The Joint Tunnel Meeting

I need your assistance in this BLOG, dear readers. I figure that with all of you reading this and expressing to me your point of view, I am more likely to understand better what went on at the Joint Meeting of the Windsor Council and the Windsor Tunnel Commission.

You know the variation of the expression: More heads are better than one.

First though, I thought you might be interested in hearing what the Deputy Mayor of Detroit had to say about the Tunnel deal. Just click on the screen above and listen in.

He sure seemed to think that the deal was going to be concluded on or about the 25th of March. But we know now that this is not going to happen. Mr. Sutts stated that "the transaction should be complete within 60 days." He also seems to think that he is going to get $58 million from the City of Windsor to help Detroit's financial position.

If they do get the money, it will certainly help Kwame in his relations with the Detroit Council. If they don't, I would not like to be Eddie going over to one of the Windsor taxpayer-sponsored sports events in Detroit. I'm sure in that case that his welcome would not be very friendly.

The whole Kwame issue in Detroit must certainly cloud a lot of the Tunnel negotiations. The issues are very serious over there. Have lies been told? Has there been a perjury? Has information been kept from Council? Are there confidential agreements that Council did not know about? Did the Mayor not give enough information to his Council on the Tunnel deal for example? Is the Tunnel deal at a preliminary stage or is it about to be concluded?

It must be somewhat frustrating if one is not sure that the deal will even go through because Council is fighting with the Detroit Mayor. If you were a financier, would you really want to get involved in the middle of a mess? Perhaps you would in order to capitalize on the situation by getting a better deal than you would otherwise normally get.

But I don't want to talk about the deal with Detroit right now. I want to focus on what is going on with Windsor and the flipping of the Tunnel from the City to the Corporation which we shall call "Holdco."

Here's what I am going to do because I can't quite understand what is happening. I need your help, dear reader, to clarify all of this for me. I will set out the facts that I think are relevant and ask a bunch of questions afterwards that perhaps you might be able to answer. That would help me out a lot in my thinking.

• June 11, 2007---City Council resolved the following:
  
  That Administration BE AUTHORIZED to incorporate a share capital corporation under the Business Corporation Act (Ontario) (“Holdco”) of which Windsor will be the sole shareholder; and
  
  That Council APPROVES the name of the corporation to be “Windsor-Detroit Tunnel Corporation”, or such similar name as may be available for use; and
  
  
• September 17, 2007---Windsor-Detroit Tunnel Corporation incorporated
  
  
• March 18, 2008---Detroit Council resolution against Kwame suggesting that the deal will not get done during their fiscal year and that it was at the preliminary stages.
  
  
• March 18, 2008---Windsor Mayor Eddie Francis, chairman of the tunnel commission, said Tuesday that negotiations are continuing in the city's bid to gain control of the U.S. side of the tunnel, owned by Detroit.
  
  "Those discussions are coming close to a conclusion," he said.
  
  
• March 25, 2008---Adams interview: "City of Windsor, I believe, is supposed to be moving today. We are simply waiting on the City of Windsor to take their vote before we actually present the final Tunnel documents."
  


• March 26, 2008---"City council will be asked Thursday during a closed-door meeting to approve a new corporation for the Canadian side of the Detroit-Windsor tunnel, which is owned by the city.
  
  “What we will be dealing with is a recommendation from legal counsel to put the tunnel into a corporation to protect the taxpayer from any financial exposure that might occur from an act of terrorism or accident,” said Mayor Eddie Francis.
  
  
• March 26, 2008---My email to Councillors to which I received only one reply:
  "Please explain to me why the meeting re the Tunnel has to go "in camera."
  
  This matter as described in the story---incorporating a company---has already been discussed in public as justification for the new Tunnel Corp. in the presence of Council's outside lawyer. It does not need to be discussed again.
  
  If there is something else on the agenda please let me know what it is so. The public should have the right if required to appear as delegates at a Special Council meeting!"
  
  
• March 27, 2008---JOINT WINDSOR TUNNEL COMMISSION/CITY COUNCIL MEETING AGENDA
  THURSDAY, MARCH 27, 2008
  (immediately following Joint closed meeting at 3:00 p.m.)
  
  AGENDA ITEMS
  
  (1) Windsor-Detroit Tunnel Rollover to Windsor-Detroit Tunnel Corporation
  
  
• March 28, 2008---"Francis said Thursday’s meeting was held behind closed doors because the city was receiving legal advice about its negotiations with Detroit."

Here are my questions that I'm hoping you can help me answer:

1. If Council, in a public meeting in which outside counsel was in attendance, authorized the incorporation of Holdco in June, 2007 and the company was incorporated in September 2007, then why did the Mayor in March 2008 claim that the meeting was "to approve a new corporation. " The Corporation was already in existence and no approval was needed at all. Interestingly, the members of the Board are the Windsor Tunnel Commissioners
2. The Mayor had told me in the past that he had a photographic memory. Were the negatives so cloudy such that he forgot about the incorporation in September or was he subject of the infamous City Hall amnesia disease? I am terribly disappointed that no one on his staff or in Administration or the outside law firm picked up on this error and allowed him to make a correction before the Meeting
3. Why was it necessary for the meeting to be held in camera, if previously it was held in public before and on television too with delegations attending, even if some of them opposed what the Mayor wanted to do
4. Why did the reason for the meeting change from approving Holdco to “receiving legal advice about its negotiations with Detroit”
5. Where was the notice publicizing the Joint meeting, and in particular, where was the Agenda publicized. If it was not publicized, why not
6. If the meeting was to discuss legal advice about negotiations with Detroit, then why did the public agenda deal with the “Windsor-Detroit Tunnel Rollover to Windsor-Detroit Tunnel Corporation”
7. Why didn’t any of the Councillors provide me with this information
8. Did the Councillors know what the purpose of the meeting was and did they receive an agenda in advance and full documentation so they could ask intelligent questions
9. If the materials were not distributed in advance, then how does one justify doing a major transaction involving over $100 million in such a small amount of time? Are the Councillors that experienced that they can make a decision so quickly
10. Since presumably the rollover has been approved, does this mean that members of the public have no opportunity to appear as delegations before Council to discuss this matter
11. Why didn’t the Mayor and/or Councillors advise the media of what was taking place so that the Public could be aware and perhaps decide to appear as delegations
12. What issues were “concluded.” And which ones are still outstanding
13. Have the various comments with respect to terrorism increased the risks to the Tunnel and lowered significantly its value if some transaction with respect to the entire tunnel is to be concluded subsequently? Has the value of the Detroit side been decreased by these comments
14. Has the City received a written opinion from its outside counsel that, in fact, the City and taxpayers have been protected by the incorporation of Holdco against any possible claim for damages? Has Council considered the risks of such items as under capitalization, incorporation merely for the purposes of protection of assets, City employees working for the Tunnel and the City providing assistance to the Tunnel under a Services Agreement, nonfunctioning in fact of Corporate directors through control by the City and other factors that the courts look at when deciding whether they should pierce the corporate veil
15. Have Mr. Sutts and his partners given us a written assurance that, as he said
    “emphasized the deal will not be completed until he is fully assured local taxpayers will not be hurt.
    
    "We will be extraordinarily cautious so costs of the acquisition will be self-supporting of the project itself," he said. "That there will be no need to go to the well of the city to support this transaction."
16. Considering that the City has to guarantee to the Bank of Nova Scotia Holdco’s payment of amounts owing under a Letter of Credit, how can it be said that the City may not have to go to the well.

I’m sure dear reader that you can think of other things to ask about based on the facts that I have presented but these are a few items that cause me a great deal of concern. I would be very appreciative if you could write and explain to me what this all means.

My quick, initial thought was that it almost seems as if information was being given out to ensure that members of the public would not know what is going on and therefore not attend at the meeting and not appear at delegations to speak with respect to the rollover. Remember, the information about the meeting did not come out from the Mayor and Council originally but rather from Councillor Halberstadt via his BLOG.

However, I am probably completely wrong and need you to point out what the explanation really is and why I am mistaken.

I thought I would ask Local Authority Services Ltd to help me out as well since their services are free and they can get a lot more information than I can. That's the Company hired to do meeting investigations!

A Bunch Of Small Stories

There is so much going on that is hard to keep up.

I wish I had the time to write full BLOGs on each of these items but I don't. So here they are in a shortened version just to let you know some of the interesting things that are going on in our town.

THE SHERIFF COMES OUT

As I have explained to you before, on many occasions, you might want to start reading Windsor Star stories and columns from the end. That's where all the important revelations are laid out. In another Larry Horwitz column, Gord Henderson right at the end wrote the following:

• "It's time for the five footdraggers on council and Mayor Eddie Francis to find some spinal fortitude on this issue."

Imagine that, Gord actually saying nasty things about the Mayor, saying he has no backbone!

Don't mark the column date on your calendar quite yet. Don't get too carried away. This is Gord just giving Eddie a gentle slap on the wrist. So far.

