More Stories Of Interest

Lots to talk about:

WILL THE CHIMCZUK MUSEUM OPEN SOON

• "Incorporated in Ontario in November 2005, we have three directors who knew Joseph Chimczuk and/or his wife Anna (Annie) personally. We decided that, since fifteen years had passed since his death and no action had been taken to build the "Chimczuk Museum"TM (that he so wanted), that we needed to form a "team" to get this finally accomplished."

Watch for this sign to be hung on a building soon.

Interestingly, the fund that started at $1M now has $3M in the bank due to the City's inaction.

MAX CANNOT BE SERIOUS

Here is what Max Zalev, Chair, said in the Audit Minutes related to the 400 Building

Seriously, he cannot mean this considering this audit statement:

How can Max claim "success if the City overpaid!

In his world, I would hate to see what "failure" means.

AIRPORT TRANSPOTATION HUB

Are the onion boys back:

• "Essex County specialty greenhouse produce picked fresh in the afternoon and placed on store shelves the next morning in Berlin — and “that’s just scratching the surface,” Economic Development and Trade Minister Sandra Pupatello said of the initial promise of developing a “cargo village” at Windsor Airport."

There has to be a special art in being a politician. The talent has to be developed. How else could anyone say the above with a straight face and not break up laughing.

Of course, all this talk about the airport is nothing more than to be the justification for upgrading our Expressway. How else would trucks move from the Airport to the Enhancement Project bridge? After all, we are not really talking about air frieght carried by planes:

• "Using what it described as very conservative assumptions, the consultants estimated Windsor could be handling up to 90,000 tonnes of commercial air freight within 25 years. The initial cargo handling capacity would focus on “flying trucks,” in which freight is packaged for air but transported by trucks."

When the shortlisted bids come in for the DRIC Road at multi-billions of taxpayer dollars, that project will be scrapped. We will get the original JMC Report expressway system i.e. an upgraded EC Row, a Lauzon/Highway 401 connection and a “cheap” upgrade of the existing Highway 3 connection to the border.

Of course it will be sold as a necessity for an airport hub connection as well as servicing the new East End Arena too.

Think that several hundred thousand dollars for another Lufthansa Report is a waste of taxpayer money? Pshaw---that's lunch money after the $60M+ waste to pay for DRIC!

WILL EDGAR GO DIRECTLY TO JAIL WITHOUT PASSING GO

Come on folks, let's help put Edgar in Jail. We owe it to him!

Now I understand Edgar. He has been playing Monopoly City since he has been Mayor:

• "Build on every Go and watch your city fortune grow! In this metropolitan edition of MONOPOLY, be the top property developer and watch your dream city rise before your eyes. What will you build-- houses or industrial complexes, schools, skyscrapers or stadium."

Why worry about Budgets and jobs and taxes and economic development when we can have a month-long circus to occupy the minds and hearts of Windsorites.

Hey, we are world-class but we need to let the world know it

• Windsor to Vie for Spot on Monopoly Canada Game Board
  
  Media are invited to an announcement by Mayor Eddie Francis regarding Windsor’s competition to be one of 22 cities featured on Hasbro’s upcoming Monopoly Canada game board. Mayor Francis will discuss the details of the month-long competition, which is open to residents nationwide. Windsor was short-listed for consideration along with 64 other cities.
  
  What: Announcement of Windsor’s Participation in Monopoly Canada Game Board Competition
  
  When: Monday, January 11, 2:30 pm
  
  Where: Mayor’s Office, 2nd Floor, 350 City Hall Square West

Now this is important stuff!

• "Vote early and often, and let’s get Windsor on the board!"

DELRAY JOBS

I saw this comment:

• DRIC Drama Drags On
  The latest move in the ongoing DRIC (Detroit River International Crossing) intrigue is that Ambassador Bridge owner Matty MOROUN, who wants to build his own new span over the Detroit River, has purchased land in the Delray neighborhood, where the public bridge is slated to be.
  
  Today, Scott BRINES, President of the Southwest Detroit Community Benefits Coalition (SWDCBC), issued the following statement in response to reports of Moroun purchase of the land, which was the former site of YRC Worldwide Inc.
  
