Secret Right To The End

This most secretive Mayor and Council have done it again respecting the border. Taking action and passing Resolutions in secret and not having the guts to let us know about it.

I was interested in reading Councillor Halberstadt's BLOG, "Growing Border Bills" on the border issue. We learned that not only have we spent about $2.8M so far on legal and consulting fees but that Council has authorized another $400K.

What is so typical is that it was done in camera:

• "What was not reported in writing on Monday was the in camera authorization by City Council a month earlier, on Oct. 10th, of a further upset limit of $400,000 to external border lawyer David Estrin ($275,000) and independent engineering consulting firms ($125,00O)."

It's not funny that we have spent so much money, and will spend more, and achieved what? Do you remember way back a looooong time ago when everyone was waiting on Windsor to come up with the solution for the border: the Prime Minister, the Premier, the US Ambassador? Now they are all waiting for the municipal election to end so they can impose a solution on us. I hope no Senator in Ottawa asks Eddie at the Bill C-3 hearings how he'd fix the road to the border and why he has waited so long with $300M available.... Imagine how many infrastructure jobs that would have created.

I am not taking a shot at Alan since he at least has the guts to spill the beans on what is going on behind closed doors. So I say to Alan, "Better late than never" in figuring out that Windsor is acting like a "petulant child." Alan at least recognizes that:

• "We need to end our adversarial relationship with the senior levels of government if at all possible and come to the table to discuss technical strategies that will work for all...
  
  I couldn't agree more. It is time for the City of Windsor to take a more conciliatory stance and discuss pros and cons face-to-face with the other agencies, rather than communicate at arms length through expensive legal letters."

Alan did forget one other party that needs to be involved as well: The Ambassador Bridge Co. Has everyone somehow been struck by memory loss? Has everyone forgotten that there is a bridge at the end of Huron Church Road. Do they not understand that the Bridge Co. will protect their business? Doesn't someone think they might be interested in what is done? Like them or hate them, they have to be dealt with.

Trouble is, the Ambassador Bridge is now the enemy! How can you talk to them? Councillor Halberstadt has used that term twice. This time Alan says:

• "Estrin is still working on a public report to Council, complete with recommended resolutions and legal remedies, he believes the city should take to protect its interests against the enemies.

In fact, it appears that the City is now going to pay money for Mr. Estrin to work outside of Canada:

• "The Ambassador Bridge, in a bizarre move, has applied to the United States Coast Guard for a permit to build a second span and the city feels a need to become involved in blocking that process."

Unfortunately Alan must not know that the Coast Guard is involved in the EA process in the US for the Bridge Co.'s project. It's not bizarre at all but is required.

What makes anyone think that the US Coast Guard will care what the City thinks. Obviously, the strategy is to get involved in the US process and when the Coast Guard ignores Estrin, he appeals to the Court in order to stall the process there. What the heck, it is only our money and our economy at risk as businesses will shun the litigious border city whose border does not work. Or rather, that will be the perception.

I wonder if that explains the money that seems to be unaccounted for in Wilkki's report, the $230K or so. Is that being hidden too or is there another explanation why it seems to have been ignored? Estrin must have had to do work to put in a presentation there and that cost money. The $400K seemed to be for future work.

And I suspect as well, that if Estrin has tried to stall off the US process, he will try and do so here too as well in the EA that the Bridge Co. is involved in.

Just so you know, I expect that there were at least 2 secret Resolutions passed at that October 10 meeting: one for what is to be done in the US and one to be done in Canada. How do I know:

• "M243-2006 That the Report of the special In-camera meeting held October 10, 2006 BE ADOPTED as presented.
  Carried. "

Hmmm I wonder how we can get a copy of those Resolutions? How do we break the secrecy barrier at City Hall? With new Councillors who will have the guts to stand up to the Mayor perhaps!