had this thought after reading the 2 stories in today's Star about VIA Rail and the Air America proposal. Ward 2 will take the blow no matter which border crossing goes in. One would think you should get a benefit too. Well the intermodal will go to the airport area and no VIA Rail terminal downtown. In other words, the Mayor's power base for the future in Ward 5 gets the developments and YOU get the hit! (You should know that by the arena machinations, the slooooooow speed on the urban village and downtown being allowed to die)

A big intermodal cargo area at the airport, a train station there and a link between Lauzon and Highway 401 paid for by the Feds....Where do the trucks go then?

Did Halberstadt unknowingly let the cat out of the bag by talking about trucks on E C Row. If they go there, then how do they get across the border----DRTP North? Do we get a secured roadway for Customs purposes in the middle of EC Row! Who knows, we might even get a redevelopment of Zalev's lands too as part of this as "brownfield" improvement for the golf-coursed size Customs terminal that DRTP wanted in the heart of the City.

The Liberal Minister said "It's an opportunity for win-win for everybody," Fontana said. "Windsor is an important gateway to North America. We need to make sure it functions well. It's never been a question of money, but a question of doing it right." No money for a border crossing but money no object here for rail consolidation! Do you understand it?

Poor CP Rail loses out on DRTP or do they "The government funds will twin a CP Railway line from two to four tracks and construct several road-rail grade separations to help increase the speed of both freight and passenger service." And if they get DRTP North, they are thrilled (The Via Rail story said the station could be built right at the Tunnel entrance. You would not do that if there was a truck highway there.)

This is just all too quiet for me. I would have thought that if this is such a huge deal the Liberals would have been touting it to get votes and to beat Brian Masse and Joe Comartin. Why is it so secret?

Final nail in my "conspiracy theory." The Air America Logistics proposal has been out for some time yet never reported. Why not until today. ... Now YOU are going to have to support trucks on EC Row too as Alan seems to be doing."

I have no idea what the truth is! There is an intermodal Plan in Detroit too called DIFT that may be tied together by MDOT with DRIC. The Detroit Councillors are upset about it. So should we about our equivalent. We need to know what is going on!

UPDATE: I wrote to Councillor Halberstadt about his comment and here is part of what he wrote back to me:

"Ed: I thought you might pick up on that. Rosanne interviewed me for about 10 minutes on this issue, and I took pains to explain to her that E.C. Row would be the obvious route should the Customs Zone be established now before any bypass in the west end. I also explained to her that sequencing was key in the City Council plan -- meaning the extension of Lauzon Parkway to the 401 would not take place until the western bypass is complete. At that point the multi-model at the airport, linked to the 401, could be created without the need to route international trucks down E.C. Row. Obviously, in the interest of space, Rosanne, or her copy editor, omitted that part of our conversation."