  "Mr. Moroun is well within his rights to purchase the former YRC Worldwide site," Brines said. "However we believe his latest real estate transaction has more to do with his desire to thwart the public bridge project than it does with making his trucking business more efficient."

Perhaps, but perhaps also Delray residents might want to talk to the Bridge Company because of this:

• "the Delray site offers a larger and more efficient terminal than the company’s current one in Romulus, and the move will immediately transfer 100 jobs to Detroit with the potential for 400 more."

SIERRA CLUB

Interesting about the Canadian lawsuit but remember this back in September:

• "Environmental, transportation groups urge halt to new Detroit River crossing
  
  A new open letter to Gov. Jennifer Granholm and the Michigan Legislature from Michigan and Canadian environmental and transportation activist groups calls for the state to halt all spending on a proposed new Detroit River crossing. Citing state budget and environmental concerns, nine organizations — notably Michigan Environmental Council, Sierra Club Michigan and Ontario chapters, Detroit-based Transportation Riders United and the Michigan Association of Railroad Passengers Inc. — jointly sent the letter opposing the controversial project.

PLAYING GORD'S GAME

Sheeesh, doesn't Gord get it:

• "It's hardly surprising that CAW boss Ken Lewenza Sr. has come up empty in his quest for the new holy grail, a union-friendly "champion" to replace designated labour foe Eddie Francis as mayor of Windsor.
  
  "Why is it," Lewenza lamented, "that at a time when we need a champion, why is it that there's no champion coming out?"

Senior is playing the Edgar game. Pretend that no one is running or willing to do so to lull Edgar (aka Eddie) and the E-Machine into a false sense of security. Then hammer him with the chosen candidate.

What I found fascinating with Gord's column is that we did not see Alfie Morgan suggesting that Edgar stay on for another term.

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO...

Did you see this

• "Pupatello also used the occasion to announce a $50,000 investment through the WindsorEssex Economic Development Corporation to help launch a pilot program that will see six University of Windsor students travel to Michigan this year as part of an entrepreneurship incubator exchange. Pupatello said those young entrepreneurs will learn how to turn their business ideas into jobs."

Did this Undevelopment Commission project fail:

• "The Odette Project for Technology Innovation and Commercialization (OPTIC)
  Monday, Dec. 8, 2008
  
  The Windsor-Essex Development Commission (WEDC) is proud to announce the launch of The Odette Project for Technology Innovation and Commercialization Virtual Incubator (OPTIC).
  
  "This initiative is a central pillar of the WEDC strategic plan and we are very enthusiastic about the support the Incubator will provide entrepreneurs in Windsor-Essex", says Remo Mancini, Chairman of WEDC. OPTIC is part of The Communities in Transition program funded by the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development. "The virtual incubator will promote economic development including diversification for the Windsor-Essex region by developing a wider base of economic sectors. Our mission is to create the environment necessary for the emergence and growth of knowledge-based ventures including Intellectual Property rights", says Mark Meldrum, Director of OPTIC...
  
  The core of OPTIC's operations rest on its business incubation support services to enhance the potential and further the economic development within our region."

The Star reported:

• "The incubator, which received $600,000 in start-up funding from the province's Communities in Transition initiative, is a partnership of the University of Windsor's Odette School of Business and School of Computer Science, WindsorEssex Development Commission, DeloitteTouche LLP, McTague Law Firm and United Communities Credit Union."

FORGET ABOUT A MEDICAL SCHOOL

• "There is a very huge responsibility and a long process to go through to have a stand-alone medical school," said University of Windsor president Alan Wildeman, listing accreditation, government funding, capacity and staff. "Those are very substantive issues that take a long time to work out."

The University should look at this instead from a Star Letter to the Editor:

• "I read with interest the article Foreign Medical Professionals Still Mired In Red Tape, on Jan. 4. As fairness commissioner for the Province of Ontario, I have heard from many health professionals with similar experiences: repeated assessments of qualifications, convoluted rules and underemployment.
  
  My office works with the regulatory bodies for 21 health professions, including medicine. Our mandate is to make sure they all have transparent, objective, impartial and fair licensing procedures.
  