OVER THE MOON OR BEING MOONED

In case you have forgotten, here are the people that Gord Henderson believes will fight for being Mayor in 2010 when Eddie leaves:

• "I'm placing early money that it will be between Marra and Ward 1 Coun. Dave Brister."

I am convinced that while Gord owes the Councillor formerly known as Councillor Budget a favour since Brister helped save his home as Chair of STOPDRTP, he is realistic enough to know that Brister could never beat Marra in an election. Marra is much too smooth for Brister and Marra's election machine would be just too powerful.

Once again, Brister is being praised by the Star's columnist or so he thinks:

• "The next day Brister was over the moon at how well (with a couple of predictable exceptions) these two supposedly hostile groups got along. "It was a beautiful thing. You walked out of there feeling absolutely vindicated."
  
  He wasn't totally surprised. "I knew from sitting on ERCA (Essex Region Conservation Authority) that there are good people in the county that we can sit in a room with and hash stuff out. There were a lot of people in that room (Wednesday) night that I have a huge amount of respect for."

What a strange word to use "vindicated." For suggesting a meeting? For thinking that people have brains and can get along?

Of course, the quote from Brister is typical of him and shows how much of a divisive force that he is. He places people into camps, the good and the bad, just as he did with his Council colleagues:

• "This term it's totally different. Now it's insiders and outsiders, with Marra, the guy who insisted during the last campaign that he would be Francis's biggest supporter and a virtual deputy mayor, the apparent leader of an undeclared opposition that includes Al Halberstadt in Ward 3, Drew Dilkens in Ward 1 and Ward 5's Percy Hatfield.
  
  "I would call it the 'take down the mayor' clique versus those who want to move the city forward," said Brister."

So Brister has identified "hostile camps" within his own Council. I guess he does not have respect for those considered his enemies. Frankly, how can anyone now work with him on Council from the outsider side after that slur?

Gord has a sense of humour, allowing Brister to bury himself. The funniest quote that Gord disclosed was the following that most people will not appreciate. It is Gord mooning Brister, again:

• "It's a matter of getting to know people and recognizing they are not the enemy, said Brister. He said for three or four city councillors, this was their first direct contact with as many as five or six of their county colleagues. For the first time, they could move beyond being suspicious strangers in rival armed camps."

Here is Brister talking about meeting people and understanding that they may not the enemy. Yet, when he has a chance to meet a border proponent and learn that maybe they have something to offer:

• he does not vote to give the Bridge Co. extra time at Council to discuss their billion dollar Enhancement Project (neither did anyone else)
• "DRTP officials have been busy in recent weeks meeting with politicians and transportation authorities on both sides of the border to explore the possibility...
  
  He [Brister] declined an invitation to meet with DRTP over its latest plan" the double-stack rail tunnel."
• "Brister, a vehement opponent of the original DRTP plan, has not met with the group to hear about the revised design [underground truck road]. He could not be reached for comment about why he declined the group's invitation...
  
  But his ward mate, Coun. Joyce Zuk, felt she owed it to her constituents to listen."

Compare Brister today with what his Ward-mate Drew Dilkens says:

• "Dilkens said he'll talk to anyone, including high-profile bridge company and DRTP representatives, "but that doesn't mean they're running me in any way, shape or form. I'm an independent thinker but I try to get as many inputs as I can."

Letting people know about what you are doing openly and transparently:

• "Unfortunately, Dilkens' motion was defeated by a 6-4 margin, with ...Couns. Dave Brister... endorsing the secretive status quo that spawned this democratic accountability initiative in the first place."

Poor Dave, one day he will learn.

ANOTHER GREENLINK AD

I wonder who at the Star advertising department heads the City of Windsor account. The bonus for that person with all of this Greenlink advertising will be quite attractive I'm sure.

I should find out again if there was a Request for Proposal for the agency to create all of these advertisements. Last time I asked in mid-February, I was told, after Councillor Dilkens said on Face-to-Face that he expected an RFP to be undertaken:

• "The procurement of goods and services for this particular project will follow the Purchasing By-law, whether it be through the competitive bid process, or Sole Sourcing, whichever is deemed in the best interest of the City of Windsor.
  
  As of today, I have not received any formal written requisitions from the Department, for anything related to this particular project."

It would be nice if the Agency and the Mayor got together on what the main focus for Greenlink should be. Try and find the word JOBS in the latest advertisement.

NOW WE KNOW WHO DID THE POLLING

The secret is now out.

I've written to the City Clerk asking for a copy of the entire report on the poll since it is now a public document being mentioned on the Greenlink site.

I wonder how much this cost taxpayers and how many books for the Library could have been purchased instead.

EDDIE IN HIS PJ's

Excuses, excuses, excuses. That is all the Mayor gives us.

You know already that the Mayor's excuse for not attending the meeting in which Ministers Duncan and the Pupatello handed out money to Windsor was:

• "Mayor Eddie Francis did not attend because he was at a read-a-thon at General Brock elementary school."

Fortunately, two good Liberals, Councillors Valentinis and Marra were able to attend. Of course, I assume that this was an excuse for Eddie not to meet with the Ministers.

I must admit that I find it very strange that the Mayor could not change the time when he was attending at the school so that he could accommodate the Ministers. After all, from the General Brock School website, it states that:

• "Read-a-Thon activities take place all day long from JK to Grade 8."

Seriously, how do we know that he really was there and not just hiding from the two Ministers as he did when he flew off to Germany at taxpayer expense so he would not confront Dwight.

We need proof that he really was at the event. There is only one way that he could demonstrate that as far as I'm concerned. Now here is something that I would like to see to prove his attendance at the Read-a-Thon:

• "While our main goal is to raise funds and promote literacy, we are going to have a lot of fun in the process. Read-A-Thon day is also pajamas Day at Brock! Our staff and students really dress down on that day…they wear their comfy, cozy flannel PJ’s, fleecy slippers and robes! Many of our guests have even promised to wear their PJ’s, slippers and robes, too!!"

Where's the photo? After all, a promise is a promise:

• "It sends a powerful message to kids if we cancel at the last minute," said Norma Coleman, Francis's chief of staff."

It sends a powerful message to the Government and the citizens of Windsor if we do not see Eddie in his Pj's, slippers and robe.

A JAY LENO HEADLINES MOMENT

Oh I know it's not fair since it was a typo, but it's too hilarious not to point out.

In the original story on the Windsor Star online dealing with the infrastructure money to be given to Windsor to repair roads and bridges, the following quote was attributed to Mike Palanacki, executive director of public works of the City:

• "We are taking preemptive steps to fix brides before we have serious issues with them."

I thought that was pretty tough talk and rather sexist. I wonder what they were going to do to brides. I did not know they were broken. This was subsequently changed to:

• "We are taking preemptive steps to fix bridges before we have serious issues with them."

"Lead, Follow, Or Get Out Of The Way."

Two Star front pages. Two big stories about jobs. Two stories, one real and one make-believe.

In all seriousness, which story pleased you more? And why? Which story helps out the region and which story is a joke? And why? Which story is political posturing at its worst and which story will actually put people to work now? And why?

Even if you are a Martian and arrived in Windsor for the first time, just looking at the front pages should give you the answer. It tells you everything you would want to know about our leadership and to whom one should be looking to help this region transition into the new economy before it is too late.

On the Greenlink page, immediately below the main story you would read "Mayor Kicks off PR blitz" and then "Bankruptcies soar in Windsor."

On the other front page, you read about a "BUILDING BONANZA" and how much money was actually going to be spent in Windsor and in the County. Immediately below, you would read about the opening of the Essex Engine Plant.

Real jobs starting now to build up decaying infrastructure and reopening plants compared with THINK BIG DREAMS as people go broke.

Real jobs starting now compared with Jobs Today that may not start for years since the City could not put in any money until after 2010 and shipping people away from their homes and families.

Real jobs on real projects to achieve something positive for the region compared with cheerleaders and sycophants promising us the moon to hide the truth.

It should make you sick as it does me that our local government is so incompetent in the face of so much hardship. Think of the thousands of jobs, 2800 of them, that are starting on the other side of the river with the Ambassador Gateway project. Think of the thousands of jobs that could have been started already on our side of the river if the road to the border and the Enhancement Project had started but for our Mayor and Council's stalling.

Think of how well this region would be doing and the signal we would be giving to industry that we are open for business rather than the signal that we're giving now that we need to ship our people away from here because this region is an economic disaster.

Think of the Mayor that snubs the pre-budget meeting of the Minister of Finance and flies off to Germany using taxpayer money to talk to a startup company that can do little for us. Think of a Mayor that snubs a meeting where infrastructure dollars are being presented to the City by two of the most powerful Members of the Cabinet. Oh, I am sorry, it was not a snub. The Mayor could not rearrange his busy schedule:

• "Mayor Eddie Francis did not attend because he was at a read-a-thon at General Brock elementary school.
  
  “It sends a powerful message to kids if we cancel at the last minute,” said Norma Coleman, Francis’s chief of staff.

I wonder what kind of powerful message Eddie's failure to attend gives with Dwight and Sandra. And with the Premier who is supposed to be here today. If Norma wants the answer, she should talk to some of her insider Liberal friends to hear what they have to say "off the record."

