Just A Few Ideas

I had some time to think about all kinds of things over the holiday week-end

READ THE COUNCIL TRANSCRIPT!!!

We owe Chris Schurr a debt of gratitude.

He gave up a good part of his holidayweekend to transcribe the farcical Council meeting that took place last week. If you did not watch it on Cogeco, then you have no choice but to read the transcript and then send it on to every person you know in this City and ask them to do the same so everyone will know what our Council is like.

Go immediately to his website and download the transcript PDF.file

http://chrisschnurr.wordpress.com/2007/09/03/wuc-more-unanswered-questions/

IS EDDIE OUR NERO

Instead of fiddling while Rome burns, is Eddie having "lamb chops and osyter shooters" at "the hip Vu Bar at Casino Windsor" while Windsor is going under? Perhaps the bar could now be called "Deja Vu."

I am told that a gaggle of media types were there as guests too. Hmmm no Blogggers as far as I know. I wonder who from the Star was invited if anyone. There were about 80 or so people there who ate and drank well during the three hour party. Drinks and food were on the host I was told and people just did not want to leave.

I sure hope that Eddie arrived in time to meet up with Roger Penske. His photo was in the Star. I guess the Casino allowed a photo to be taken inside their walls if it was taken in the Vu.

With all of the problems that Eddie described that could happen to the Fire Department if we did not spend money to fix up our infrastrucutre, I hope the firefighters have enough water going through the mains now to put out the flames of outrage of Windsor citizens while Eddie is cultivating the racing crowd at the Soirée.

GRAND PRIX

Did anyone from the City or those involved in the race other than the Mayor attend any of the festivities over the weekend?

Wouldn't you like to know who they were and whether they paid for their tickets? I sure would.

I wonder if there were passes included for the US$80,000 and if so, who received them?

I wonder if the Councillors were invited to any of the events and if so, did they have to pay. Assuming they were invited, I bet they had to RSVP so the organizers would know how many were coming.

[Pssst, keep this one to yourself but for one function, I heard that Councillors did not even receive their invitations until the night of the event, 4 days after the RSVP date. Not Eddie's fault if they do not get their mail in a timely fashion. Darn, if only the invitations had been sent via the Blackberrys. Perhaps next year]

DO THE STAR EDITORS STILL LOVE EDDIE

What a strong Editorial on the WUC fiasco on Saturday and one that summarizes the events and citizen demands very succinctly.

But did you notice one thing. The word "mayor" or "Eddie Francis" was never used. Don't you find it fascinating that the politician who is responsible for this mess and fiasco was never mentioned by name. The closest the Star came was talking about the "Confusing and conflicting messages emanating from City Hall." How does one explain that?

We all know that if Mike Hurst had been the Mayor, the Star would have screamed out the "R" word. RESIGN!

And to Gord Henderson, perhaps this fiasco will help him "explain this corrosive contempt for the city" by so many Windsorites.

IESO

Congratulations to David Cassivi who was appointed to the Board of the Independent Electricity System Operator. " The IESO is responsible for managing Ontario's bulk electricity system and operating the wholesale electricity market."

Did you see this announcement anywhere? I wonder why not.

Just so you know, "Members of the Board are appointed by the Minister of Energy for a two-year term" Thank you Dwight.

WINDSOR BRIDGE STORIES...IN A DETROIT PAPER

Hands up all of my readers who read the Star story "Bridge to nowhere"

Continue to keep your hands up if you saw the Star correction the next day.

Keep your hands up if you saw the Detroit Free Press story which gives a different point of view than the Star story

Just as I thought, very few of you. Ok here it is so you can get a different perspective that you did not see in Windsor:

• Work on new span not yet started, owner says
  Plaza construction spurs speculation
  September 1, 2007
  
  BY JOHN GALLAGHER
  FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER
  
  Owners of the Ambassador Bridge linking Detroit and Canada hope to begin construction on a second span soon, but deny that they have already begun the work.
  
  A recent report in Windsor sparked a furor over whether the Detroit International Bridge Co., the private owner of the Ambassador Bridge, had started construction work on its planned twin bridge before receiving needed permits from Canadian authorities.
  
  
  
  Dan Stamper, president of the company, denied that construction had begun on a second bridge. The company has been building an expanded inspection plaza on the Windsor side and, as part of that, has built a ramp that could connect to a new bridge, if and when it is built. A similar ramp is under way on the Detroit side as part of the Gateway project, a plan to join the bridge to nearby expressways.
  
  But no work has started on a second span, Stamper said this week. All needed permits were obtained in advance for the plaza and Gateway work, he added.
  
  That doesn't mean the bridge company, owned by Warren businessman Manuel (Matty) Moroun, won't start work on a bridge as soon as it can, Stamper said. He said he hopes that permits will be in hand before the end of the year so that the 36-month construction project can begin in early 2008.
  
  The bridge is expected to cost $500 million, on top of about $500 million already spent by Moroun's organization on land and other planning costs.
  
  Whether the bridge company is really just a few months away from starting construction has been hotly contested in Windsor. Many Windsor residents oppose Moroun's plans, some because of the truck traffic that occasionally clogs streets near the bridge, and others over fears of what a new bridge could mean to historic neighborhoods.
  
  To build a new bridge, the company needs environmental approval from the U.S. Coast Guard and Transport Canada. Both government agencies are conducting reviews.
  
  Meanwhile, another process might result in a new publicly owned bridge between Detroit and Windsor. That process, known as the Detroit River International Crossing, is a joint effort by U.S. and Canadian authorities.
  
  Mohammed Alghurabi, a senior project manager for the Michigan Department of Transportation, said the DRIC expects to complete its environmental studies by the end of this year and pick a preferred route for a new bridge by mid-2008. He declined to comment on the bridge company's plans.
  
  The bridge company wants to build a new six-lane span next to the Ambassador Bridge, and then close the Ambassador for extended maintenance. Eventually, the Ambassador Bridge would be used just for overflow traffic, in case of accidents on the new bridge, and for special events such as charity walks or runs.
  
  "We're just going ahead with our project," Stamper said. "We know it's right."