  It is ridiculous that immigrant professionals come to Canada on the strength of their qualifications and experience and then endure years of run-around getting their licences to practise in Ontario. My office is making steady progress toward fairer licensing, though much remains to be done. I commend the community groups in Windsor that are banding together to bring about positive systemic change.
  
  JEAN AUGUSTINE, Fairness Commissioner, Toronto"

As I suggestged a long time ago:

• "In my mind, a better alternative is to encourage foreign trained doctors to move here and to do so NOW! We would not be depriving countries of their doctors since there actually are certain countries that have a surplus of well-trained doctors who could be admitted here quickly.
  
  Certainly, some training would be necessary and required to ensure that their standards met ours and to ensure that they are acclimatized to the Canadian system. That’s where our local schools would come in. We would design a program so that there would be no cost to taxpayers. My experience is that these doctors would be prepared to pay the full tuition costs of such a program and would be prepared to work in under-serviced areas to solve our shortage problem.
  
  We can justify such a new program in Windsor for foreign trained doctors. Moreover, we can view it as an interim step between the satellite school and the day that we get a full-fledged medical school. We would have created a built-in specialty before the medical school was even constructed.
  
  Our University and Community College would play a vital role as I see it. The University of Windsor would not have a "stand-alone" medical school right away but rather would have the school where every foreign trained doctor would be assessed and upgraded, if needed, so that he/she could practise in Ontario. St. Clair College would have the responsibility to ensure that the doctor and his/her family become accustomed to the Canadian way of life and fit in to the community as quickly and as painlessly as possible.
  
  The big PLUS for this program is that we turn out doctors almost immediately and at a much lower cost than waiting for a totally new doctor to go through school and graduate. I would expect that many graduates of the school would choose to stay in our area.
  
  Even if there is a concern about admitting them as "doctors," they could be admitted as physician assistants or "apprentices," working to help out the doctor and reduce the pressure due to high caseloads. It works this way in other professions; why not medicine. Frankly, and to be cynical, it also is a way of getting doctors here and paying them less than a doctor's income so that the Ministry of Health can save taxpayer money too."

Many More Border Stories

Here are some more thoughts for you on border crossing items

CAN ONTARIO AFFORD DRIC

Hardly and we can thank the Ontario Auditor General for making us more and more like Michigan. He just issued a Report on Ontario Bridges and is it ever worrying.

Look at how poorly Windsor looked after the College bridge resulting in its closure. As Schwartz told Americans on the NBC Today Show but not us when he was ranting against the condition of the Ambassador Bridge:

• "Vieira:
  …wondering, worrying that the bridge they might have to cross—to go to work, to go to the store, whatever—could possibly collapse. Do they have a, a legitimate worry?
  
  Schwartz:
  Well, they have a legitimate worry in the sense that their government officials should be taking care of these bridges. No government official should accept anything above one percent in terms of structurally-deficient.
  
  Vieira:
  But we’re close to thirteen percent—seventy thousand bridges in this country. How did we reach that point?
  
  Schwartz:
  We reached that point because we neglected our infrastructure. We didn’t do the very basic things. A bridge is like a machine. It needs to be cleaned; it needs to be oiled; it needs to be lubricated in various parts. It moves with a load—it goes up and down; it slides with the changes in temperature. And we need to treat it properly. Ima, imagine driving your car without ever oiling it, greasing it and waiting until the engine seizes up. That’s what we’ve done with our bridges...
  
  The bridges built in the ‘50s and ‘60s and 7’0s were the sleekest. It was the beginning of the use of computers in bridges, and the result is we didn’t get bridges with redundancy...
  
  So, if you’re going over a bridge that was built prior to World War II, you’re probably in pretty good shape...
  
  If you pay a toll, by the way, on a bridge, your bridge is safe. They, they’re taking care of it; they’re doing the daily maintenance."

And we saw that with the inspection reports on the Ambassador Bridge.