Poor Norma. She had to fall on the sword for the Mayor because he did not have the guts to give that kind of excuse personally. No one believes that. It just makes Eddie look even more foolish and immature. It just reinforces the fact that he has little leadership ability and is again failing his constituents.

I wonder if Eddie will snub the Premier as well on Monday. I don't think he would dare do so.

It really is time for residents of this City to say that they have had enough of our Mayor and Council. Let them stay in their booth at Devonshire Mall to hand out brochures. That is about all that they are good for.

I hate to say this because of my involvement early on with STOPDRTP when we fought bitterly against Queen's Park and Ottawa. At that time, the majority of Council worked with its citizens to try to achieve a good result The situation has reversed itself completely. We have an out-of-control Mayor and local Council that just doesn't care what the citizens think. They are prepared to spend another $300,000 and to waste 60 more days with PR blitzes after spending how much on polling.

It is my opinion that the Senior Levels by now understand that they must listen to the citizens of Windsor and not our politicians. It is my opinion that they understand by now that the citizens of Windsor are not dumb and do understand what is best for this City notwithstanding the posturing of the Mayor and Council. It is my opinion that they also understand that citizens of Windsor will stand up for what is in their best interests no matter what local politicians may say or do.

We have done it before when we, the citizens, first opposed the truck expressway through the heart of Windsor, when we opposed the use of EC Row for Montréal to Tijuana international trucks to feed DRTP, when we looked for a better and practical solution to the road to the border and when we acknowledged that the Ambassador Bridge Company will build their Enhancement Project.

Our Minister of Finance is a very shrewd politician. It is obvious that Dwight knew what he was doing and did it on purpose when he said "THE MAYOR IS WRONG. THE MAYOR IS WRONG" and then told us that the road to the border would produce 7500 jobs. He judged perfectly what is in the minds of the people.

It is time already that the Senior Levels come in and do the right thing for Windsor and Essex County. Do they not understand yet that this Mayor and Council know that they have failed and are in fact begging the Senior Levels to come in and impose a solution. It lets them off the hook they pray.

Prime Minister, Premier, do your job already, start leading. Get these projects moving. Get us the jobs. It's time you got Eddie out of the way!

Imagine the headlines then!

Breaking BLOGnews: Ford

Usually reliable sources (they better be or else!) have told me to expect an announcement about the Ford plant on Monday.

Word is that the news should be positive and, if so, that a lot of the credit is owed to Conservative MP Jeff Watson!

Does that mean a Federal election is coming too soon and every seat counts for a Party!

Used And Abused

What a trite cliché my BLOG title is today. But how appropriate.

Did you feel the same way that I did when I read the headline in the Star yesterday about the 19,000 man years of work that Greenlink would produce. Man years mind you, not number of jobs. [I refuse to use person-years]. Do you feel like a jerk to be blunt?

I could just picture in my mind's eye the Mayor, the Eminence Greasie and their legions of cheerleaders and sycophants laughing at what fools we have been since the Mayor's State of a City speech. How dumb we were to believe that the Mayor's Jobs Today plan was a serious one.

I wonder also whether the Mayor's colleagues at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities feel the same way when they read what the Mayor just announced. I wonder if the Mayors of Saskatoon, Regina, Edmonton, and Calgary, think that they have been played as fools the same way Windsorites have been played. But who knows, perhaps they were in on the joke as well.

Can you believe it, on March 17 the Mayor is preparing to send everybody out of town who was looking for work and then, barely 10 days later, there are jobs, jobs, jobs totaling 19,000 man years in town, working on the City's solution for the border road. No one has to move from Windsor at all now. Hallelujah. We are saved.

I am not sure if this is the worst case of cynical, political manipulation that I have ever seen but it comes very close to it. I cannot believe that any caring person would play with the lives of so many people this way, all to score a cheap political point for himself and his future career.

Can you believe it, the Mayor in his speech on March 17, especially when he was talking about Greenlink, did not mention anything about 19,000 man years of jobs coming out of this project. Instead, he fed us the crap about Jobs Today.

And please, do not try and tell me that he had never seen the consultant study by then or did not know about it! I may have been foolish but not that much of a fool.

Why did he hide the info from us? Why couldn't he give us hope? Why didn't he tell us about this? Why did he make people think that their homes might have to be split up, families torn apart or things were so bad that people would really have to move out of here. Simple.

The headline...that's all it was. It was all for the headline, a misleading one too!

We were all nothing more than cannon fodder, including the Mayors of the Western cities, between the time of Eddie's Speech and the Budget. He needed a diversion, some amusement. We were being used as Jobs Today was nothing more than a tool to put pressure on the Minister of Finance and to embarrass him, and Sandra, so that he would fold on Budget Night and give in to our Mayor. The timing of the ad about Greenlink was so coincidental right after the budget, the setup at the mall just happened to take place right after the Budget. And then the announcement, the big announcement right after the budget.

I guess the money that Eddie must have spent on polling confirmed to him that jobs really were the priority for Windsor. So he fed us BS in his State of the City speech and then gave us the carrot subsequently of all these jobs if only Greenlink is approved.

What have I been arguing on here for I don't know how long. What has the Construction Association said even before I did. What did Dwight Duncan talk about. What is the Bridge Company actually producing with its Ambassador Gateway project now, today, at this very moment on the other side of the river. I have said that the construction of the road to the border and the Enhancement Project would produce between 10-15000 infrastructure and spinoff jobs.

Congratulations to the Mayor for finally confirming the proof of what I have been saying. I would have appreciated a thank you at least. Too bad it took him so long to find that out but he need not worry with his salary!

Here's what the Mayor said in his speech about his conversations with the Mayors of the Western cities:

• "Recently, at a meeting of the Big Cities Mayors’ Caucus I spoke with my colleagues about our challenges. And in turn the mayors of Calgary, Edmonton and Saskatoon told me of their issues and challenges.
  
  They told me about how there is an ever-increasing labour shortage out west. They need skilled tradespeople, and people to fill any number of construction-related positions...
  
  So we’ve started to develop a plan. A plan to help long-distance commuters living in Windsor to access jobs that exist today in Western Canada but to keep their roots at home in our community."

I was curious to try and find out when Eddie spoke with the Mayors. I went to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities website and saw that the Big Cities Mayors last met on February 8. Presumably therefore, they had their discussion on or about that day. Eddie did tell us in his speech:

• "But planning is well under way."

Tell me, from February 8 until today, what have you seen of this plan? What are the details? We know that the Mayor changed from having people come back every weekend to working several weeks and then coming back because otherwise it would be way too expensive. We learned that there may be a problem getting houses for people out west. We learned that many Westerners were not very happy about people taking money and then leaving and spending their money in Windsor. We heard that there might be a job fair. We just heard, we never saw any action, no results... a typical Eddie "THINK BIG DREAM" that fell apart once we learned from Henderson that there would be no money until after Eddie left in 2010 as our Mayor.

Then, when it became time to produce or else, the conversation was changed. Greenlink jobs became our saviour. By the way did you notice the word "jobs" in the first full-page Greenlink ad? You did not because it was not there when the ad was first produced. Jobs were nothing more than an afterthought, a political afterthought. Throw up a big number and fool the citizens, or try to.

Let's see now, the construction project is to take six years. SIX YEARS. Not starting tomorrow mind you, but who knows how long from now because Greenlink would have to undergo an environmental assessment since it is a completely new alternative. Again, another typical Eddie manoeuver. Get the glory today by making the announcement and talking about it and let someone take the blame tomorrow when they cannot fulfill what he promised. After all, after he leaves as Mayor, it would not be his fault if jobs could not be produced.

If it starts in 2010...our border is not finished until after 2016, longer than the DRIC timetable.

Want to bet that the total Greenlink cost will be at least $2.6B, Gord's number, when you add in an inflation factor (the new Greenlink revised number may probably still be in 2007 dollars as is shown on the website), and add in the part from E C Row to the border that has not been factored in yet. I bet DRIC has priced it out by now! Maybe they can tell us.

Even forgetting that, apparently "The jobs would include 6,760 person years of direct construction work." That it works out to jobs for about 1100 people. The Ambassador Gateway project alone produces work for 2800 people for about two years according to a Michigan story I saw. Greenlink, therefore, while a benefit, doesn't seem to me to be that much of a huge benefit the way the Mayor would like us to believe, especially when we have no idea when the first person would be hired.

Throw up the big number in the headline, Windsor Star, when it comes to jobs for Greenlink just as you threw up the small number when it comes to costs for the East End Arena. People will remember a number and not really understand what it represents. Play the game. Help out the Mayor. Help fool the people. But it's okay. As Marty Beneteau said:

• "We did things that newspapers can do to bring about change, positive change. I think we got a lot of results this year and this now validates the results we got."

By the way, did you like the photo of Eddie on the CKLW website too. What a nice treat for the Mayor from his strapped on "W" radio station.

