Tuesday, February 28, 2006

Is A War Brewing Between Sandwich and Delray


Quite a story in the Detroit News today "New bridge divides neighbors." The timing of it was very interesting as well, just before the Windsor/Detroit Council meeting.

The issues it raises cannot be resolved in one meeting. It demonstrates again how this DRIC process has totally collapsed.

The NEWS story talked about:
"Michigan is forming plans to use eminent domain to seize as many as 300 houses to build a bridge to Canada through one of Detroit's poorest, most polluted and forgotten corners.

Even though a controversial $25 million study of a bridge is nearly two years from completion, state transportation officials for weeks have discussed buying or condemning houses with residents of Delray, a onetime Eastern European enclave."

Since I want to Blog this article before I head over to Detroit to watch the Councils in action, let me raise a few interesting thoughts:
  1. When did the State say that it prefers the new bridge to be public? Has this been agreed to buy our side's Governance group? Is this why the strange items were placed on the public's Vision Statement re public ownership of a new bridge and expropriation of the existing bridge?
  2. I hope no one asks Windsor Council about what I am told is another in camera secret resolution. Does Council's resolution mean that the new bridge goes in West Delray, especially if MDOT is talking about 300 homes being exproporiated
  3. Why is it ok to save Sandwich but not Delray
  4. I thought Detroit Council's resolution said no bridge in Delray?
  5. Is it time for MDOT's new Director to do some damage control since his people were given a copy of the Resolutiion by Councillors Cockrel and Watson at a Delray meeting I attended.

It could get ugly at the joint Councils meeting tonight if the right questions are asked and Detroit Council decides not to be polite after reading what MDOT wants to do. It will be interesting to see!

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