Yes I know that the Feds are going to P3 the bridge but where will Ontario find the billions needed for the DRIC road given the need for money to repair the bridges that are in critical condition

WHAT THE MICHIGAN AUDITOR GENERAL SAID ABOUT MICHIGAN BRIDGES

If you thought things were bad in Ontario, they are so much worse in Michigan that MDOT could lose all federal road funds as a penalty:

• "State Finds Bridge Inspection Concerns
  
  LANSING, Mich. -- The State Auditor General released an evaluation Friday on how well the Michigan Department of Transportation follows state and federal regulations on bridge inspections.
  
  The Auditor General’s Office found five areas of concern.
  
  The major problem: MDOT did not examine certain critical bridges or did not examine them as frequently as required by law.
  
  That has major implications, and not just for safety because not following the letter of the law means Michigan could loss some federal funding.
  
  “MDOT did not comply with critical safety provisions … and risked the withholding of federal aid,” cited audit the report."

TUNNEL AND AIRPORT ABSURDITY

Now that the Tunnel is in the hands of a private company, just like the airport, can we expect this in Windsor:

• "Legal staff slammed
  
  Council frustrations with city lawyers boiled over at planning committee this afternoon. Councillors overwhelming rejected a report from the legal department that refused to release any portion of the annual audits of the company managing the airport.
  
  Brad Clark asked for the release of at least the majority of the secret reports eighteen months ago saying he thought this would help allay public concerns about the rent being paid by Tradeport International to the city under the airport lease agreement. A response from the legal department has been repeatedly delayed but apparently came during the in camera section of today’s meeting.
  
  When the committee reconvened in public, Clark explained that Tradeport and the city lawyers are saying “there’s a whole bunch of exemptions” under provincial privacy legislation and “that’s why the lease can’t be made public and that’s why the lease audit can’t be made public.” He described the continuing secrecy “completely unacceptable” and called the refusal to release the information “probably the most significant item in terms of public accountability that this council’s dealt with.”
  
  In contrast to the city lawyers’ position, he pointed to the Highway 407 lease agreement which became a fully public document when he was the provincial Minister of Transportation...
  
  “Brian McHattie and Terry Whitehead said they agreed with Clark’s concerns. The resolution to accept the staff report was subsequently defeated by a vote of six to one, with only committee chair Maria Pearson supporting the motion.
  
  He is urging the media or another third party to appeal the lawyers’ position to the Privacy Commissioner, noting that council can’t do that because the legal staff they would instruct to carry out the appeal would be arguing against it.
  
  “If council says we think this should go to the privacy commissioner, and that decision be made, well our legal staff agrees with the exemptions,” he pointed out in frustration. “So who’s going to be arguing at the commission?”

SHODDY JOURNALISM

Oh I am not going after the Star again but the University of Windsor newspaper, The Lance.

I am tired of misinformation or incomplete information being spewed out by the media after all of this time. It just helps prolong the economic destruction of Windsor.

Accordingly, I am much more aggressive in going after the media to clarify the record. The Lance feature story "Ambassador Bridge keeps Windsor in limbo" was so one-sided that I sent off this note to them:

" I was troubled by your story on the Ambassador Bridge by your failure to set out the complete facts:

• Re health concerns, even DRIC has said if trucks keep moving health problems are reduced. Moreover, significant pollution levels will be reduced by new diesel and engine technology
• 9/11 has caused changes to the Bridge no doubt as it has to many aspects of our life. It would have been fair to note that it was the Bridge Company by opening new booths (and fighting the US Government to do so) that cleared the truck back-up problems on Huron Church
• As far as safety is concerned, why did you NOT put the blame on the Canadian Government who is blocking the construction of their Enhancement Project bridge. That is what Governor Granholm stated publicly.
• It is a shame that you did not mention that the DRIC bridge would result in the destruction of Delray, Michigan but no lands would be needed on either side of the border for the ABC project.
• The ABC project would also provide $2B in US federal matching grants desperately needed by Michigan
• The P3 concept for the DRIC bridge effectively puts it in private hands for up to 99 years (so much for public ownership!). It will be virtually impossible for a P3 investor to come in and pay billions for the project given the collapse of the P3 market world-wide and expect to make a profit.
• I hardly believe that it is responsible journalism to quote only Brian Masse a known foe of the Bridge Company and not anyone else on the other side.
• The so-called rejection of the ABC proposal was based on false information especially about traffic volumes that have dropped to 1999 levels and the false claim that land would be needed in Sandwich for processing trucks
• Re the Indian Road homes, why was there no mention that the homes could not be torn down because of a City of Windsor by-law designed it is alleged to thwart the Bridge Company? Remember the City is the Bridge Company's border crossing competitor since it owns half of the Tunnel
• And surely, your reporter could have mentioned a few lines about the outstanding lawsuits started.
• One final note. Will the DRIC bridge ever be built---it was to be completed in 2013, then 2015, then late 2016 or perhaps later. Now I am seeing comments that it may not be started until after 2020.