Honestly, I cannot understand the other media in town. Why are they so subservient, why do they allow themselves to be scooped by the Star all the time. Want proof. Here's what Gord Henderson wrote on February 28 right after the federal budget:

• "Maybe it's none of the above. Maybe this government has made a ruthless decision to retain the Windsor area as a surplus labour pool, a mini pre-Hibernia Newfoundland, to provide a reliable reservoir of workers for red-hot B.C., Alberta and Saskatchewan."

Does that sound familiar, echoing Eddie's State of the City speech.

I really have had enough. I'm sick of the shenanigans. There is no need for them. 60 more days of spending $300,000 of taxpayer money for what? $4.3 million of taxpayer money spent on consultants and lawyers with what results achieved? Cynical political opportunism, stalling and delays to what end?

And where are the Councillors? Oh I know, they are manning the booth at Devonshire Mall. Perhaps they should be selling Lottery tickets instead.

The BLOGMeister Always Rings Twice

Mail Call!

1) Ed.. you should sell your plan to Remo Mancini... he would probably have Matt Fischer follow through on the deal. After reading the blog.... how do the kids text message each other...ROTFLMAO !!

Good stuff... can't wait for the sequel.

2) They should have thrown in a Championship Golf course on top of Greenlink.
What's another 10 million.
That makes sense and money.
If they cut out two more fire trucks and some police cruisers, that would cover it.

3) OK - I am very confused. The city has spent considerable dollars for this campaign yet they don't seem to have updated their Green Link website. None of the 'new reports' talked about by the mayor yesterday are there. In fact - the city hasn't even bothered to change their costing on the GreenLink website to reflect the new cost. From the city's website:

GreenLink Windsor Call to Action
The Mayor and City Council are urging residents to take part in a Community Call to Action in support of the GreenLink Windsor solution. The Mayor announced a new phase of the GreenLink campaign at Devonshire Mall on March 26. Visit the GreenLink Windsor website to learn more.

Meanhile the Star reports:

- The job estimates for six years of construction -- a person year is the equivalent of one person working one year -- were included in a series of new reports commissioned by the city that make Windsor's case for GreenLink. But where is the report?

- They include air quality analysis, cost and constructability studies, and economic impact analysis. Still looking - no report

- Parsons Brinckerhoff, a global engineering firm assigned to help develop GreenLink, has also estimated the new jobs will provide an additional $1.9 billion in earnings for the area. The jobs would include 6,760 person years of direct construction work, plus spinoffs that would bring the total to 19,000. Again, no report to back this up

- According to the Parsons Brinckerhoff reports released by the mayor Wednesday, the economic spinoffs from GreenLink will span multiple sectors, with benefits that extend beyond the construction industry, "cycling through the entire regional economy and dispersing benefits to a wide range of businesses and households." Same again - no report

- The company has also fine-tuned its cost analysis for the project. It has identified tunnel waterproofing, concrete, lighting and cement grout costs, revising its final estimate to $1.77 billion, up slightly from an original projection released late last year. A 30 per cent contingency estimate is built into the total. Well if they have, it is not reflected on the comparison on the Greenlink website

- The new reports will be delivered to DRIC "to eliminate any excuses of convenience," the mayor said. When will that be I wonder? Since the reports are not on the website, I guess the public can't view them

- "We have done the work, we have done more than was expected of us," he said. But noone asked you to do this - least of all the taxpayers

4)JobsFund! Hilarious. Your best column in weeks, especially the part about flying onions to Germany.. bet they'll go well with sauerkraut.

5) Oh for the days that we South Windsorites were part of Sandwich West instead.

6) Ed - while enjoying your blog today I couldn't help but be amused by your concern that the economic nationalists would hate you. Really... remember the only reason to lock a barn door after the horses escape is to prevent their return. If they don't hate you already they haven't been paying attention

7)Hi Ed;

Been busy! I'm glad you didn't choose the music for "Jesus
Christ!...Superstar!" for your short video this morning! Although I think
Eddie would have preferred it LOL!

The Brookings report is pretty damning of our mayor and his attitude and
approach! I got that report last week. It also puts DRIC, DRTP on notice
also about their folly. The report says it all and what should be done and
who can do it! Will Eddiefice complex read it? Nah! He will spin it right
into the trash can! It isn't his dream but it is really written quite well
in its black letters of on the page, so to speak of!

I'm not one for having Eddie spend more of our money, but I really think he
needs a communications department or choir director, at least to herd all
the walking mouthpieces into singing his song!

Maybe this should be Eddie's song for Greenlink: Cher's (This is) A Song for
the Lonely

8) we are going to fly Mexicans
into Windsor to work here, then fly our "assembly monkeys" out west to work,
is there something wrong with picture?

9) hysterical - love your videos (they are getting better).

10) Hi Ed,

I'll try to keep this short. I almost had a stroke in my car today while listening to AM800. Matt Fischer says the new VW plant won't come to Windsor-Essex because "there's a lack of available workers".

What the hell is he saying? People are losing jobs left and right. There's a great deal of skilled trades people out there who could easily fit into a new car plant. This guy Fischer is just like Mayor Eddie, they are both out of control. They are completely clueless. It makes me ill to open the Windsor Star each day and read the crazy remarks these leaders are spewing out. Why didn't he say the truth? VW will never come to Essex County because of the CAW circus. Lewenza and company has done a fine job sending out a positive message to all investors.

I've lost faith in most of our elected officials. Nothing surprises me anymore. How stupid do they think we are?

Ed, keep up the good blogging. I read it whenever I can.

11) Hi Ed,

Did you hear on CKLW today that CEO Matt Fischer stated Volkswagen would not be able to locate here not because of the unions (to which I agree) but because we do not have enough workers to fill an assembly plant?

Can you imagine! I thought it was a cruel joke but he was serious. How about we ask all of the laid off people at GM, Nemak, Chrysler, Ford and a myriad of other assembly plants and we can also ask all of the skilled labour force that is unemployed and see if they agree.

Why are we paying big salaries to guys like Matt Fischer to shove away business and make excuses for them not to locate here? Isn't it his job to PROMOTE and ENCOURAGE business to move here?

If we dig a bit deeper we can see that he is only saving his own skin by putting out the fire before it starts because we already know that Volkswagen wouldn't locate here to begin with because there are no incentives, something Mayor Francis just found out even though he has been in politics for 10 years!

Just when I thought this area couldn't get more ridiculous it seems to always find a way. Too bad they couldn't reverse this trend and do the same with jobs.

12) Did Eddie ever imagine that the most waves his speech would make would
come from his talk of flying Windsorites out west for work?

It's tragically comic.

13) ‘Laughing Stock’

Touché Ed.

I also did the math when I read in the Star that Eddie thought people could work out west and still live here. Maybe the Developmentless Commission is working on a teleporter and gave up on brochures.

14) ED, I WONDER IF IT IS NOT TIME TO HAVE A GIANT DEMO, [ORGANIZED] TO BRING SOME COMMON SENSE TO OUR CITY. WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO PETITION A RECALL OF ED AND HIS CREW [MOST OF THEM ] AND HAVE A FORENSIC AUDIT OF ALL DEPARTMENTS INCLUDING ADMINISTRATION , WE MAY HAVE A BOSTON TEA PARTY AGENDA. THANKS ,

Eddie's Jobs Today Plan: An Investor's Bonanza

You have seen all those infomercials late at night or on Sunday afternoons when there are no sports shows on TV offering you the way to become fabulously wealthy. But you've always been concerned, wondering if it is too good to be true. Would you dare waste your hard-earned money and perhaps lose it?

Is it really possible for you to make the kind of money that these people are talking about in their 30 minute advertisement. I'm sure that you are saying to yourself if only I knew this could really happen to me, then I would do it. If it were fool-proof, I would get involved you say. If it was so easy you think, then why wouldn't everyone do it.

Well my friends, I'm going to offer you in this BLOG the chance of a lifetime, your opportunity to move on up to Easy Street and to live the Life of Riley. Yes friends, get on board the gravy train offered by your City Hall and Senior Level Government but do it now, before it's too late.

Do you dream of mansions, yachts, luxury automobiles and vacations in exotic locations? IF SO THIS BLOG IS FOR YOU.

Are you just starting out in life but poor and risking unemployment but dreaming of that perfect, high paying job like that of a Windsor Police Constable? IF SO THIS BLOG IS FOR YOU.

Do you have a spouse and a couple of kids and are having trouble making your mortgage payments but wishing that you could make a salary like a Windsor City Hall manager? IF SO THIS BLOG IS FOR YOU.

Are you just recently retired or you took a buyout and you're worried about whether you can make ends meet with the price of gasoline and bread and electricity and water and property taxes and levies increasing but wish you had a pension like a Politician? IF SO THIS BLOG IS FOR YOU.

Yes my friends, you too can have all the money that you'll ever need by investing in the JOBSTODAY FUND which I am starting up. All you need to do is invest a few dollars in the fund along with fellow Windsorites and just watch the money come rolling in. Laugh away your worries and get in on the investment bonanza that is sure to happen.

We all know that our Mayor, Eddie Francis, is a smart guy. As someone said, "He is one brick more than a load." As Gord H. told us

• "Francis said the need for local incentives hit him, like a brick between the eyes."

Well folks, the idea of how to capitalize on Jobs Today hit me like a ton of bricks. I want to share my idea with YOU and help YOU AND YOUR FAMILY enjoy life to the fullest as we all become filthy rich.

First off, I need your money for the JOBSTODAY FUND . I actually do not need your cash yet, just a commitment will do. It's similar to the kind of commitment that Eddie asked of the Essex County Warden Santos:

• "Francis said the money does not have to be provided up front — it’s the commitment to funding that counts.
  
  “We need the commitment so we can start advertising, so we can start putting it out there, so we can start communicating...that money is available.”

Don't worry, with your commitment, I will leverage it with the hundred million dollar fund that Eddie wants to use to create jobs. Moreover, every dollar from you will be matched and increased by not only that fund but all the Government funds I can latch onto since Windsor is clearly now a depressed area.

Every dollar that you contribute can be increased one, two, five or even tenfold or more with all the Government matching and grant programs that are available. Those Gazelle Feeders won't know what hit them by the time that I get through asking for cash.

Do I have a PLAN, a Business PLAN, to convince the Governments and the Economic Development Commission to give us money. Of course I do. I know how the system works.

What is the first thing that I'm going to do with all this JOBSTODAY FUND money? Obviously, I am going to California and Arizona. Why, because of the aircraft graveyards there. I am going to go out and buy a fleet of airplanes very cheaply.

I have of my choice amongst hundreds of older, less fuel efficient but still flyable planes that sit there waiting for someone to buy them or else they will be junked and recycled into aluminum cans. I have my choice of large jets and small ones including DC-8's and 10's, Lockheed L-1011's, Boeing 737's, 747's, 757's and 767's, as well as Airbus A300's and A310's.

I can get those planes at a bargain price and make us a fortune on them. And think of all the people that I will have to hire to be crews for those flights. This alone will guarantee success for Windsor Airport with all the flights coming and going. This might actually require the upgrading of the Expressway to handle the road traffic so I will solve the road to the the border issue too as an afterthought.

With the JOBSTODAY FUND money, I am starting up a new charter airline, Air Windsor/Essex. Why should we give the passenger fare money for Windsorites going to and coming from their new jobs out West to Air Canada or Westjet to make them rich when we can keep it here in Windsor and make us rich instead.

Imagine the thousands of people who would go out by air every Sunday evening and come back every Friday night from their jobs out West to join up again with their families. Planeload after planeload after planeload every weekend in the year. Why should our people be forced to pay over $1000 and have to endure a six or seven hour flight and change in Toronto, when our airline can charge a few dollars less and cut the travel time in half with a direct flight.

And if employers out West pay the fare, since it is much cheaper for them than moving a family out West and subsidizing their mortgage payments for years since the cost of a home in a western city is probably double or triple the price of a Windsor home, they won't mind paying out a few dollars less than the scheduled airlines would charge! They will save money too.

During the week, what we would do with the AIR WINDSOR/ESSEX airplanes. They will not sit idle, I assure you of that. The extra money we make will all be gravy too.

We'll fill them full of onions and ship them over to Germany along with other agricultural products. You know those $.69 bunches of onions that can get us over three dollars in Europe according to the two unnamed people from the unnamed company that the Mayor had come over from Germany. Why should they make the outrageous profits when we can instead. What a profit we will make in the agricultural business as well.

We'll send over Essex County wine too because in Europe, our wines will be considered "imported" and would command premium prices compared with being viewed as mere "local" wines here. Our marketers will create a program in Europe similar to the one with the slogan"Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrivé! "The New Beaujolais has arrived!" where

• "65 million bottles, nearly half of the region's total annual production, will be distributed and drunk around the world"

I definitely am going to try and corner the Ice Wine market because of the long winter that we've had. It should be a great crop for bottling and selling overseas. Think of how expensive that wine is and how many Euros we can sell it for.

Of course, and I don't want to be sexist about it, most of the people travelling on AIR WINDSOR/ESSEX for the jobs will be younger and male.

Pity then the poor housewife with several children who will be forced look after the household, pay the bills, play mother and father to the kids and then see her exhausted spouse for only a short time every week. I know, I did a lot of commuting over an 18 month period and by the end of it, I was physically and mentally drained.

Imagine the stress on the wife and young children who remain in Windsor especially if the wife is working as well. Imagine the stress on the relationship. We don't want marriage breakups and divorces nor do we want children feeling alone or unwanted or having nightmares thinking they only have a single parent or that the family is breaking up.

We are going to need psychologists, psychiatrists and social workers to meet their requirements. Lots of them and almost immediately. But already, we have a shortage in Windsor of these professionals. What are we going to do?

Obviously, we will have to fly these people into Windsor from all over North America to meet the needs of our people. And they can fly AIR WINDSOR/ESSEX! Since they can write off the fares on their taxes as a business expense, we won't have to give them too much of a discount either. And see how we would be filling up Windsor hotels and restaurants too! We can put together package deals for them and make a few extra dollars that way as well.

Heck, it would not surprise me to see that, as part of the therapy, these families are going to need to re-establish relationships as well if their marriages are not to break down and if the kids are not to forget who their father is. They will need some quality time together.

Accordingly, we are going to have to be able to fly them to vacation resorts like DisneyWorld or Hawaii or Mexico. Think of all the charter flights we will be able to sell. Again, AIR WINDSOR/ESSEX comes to the rescue as the charter airline of choice!

But my friends, you did not come into this venture to make a few dollars in the airline or travel business. You did not give me money, or at least your commitment, for the JOBSTODAY FUND to make a small rate of return. You want real dough, the big bucks. You want to hit the jackpot! You want to be rolling in cash so that you never have to worry about money again.

Well my friends there is only one way that you can do that in this country and that is in REAL ESTATE!

Oh I know what you are thinking. You think I have lost my marbles. That those bricks squashed my brains. The real estate market in Windsor is horrible or so you are told, with house prices dropping and homes being foreclosed left and right. How can anyone make money with apartment vacancy rates zooming upwards and buildings being converted into condominiums to save tax money.

But that's what separates those that can make money and those that cannot. Just stick with me and listen. I have the answer.

These are the best of times for you and me, dear investor. The worse it is for Windsorites, the more that people think that we are in a depression... the better it is for us.

I'm going to take all of the rest of the JOBSTODAY FUND money and all of the Government money and I'm going to buy houses in Windsor. Yes, I am going to buy every single solitary house that I can that is in half decent shape at as low a price as I possibly can. I'm going to be the banks' and the mortgage brokers' best friend. I'm going to buy all of their foreclosed properties too. AND at bargain prices as well!

What am I going to do with them... flip them of course and make a huge profit for me and my JOBSTODAY FUND investors, for you who believed in me.

Oh you think I've lost it now don't you. How can anyone possibly make money in Windsor real estate in this market? Don't get excited, just follow along with me. I have it all figured out.

When all of our unemployed people are shipped off to the West, flying AIR WINDSOR/ESSEX of course, we will all of a sudden have the lowest rate of unemployment in Canada. No one here who wants a job will be unable to find one. They will just go out West. We will become the jobs hot spot in Canada, or at least that is how it will appear.

Who would doubt us? Heck, we already have the head Gazelle Feeder saying on CKLW:

• "Ontario is being urged to go after a new Volkswagen assembly plant. The German automaker is searching North America for a site for a new plant. But, Windsor-Essex is not considered a possibility. Development commission C-E-O Matt Fischer says there's a lack of available workers."

Moreover, the jobs that they are going to take out West pay phenomenally well, or so the news stories claim. Of course, when Statistics Canada does their survey of wages and salaries across Canada, when they ask a Windsor family how much money they earn, the rate quoted will be based on the western salary that the wage earner received. Since so many people will be commuting, almost everyone that Statistics Canada contacts here will show this high rate of pay. In a very short time, Windsor's per capita income will be the highest in Canada.

What does this mean... well, if you are looking for a job with high pay you will want to come to the area that has the highest per capita income in Canada won't you. You'll also want to come to an area where the house prices are not as high as those in Toronto or in the West. That area is Windsor too. PLUS, we have advantages from both a cultural and sports perspective. Even this small City, according to the Mayor, can run major events:

• "Our track record speaks for itself to host these events," said Francis at the time. "From the Super Bowl, to Wrestlemania, to the Grand Prix."

Hrumph. And people thought that they were Detroit events! How shameful the American media can be when they spread vicious lies like those. Next they will claim that the North American Auto show is really held in Detroit when we had the big car and truck extravaganza this year at the Windsor Armouries!

Do you see what I'm getting at? I can buy the houses cheaply and then sell them at a much higher price to all these people who are going to flock into Windsor. And I haven't even included all of those rich people from Toronto and Vancouver and from the United States who would move to Windsor, you know the kind of people that Gord Henderson talked about in his column the other day.

But then you say, what happens if those people can't find a job in Windsor because there is no industry here. What happens when they can't pay their mortgage? Ahhhh, that is the beauty of my program. No need to worry, they'll all be mortgaged under the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp. program which provides a form of insurance to the lender. Who cares if they cannot pay!