There is a fascinating story about the border crossing that is worthy of a PH.D thesis since it involves much more than a mere border crossing but the relationship between Canada and the US. Too bad your writer missed it completely!"

PIZZA QUEEN'S FALSE HOPES

I had tears in my eyes when I was reading Annie's Sandwich solution in her column. http://www.windsorstar.com/Jarvis+Saving+Sandwich/2319176/story.html

Tears of laughter!

What is the point of writing stuff like that to get people all excited when it does not work. A "line in the sand" disappears when the wind blows.

• "First, they drew their line in the sand.
  
  "We said this is it," said Dan Loacano of Bagley Housing Association, the non-profit organization that led the rebuilding of blighted streets being gobbled up by the bridge.
  
  They set clearly defined boundaries. East of St. Anne Street belonged to the neighbourhood. West of St. Anne belonged to the bridge."

Brian Masse who took credit for the passing of the International Bridges and Tunnels Act, although just about everything he tried to do was not allowed, should now take the blame for destroying the dream:

• Expropriation
  
  12. If a person requires an interest in land, as defined in section 2 of the Expropriation Act, for the purposes of the construction or alteration of an international bridge or tunnel and has unsuccessfully attempted to purchase the interest in land, the person may request the Minister to have the Minister of Public Works and Government Services have the interest in land expropriated by the Crown and section 4.1 of that Act applies to that person, with any modifications that are necessary, as if the person were a railway company.

Annie, the Government can just walk all over that line and there is nothing that can be done about it.

ANNIE AND THE SILENCER

What bothered me about Annie's 2-part series on Sandwich is her "Annie's knows best attitude" about it all.

• "Should Sandwich be a neighbourhood or a transportation hub?"

Read Chris Schnurr's BLOG about what she forgot to point out http://chrisschnurr.wordpress.com/2009/12/07/neighbourhood-reborn-constructive-relationships-build-communities/

To be honest, I would have liked to have heard what the Sandwich residents who were denied the right to speak twice at Council had to say. I heard what they said at one of the meetings arranged in the Community with the Ambassador Bridge.

Council would never have been able to deny what they wanted if Windsorites had heard 90 minutes of the deplorable conditions that these people live under due to the City's anti-Demolition Bylaw!

Councillor Halberstadt can have fun with Eddie's silencer button:

• "As a frequent victim of Windsor Mayor Eddie Francis’s “trap door” microphone technique, Coun. Alan Halberstadt says he would like to see it reviewed.
  
  Halberstadt and Francis had a tete-a-tete at Monday night’s council meeting over the issue of Francis’s ability to use a silencer to cut off councillors or presenters, an ability he has had for about a year."

It's too bad the Sandwich residents, and the City, had to suffer Council's silencer button.

New Year's Shorts

Time to start off the new year with some quickies

MEDIA JOBS AVAILABLE SOON

I saw this and decided to put in my 2 cent offer for the Star.

I know I said I do not give 2 cents for it and its opinions but I thought I would be generous to Canwest and to make sure no one bid higher. I want to keep the paper in local hands.

• "The country's largest newspaper chain, currently held by Canwest Global Communications Corp., is up for sale following a bid Friday by senior lenders made up of a consortium of Canadian banks, as well as a court filing for creditor protection.
  
  The publishing group has engaged RBC Capital Markets to seek out other possible buyers for the chain."

Hurry with those CVs.