• "Through your lender, CMHC Mortgage Loan Insurance enables you to finance up to 100% of the purchase price of a home."
  
• "Timely payment to the Investor of principal and interest is guaranteed by CMHC, who also insures the underlying mortgages."

You see what I mean. No risks. No worries! The homes can be financed completely with CMHC backing everything. Mortgage meltdown, not for you and me my friends. We are protected. We are happy. WE ARE RICH!

ACT IMMEDIATELY, BEFORE THE JOBSTODAY FUND IS CLOSED! ONLY A SET NUMBER OF PEOPLE WILL BE ALLOWED TO JOIN THE JOBSTODAY FUND. YOU DO NOT WANT TO LOSE OUT! (NOTE: NUMBER OF PEOPLE NOT DISCLOSED FOR CONFIDENTIALITY PURPOSES)

What's keeping you? Why aren't you sending me your money so I can start JOBSTODAY FUND? Why are you hesitating? Don't you want to live like a Windsor public servant or politician, a life of luxury and ease.

Still leery. Oh it works my friends. Just think of programs like the Scientific Research Tax Credit program, HRDC jobs grants, the gun registry, Adscam, DRIC and building a public bridge. The Governments just WANT to waste taxpayer money! Let us help them spend.

Thank our Mayor for the concept, ask him to run for a third term. If he can keep on dreaming up all of these schemes to save his political career, we can capitalize on them and make a fortune.

Come on Windsorites. THINK BIG! DREAM BIG! ACT BIG! Just pick up the phone and call JOBSTODAY FUND toll-free at 1-GET-JOB-FUND and ask for the Prospectus and the free DVD that explains how you can start investing and making money today!

ILLEGIBLE AND INCOMPREHENSIBLE TINY PRINT TO PREVENT YOU FROM SUING ME WHEN YOU LOSE YOUR SHIRT ON THIS DEAL SINCE THIS IDEA WILL FAIL LIKE EVERY OTHER "THINK BIG" PLAN IN WINDSOR THAT HAS BEEN PROPOSED. BY THE WAY, THIS IS NOT A REAL PLAN BUT A SATIRE IN CASE YOU ARE WONDERING:

This PLAN carries a high level of risk, and may not be suitable for all investors or for anyone with half a brain. This PLAN can work against you as well as for you. Before deciding to get involved, see your doctor for medical advice and take an IQ test. Do NOT tell your spouse or significant other what you are thinking of doing or you might be committed. You should carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite. The possibility exists that you could sustain a loss of some or all of your investment and therefore you should not invest money that you cannot afford to lose. Heck you should not invest or commit a single penny for heaven's sake but rather go to the Casino and lose your money there. At least, you will keep Windsorites employed there and you will have a good time doing so. PLUS you can get a few free drinks as well. You should be aware of all the risks associated and seek advice from an independent financial advisor.

Sleepless In Detroit/Windsor Tunnel

Isn't this precious.

Someone involved with the Tunnel figured out a way to be creative. They went out and bought a billboard with this cute saying on it. I guess that is supposed to draw traffic away from the Bridge since it is on Huron Church Road!

I must admit though the first time that I went by it, I just glanced at a billboard and I thought it read:

• "You could have slept in…the tunnel"

That usually seems to happen to people in the morning going into United States waiting to clear US Customs or going back to the US after a weekend in Windsor. Isn't that the reason why so many Windsor police officers are stationed at Wyandotte and Goyeau to direct traffic because of the traffic mess around the City-ownedTunnel? (Hmmmm. I wonder if the cost of the officers is charged to the Tunnel or is it a cost borne by taxpayers). Being stuck at US Customs in the Tunnel is the case on occasion for hours if you take the Tunnel bus as has been reported. What else can one do but sleep for hours sometimes until the bus is cleared.

Talking about sleeping though, where is our investigative reporting from Windsor's traditional media. Were they asleep at the switch or were they afraid to do anything before the Mayor's State of the City Speech for fear of offending him and losing access to City Hall? Or after too!

What is one of the matters that Kwame over in Detroit has been accused of neglecting so that the City's budget is not balanced: the US$75 million Tunnel deal with Windsor. How long has it been so far that this deal has not been finished and yet the City's outside lawyers are working so hard to achieve a resolution. I would hate to think what the legal fees are by now.

So when Councillor Halberstadt writes about a possible Tunnel deal on his BLOG, you would think that someone from the traditional media would actually read about it and try and find out something about it. After all, it's almost like getting a big story on a silver platter.

Not so far it seems. Not a peep from anyone. Or rather not until the 26th, the day before the meeting, when we are told to swallow this:

• "What we will be dealing with is a recommendation from legal counsel to put the tunnel into a corporation to protect the taxpayer from any financial exposure that might occur from an act of terrorism or accident," said Mayor Eddie Francis."

Please don't tell me know that nobody from the traditional media reads the Councillor's BLOG. I thought he got into trouble with some of his colleagues because of what he wrote on there. If no one reads what he writes, other than a few unimportant taxpayers, then he need not be concerned what he reveals on there and should be telling us more. After all, but for his BLOG would we have known at all about the meeting on the 27th?

In case someone is interested, here is what he wrote:

• "Kwame should be asked about the long-delayed negotiations between Detroit and Windsor to secure possession of the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel and infuse $75 million into the coffers of Kilpatrick’s cash-strapped administration.
  
  Protracted, top-secret negotiations have been dragging on since last summer, at undisclosed legal costs. But now it appears that a deal may be near. Mayor Francis has called a special joint meeting of the Windsor Tunnel Commission, which he chairs, and Windsor City Council, on Thursday, March 27 at 3 p.m."

Of course, I'm not a reporter from the mighty Windsor Star or a media person from a radio or TV station so what chance do I have to get information from the powerful. I do have a few people I talk to however. From what I have learned to date from people on both sides of the border, no one seems to know if there is a deal to be concluded or not. The overall consensus of people is that there is no deal that is finalized at this time and that the meeting on the 27th must be about something else.

Of course, these people are not privy to all of the confidential haggling that has been going on, including trying to get financing for this project. I would be surprised if the City could finance US$75 million on its own out of City Finances since my understanding is that the Tunnel Improvement Project is dead for the next few years with no money allocated to it from the City.

To help out the reporters, may I suggest a possible way that the deal could be completed. The Province, not the Federal Government, may fund Eddie's Tunnel deal for the following reasons:

• Province has already passed Regulations allowing it (Unfortunately, the Province needed to amend the Municipal Act so it is not legal for the City to do the deal in my opinion)
• Council and Tunnel Commission Meeting is taking place AFTER Dwight's Budget.
• Kwame was quoted in the Detroit media saying: [Detroit News Thursday, February 21, 2008] " The one-time tunnel deal with Windsor, which the mayor has been counting on to eliminate the city's deficit, was stymied because Windsor was having a hard time getting the cash from conventional sources. Windsor hopes to get the money from its provincial government."
• Feds have said that they will not finance the Tunnel.
• The Agreement may only be an Agreement in Principle so far since the Province would have to get approval from the Feds under Bill C-3 and no changes of ownership regulations have been pased so far.

As unlikely as this seems given what Dwight did NOT say in his Budget, I have heard that the Province wants an interest in the new DRIC Bridge. If they have an interest in the Tunnel, it may give the Province leverage as a border operator to allow it to have some oversight or ownership interest in a new DRIC border crossing if one is ever built.

I have asked both Dwight and Sandra to comment on the above thought but I have not heard yet back from them, and probably won't. Maybe local reporters might want to ask around now or are they doing their CVs for jobs out West too!

I wonder as well if any agendas have been sent out to Councillors for Council meetings that are upcoming and, if so, is there an agenda for this Meeting. Do the Windsor Tunnel Commissioners know what is going on since I believe that they have not had a Commission meeting for months since I have not seen any Minutes? If not, and if I was a Councillor in the City of Windsor or a Commissioner, so as not to be embarrassed, I would contact the Mayor immediately and find out what is going on so that if the media contacted me I would not look like a complete and total fool.

Remember how Councillors complained when the audit on the Fleet Operations came out and they had no idea what was going on. Here we go again. They never do learn or is it that the Mayor just doesn't care.

Oh and I sent this email out to Councillors this morning since I chose NOT to swallow what was said in the Star story:

• "Tunnel story in the Star today
  
  
  Please explain to me why the meeting re the Tunnel has to go "in camera."
  
  This matter as described in the story---incorporating a company---has already been discussed in public as justification for the new Tunnel Corp. in the presence of Council's outside lawyer. It does not need to be discussed again.
  
  If there is something else on the agenda please let me know what it is so. The public should have the right if required to appear as delegates at a Special Council meeting!"

Dwight's Budget

Obviously, the financial war is still going on between the Feds and the Province over the amount that the Federal Government will pay for the DRIC Project road.

It's no wonder then that no specific amount was mentioned by the Province nor what its percentage would be of the total cost of the road. No point being trapped when you are playing a game of taxpayer money poker.

I wonder if the Senior Levels are going to put in a kind of money needed for a DRIC road, $1.6 billion or is it just going to be the really "cheap" solution like I-696 in the end. As I have said before that is not a real number but based on MTO guidelines. It could be much more once it goes out to tender. Perhaps, since the Fedss have only put in $400 million, the Province may only put in $400 million. That would really get Eddie mad now wouldn't it.

You know the old saying: the City whose Mayor hesitates is lost.

Instead of stalling and delaying, perhaps he should have been negotiating to get that road finalized already and set in stone (or is it asphalt or concrete).

As well, perhaps next time, Eddie will not snub Dwight's pre-Budget session, even if he just had to go at taxpayer expense, along with Ms Nazzani, to Germany to meet a start-up!

The only good that may come out of this is that the Mayor will not spend thousands of taxpayer dollars on an advertising blitz for Greenlink that will accomplish nothing. Perhaps we can buy a few Library books with the money saved.

There is no doubt that Greenlink will never be built because tunnels are a hazard both from the point of view of accidents taking place within the tunnel and deliberate action designed to slow down the movement of traffic across the border. Then there is the cost and the precedent set.

It is lucky for the Senior Levels, and the Province in particular, that Matty Moroun knows how to operate a bridge. Again as I have said before, ironically, he is his own worst enemy. Because he operates the border so well, we don't have the massive tieups that would have required Government action long before now. He allowed them to buy time and not spend any money.

Instead the Senior Levels can fool around as the Minister of Finance did a few years ago with his colleague, the Infrastructure Minister with his $500 million Gong Show money. Moreover, they also have the time to try to put him out of business as his reward for his deed of keeping trade between Canada and the US moving so well.

It would appear to me that the Province probably doesn't have any money to invest in the border road at this time. If you will remember, that $500 million was not going to be available until after 2010.

Here is what the Budget Backgrounder stated:

• "Ontario will fully fund its share of the costs of the final proposed road link between Highway 401 and the new border crossing. Sufficient funds to cover the costs of the project are built into the government’s 10-year infrastructure plan."

You tell me when the Funds are available. When in that 10 year period?

It is becoming more and more apparent that this entire DRIC process is a complete farce, especially because the economy is tanking on both sides of the river and no one can afford to spend the kind of sums necessary to build what DRIC has been proposing.

Look for a compromise after the Wilbur Smith traffic projections confirm truck traffic numbers are down badly. That will be the justification for the DRIC solution being tabled for some time down the road, the Enhancement Project being built and a road to the Ambassador Bridge being constructed at cost of probably not more than $1 billion (Dwight's $500 million matched by the Feds). This will all be called the "intermediate" solution and financed under the Border Infrastrucutre Fund program.

The only other solution that I can see with respect to the border road that may make some sense to the Province is turning the DRIC road into a toll road in a P3 partnership. That was something the Province said that they would NOT do. That would open up all kinds of headaches especially for Windsor as it makes us non-competitive with the other border crossing points. I can just see the lawsuits starting over that one too.

Here again is what was said in the Budget materials with respect to the border:

BACKGROUNDER
WINDSOR BORDER
International trade is integral to Ontario’s and Canada’s economic prosperity. The McGuinty government is committed to ensuring efficient and uninterrupted trade with the United States through Ontario’s borders, gateways and trade corridors.

The province is working with federal and U.S. partners on a strategy to develop a new border crossing and associated infrastructure at the crucial Windsor-Detroit Gateway Ontario will fully fund its share of the costs of the final proposed road link between Highway 401 and the new border crossing. Sufficient funds to cover the costs of the project are built into the government’s 10-year infrastructure plan.

Investing in Economic Infrastructure

Windsor Border

International trade is integral to Ontario’s and Canada’s economic prosperity. The government is committed to ensuring efficient and uninterrupted trade with the United States through Ontario’s borders, gateways and trade corridors.

The government is working with federal and U.S. partners on a strategy to develop a new border crossing and associated infrastructure at the Windsor–Detroit Gateway. This initiative, the Detroit River International Crossing Study, is expected to provide recommendations in the spring of 2008 on a new transportation system to provide safe, efficient, secure and uninterrupted movement of people and goods across the Canada–U.S. border. This would support the local economy of the Windsor–Essex region, the provincial and state economies of Ontario and Michigan, and the national economies of Canada and the United States.

The recommendations are expected to address the location and design of a new river crossing, access road and customs plaza. The federal government is leading the development of the new river crossing and customs plaza and has earmarked an initial $400 million towards a commitment to fund 50 per cent of the total eligible capital costs of the access-road projects.

As part of the environmental assessment process, the work to select a preferred alternative for the access road is about to conclude. It is anticipated that construction will begin in 2009. Ontario will fully fund its share of the costs of the final proposed road link between Highway 401 and the new border crossing. Sufficient funds to cover the costs of the project are built into the government’s 10-year infrastructure plan. Construction on the project, which is the most important infrastructure undertaking in Canada and the United States, will also create thousands of jobs in Windsor. Further details will be announced in coming weeks.

This project will include unprecedented features to enhance the quality of life for people in the Windsor–Essex region while ensuring that traffic keeps moving.

Supporting Ontario’s Infrastructure

The federal government must partner with Ontario to invest in infrastructure projects that support economic growth in its communities, such as MoveOntario2020, the Windsor border, the Ontario–Quebec Continental Gateway and Trade Corridor, and infrastructure in rural and northern Ontario.

DWIGHT'S SPEECH

Perhaps our most important infrastructure undertaking is a new border crossing at Windsor.

As part of the environmental assessment, the Detroit River International Crossing Study is expected to provide recommendations very soon on a new crossing and access road.

Ontario will fully fund its share of the costs of the final proposed road link between Highway 401 and the new border crossing. Sufficient funds to cover the cost of the project are built into the government’s 10-year infrastructure plan.

Business and union leaders and others from right across the province want to get on with this project. Mr. Speaker, so do we. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2009 and is anticipated to be concluded in 2013.

At a time when they are most needed, this project will create thousands of jobs in Windsor.

Ontario Budget 2008: Chapter I: A STRONGER ONTARIO

Major Investments in Infrastructure
This Budget is announcing $1 billion in new municipal infrastructure investments in 2007–08.

For Ontario to be competitive in the global economy and achieve its full potential, it must have modern infrastructure that makes business productive, helps move people and goods faster, and contributes to a high quality of life for all Ontarians. That is why investing in infrastructure is part of Ontario’s five-point economic plan. For more details, see Section B: Stronger Communities: Investing in Municipal Infrastructure and Communities.

The government is modernizing Ontario’s infrastructure through ReNew Ontario, its five-year, $30 billion infrastructure investment plan. ReNew Ontario provides for major investments in areas that are of primary importance to Ontarians: transportation, health, education and economic prosperity. The government will implement a new $60 billion infrastructure plan over 10 years, once ReNew Ontario is completed.

Infrastructure investments create jobs, improve access to markets, and support business investment. They deliver immediate benefits through job creation and form the foundation for long-term economic growth, as modern infrastructure is a major factor in attracting private investment and world-class businesses.

The Province, in cooperation with municipalities, calls on the federal government to invest in Ontario’s infrastructure, specifically the government’s $17.5 billion MoveOntario 2020 plan, the Windsor border, the Ontario–Quebec Continental Gateway and Trade Corridor, and strong community infrastructure.

BREAKING BLOGnews: Windsor Border in The Budget

Here comes the really "Cheap" solution! I see only a matching of the Feds' $400M. According to Dwight, thousands of jobs will be created in Windsor.

What will Eddie say? Will he waste more money on Greenlink now?


Investing in Economic Infrastructure

Windsor Border

International trade is integral to Ontario’s and Canada’s economic prosperity. The government is committed to ensuring efficient and uninterrupted trade with the United States through Ontario’s borders, gateways and trade corridors.

The government is working with federal and U.S. partners on a strategy to develop a new border crossing and associated infrastructure at the Windsor–Detroit Gateway. This initiative, the Detroit River International Crossing Study, is expected to provide recommendations in the spring of 2008 on a new transportation system to provide safe, efficient, secure and uninterrupted movement of people and goods across the Canada–U.S. border. This would support the local economy of the Windsor–Essex region, the provincial and state economies of Ontario and Michigan, and the national economies of Canada and the United States.

The recommendations are expected to address the location and design of a new river crossing, access road and customs plaza. The federal government is leading the development of the new river crossing and customs plaza and has earmarked an initial $400 million towards a commitment to fund 50 per cent of the total eligible capital costs of the access-road projects.

As part of the environmental assessment process, the work to select a preferred alternative for the access road is about to conclude. It is anticipated that construction will begin in 2009. Ontario will fully fund its share of the costs of the final proposed road link between Highway 401 and the new border crossing. Sufficient funds to cover the costs of the project are built into the government’s 10-year infrastructure plan. Construction on the project, which is the most important infrastructure undertaking in Canada and the United States, will also create thousands of jobs in Windsor. Further details will be announced in coming weeks.

This project will include unprecedented features to enhance the quality of life for people in the Windsor–Essex region while ensuring that traffic keeps moving.

Supporting Ontario’s Infrastructure

The federal government must partner with Ontario to invest in infrastructure projects that support economic growth in its communities, such as MoveOntario2020, the Windsor border, the Ontario–Quebec Continental Gateway and Trade Corridor, and infrastructure in rural and northern Ontario.

DWIGHT'S SPEECH

Perhaps our most important infrastructure undertaking is a new border crossing at Windsor.

As part of the environmental assessment, the Detroit River International Crossing Study is expected to provide recommendations very soon on a new crossing and access road.

Ontario will fully fund its share of the costs of the final proposed road link between Highway 401 and the new border crossing. Sufficient funds to cover the cost of the project are built into the government’s 10-year infrastructure plan.

Business and union leaders and others from right across the province want to get on with this project. Mr. Speaker, so do we. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2009 and is anticipated to be concluded in 2013.

At a time when they are most needed, this project will create thousands of jobs in Windsor.

Quick Getaway

Wow, that was a loooong article by David Battagello on the airport in the Star today.

Do you know what's funny about it? It's length.

It's the length of a story one would have expected to run on a Saturday when people had time to read it. It would not have run last Saturday because that was a holiday weekend but it should have run the weekend before, on the 15th if it was finished by then. Oooops, that was out because it would have been right before the Mayor's State of the City speech. That would have been a real embarrassment for him and he would have had to have amended his speech to deal with the subject.

Perhaps Eddie anticipated all of this and that is the reason why the Long Distance Commuting program played such a big role in the Jobs Today program and is so important to him and to the airport.

I just can't hide this feeling I get that City owned businesses are being run into the ground. Exactly what the reason is, I wish I knew. If only Eddie had undertaken the audits he promised when he first became Mayor, we might be smarter today. However, a whitewash audit on WUC, a "dead men pumping gas concern" audit on Fleet Operations and a delayed one on 400 City Hall Square are our legacy it seems. I wonder when we are having one on the East End Arena costs or on the Tunnel.

What will the result be... the businesses will have to be be given away or sold out from under us, or perhaps leased in a P3 deal. We saw that with the Cleary. We can almost predict it with the Capitol. You know what I think has to happen with the Detroit/Windsor Tunnel. And you have seen my speculation with respect to Windsor Utilities Commission and Enwin. Should I add the Airport to my list? After all, how much more money can taxpayers be expected to sink into seemingly losing propositions.

Remember the story about Air America Logistics and its general manager Vicky Kyriaco-Wilson:

• "Air America has also been instrumental in spinoff work at the airport -- for fuel sales, ground handling equipment, local trucking services and maintenance work.
  
  More than 800 aircraft movements associated with Air America occurred last year involving DC-8 jets, Boeing 727s, Boeing 737s, DC-9s and numerous other small jets.
  
  The company handled more than 5.4 million pounds of freight last year.
  
  "We're the lynchpin that keeps the cargo aspect humming over here," Kyriaco-Wilson said."

Perhaps airport general manager Federica Nazzani might want to pick up the phone and give her a call. I am sure that she has probably done so. However, Federica's response concerning her lack of experience in the airline business was rather smarmy

• "She dismissed criticism of her lack of aviation experience: "It's true I don't have that experience. But I would point to the prior manager (Serco) who did -- and that didn't work out very well."

So far, I have not seen that her results are any better than that of a Serco. A Mexicana charter flight and dealing with a couple of Germans in a startup operation are not a record of achievement.

It is very troubling when:

• "WestJet Airlines, which pulled out of Windsor a couple of years ago, has no plans to return in the next year or two,
• no new development plans have been unveiled, passenger flights are limited and charter services to sunny destinations remain non-existent
• A city proposal to create a multi-modal hub in which air, rail and road freight could be exchanged has been put on the backburner. CP Railway officials say there is no need for it in Windsor because the rail company has a 770-acre freight hub in Vaughn, near Toronto."

I see that she learned a very well when she travelled with Eddie to Germany. Our Mayor "dismisses" things that he doesn't like and now so does his airport general manager. I have a slightly different perspective: if one of the world's leading aviation operators cannot make money out of Windsor, then how do we expect amateurs to do so.

I'm not going to get into the money part of what was discussed in the Star article other than to remind people that the reason that the airport was making a so called profit was because it wasn't replacing certain people and therefore not paying out their salaries as an expense. I wondered why the City was contributing $27,000 every month to the airport if in fact it was making a "profit." Now we know why.

I expect that all the airlines were very interested in meeting with her as a new general manager especially when they found out that she was inexperienced. Was it WestJet that asked her how much the City would be prepared to help them out if they decided to come back to Windsor? Obviously, the City could not offer much if they are not thinking of coming back here for several years.

Part of the problem is the THINK BIG mentality that we have in this City. We can hardly compete against Detroit Metro Airport and will hardly be able to to compete against Detroit Aerotropolis if they ever complete that. Why not take a different approach and THINK SMALL and try to look at where Windsor Airport can fit in.

I wonder if Ms. Nazzani has been advised by the same people who advised DRIC on traffic counts since her

• "goal is to get passenger numbers up to 400,000 annually within 10 years. They peaked at 250,000 in the late 1990s and now stand at 130,000."

Doing some simple math, she would need to increase the traffic by about 270,000 people to reach her goal. If we divide that number by 52, the number of weeks in a year, then she needs another 5200 passengers per week to reach her target. I guess that means that Eddie needs to send 2600 people out West to take new jobs and return each weekend.

Another thought. I wonder if the Airport General Manager might need some training on good customer relations. I would suspect that the tenants and their leases are one of the biggest sources of revenues at the airport so she should be hugging them and holding them close for all of the money that they're bringing in. And yet she could make this statement:

• "Nazzani said her door is open to any tenant who wants to discuss the airport's future and hinted she may consider gathering them together.
  
  "The onus is on them to come to me."

Given the fact that it is the City that is putting in all of this money, I would think that the onus is on her to go to them since she is so inexperienced. They probably understand a lot more than she does about how airports work. I wonder if I should give her Vicky's phone number since it is troubling to read in the Star story:

• "They say their advice is being ignored."

One final thought. Do you really think that Eddie really cares very much about the airport? I don't think so. He's more interested in the land around the airport and what he can do with it. Here is what I wrote before:

• "The City was pleased to get out of the Serco deal since
  
  “another major component of the termination agreement sees the City regain control from Serco of land development of more than 1,000 acres on the airport's grounds.
  
  "we've cleaned up that aspect where the land will now be in the direct control of the City," Francis said.
  
  The new CEO of the Windsor Essex County Development Commission last week told City council the City does not have adequate parcels of industrial land that are "shovel ready ... Serviced and zoned and ready to go" in order to lure new companies to the region. "
  
  That is what this deal is all about…..lands and who controls them.
  
  I want to remind you what the Mayor said to Gord Henderson right after the election:
  
  "Francis wouldn't tip his hand on plans for Windsor airport, which has been bleeding red ink under a contract with a private operator, but said the airport, and especially the airport lands, will be a top priority. "i don't think we've used it as a primary driver in economic development but we will," he vowed."

Remember the RFP on the airport? As I wrote before about the failed RFP for the airport:

• "The whole airport RFP scheme had many fatal flaws in it as are identified in the report on pages 8 and 9. The key concern obviously was the exclusion of the airport lands. That's why Serco, the former operator, really was involved. That's where the real money would be made."

While Ms. Nazzani runs the airport, she was also involved with Prime Rose Inc. and she may still be for all I know. In case you wonder, that Company's services are:

• "Real Estate-Land Subdividers and Developers"

That Company was one of the candidates for the Chamber's Business Excellence Awards recently.

Is that why she was really retained to be involved with the Airport...the land side and not the aviation side?

I wonder if the City is required to have a running airport if it wishes to keep all of the land that it received from the Federal Government when the City took over the running of the airport. Otherwise, it would be a huge gift to cities around the country who took over airports and would probably get the Feds in all kinds of trouble.

If I am right, then expect to hear more horror stories about the airport and more THINK BIG DREAMS about it.

Just know, it has nothing to do with the airport... it has all to do with creating "shovel ready" lands at the airport, at taxpayer expense of course, to be flogged off to Developers.

In case you have forgotten, and it's one of the reason I spoke at City Council in opposition to the creation of an Airport and a Tunnel Private Company, the Mayor is effectively in charge of the operation since there is no check on his power because the other directors are his subordinates:

• "Mayor Francis is CEO of the corporation, called Your Quick Gateway. Also on the board are city CAO John Skorobohacz, treasurer Onorio Colucci and public works general manager Dev Tyagi.
  
  Last fall, city council directed that a new board be appointed to replace the mayor and administrators, one filled with expertise in the business.
  
  "I know everybody is busy, but I was hoping the new model being developed would happen sooner than later," said Coun. Alan Halberstadt. "You need people knowledgeable about airports to direct the new manager."
  
  Francis said the wheels are in motion to get a new board in place, hopefully in the summer."