HAPPY DAYS ARE HERE AGAIN

Wow, what an election year this is going to be for the incumbents if you read what the Pizza Queen has to say. Just in the nick of time too:

• happy hassle of unprecedented myriad construction projects that will create thousands of jobs and inject millions of dollars in a city still confronting the highest unemployment in the country


• $7.2 million will be spent to dress up Pelissier and Maiden Lane


• slow but sure recovery of the auto industry.

See, it was cyclical not structural after all. Who needs to think about what comes next.

MOUNTAIN CLIMBING

A mountain from "all the surplus dirt that will be generated" by construction projects. How sweet.

Look at all of the mountains we have here already:

• Mount Francis during the garbage strike
• as one of my readers wrote back in 2007 "Convince Toronto, London and anyone else that their garbage is welcome in Windsor. No dumping fees. We need a mountain!"
• Gord's mountain of cash available for the Zalev cleanup that I could never find
• the "gorgeous mountain sunsets" that gate agents in Lynchburg, VA talk about as US small-city airports are under threat. Despite millions of dollars spent to improve Lynchburg's airport, just like Windsor hopes to do, departures have fallen from 20 a day a decade ago to just six. Airlines are so reluctant to fly here that Lynchburg can't pay them to come
• taking over the business of the Owner of the Ambassador Bridge. I have said in the past that "this molehill of an issue [can become] a mountain that leads to the further deterioration of Canadian/American relations.
• Edgar's demand that the Bridge company come to Council to beg to be allowed to tear down their homes. As I said in my BLOG "The Mountain Must Come To Eddie"
• desire for P3s for the DRIC road and bridge even though mountains of debt have sunk some major P3 players.

However, Edgar's Council microphone is the biggest mountain here. With it, he can schuss on any Councillor any time he wants.

FLORIDA RETIREMENT

Here is an excerpt from an article from Business Executive which told us what Richard Florida had to say about Windsor:

• "[Fischer's] 120-day plan included an economic development summit in August...
  
  “The amazing turnout of business leaders and leaders in the health, education, labour and agriculture fields is an indication of the commitment people here have to the future of the region.”
  
  The summit featured the internationally renowned guru of new and innovative economic development theories, Richard Florida, who now teaches at the University of Toronto. The gregarious and affable author of Rise of the Creative Class and Flight of the Creative Class, is also bullish on the Windsor Essex region.
  
  “Windsor-Detroit is part of the second-largest mega-region in the world,” said Florida. “Developing a binational economic development strategy is critical, and economic success goes to those places which are “open to immigrants, artists, gays, writers, engineers and anyone who could be considered creative.”

Mancini's gone as is Fischer and the old WEDC. Now it looks like Florida was all wrong too for cities like Windsor and Sackville, New Brunswick:

• "In February 2008 he told the residents of Sackville, New Brunswick, population 5,000, that they were in a "cosmopolitan country town" with obvious advantages over Toronto -- never mind that he had been praising Toronto to the skies since being lured there in 2007 from George Mason University with a $346,000 salary and his own think tank. "My students in Toronto are complaining about the erosion of natural amenities in Toronto. ... People are looking for places that they can go and work and chill," he said in Sackville. "What I see here is a place that's at the cutting edge."

Instead

• "Florida has been arguing that the recession has so decimated many cities and regions that it's time for the country to cut its losses and instead encourage growth in places that are prospering, like Silicon Valley, Boulder, Austin, and North Carolina's Research Triangle. And the rest? In his much-cited cover story in the March issue of The Atlantic -- "How the Crash Will Reshape America" -- he delivered the harsh news: "We need to be clear that ultimately, we can't stop the decline of some places, and that we would be foolish to try. ... Different eras favor different places, along with the industries and lifestyles those places embody. ... We need to let demand for the key products and lifestyles of the old order fall, and begin building a new economy, based on a new geography."
  
  He was even more direct in a May blog post. "We can confer subsidies on places to improve their infrastructure, universities, and core institutions, or quality of life," he wrote. But "at the end of the day, people -- not industries or even places -- should be our biggest concern. We can best help those who are hardest-hit by the crisis, by providing a generous social safety [net], investing in their skills, and when necessary helping them become mobile and move to where the opportunities are."

Get that charter service going to Saskatoon already!

Gord Orr's New Job

In case that you were concerned that he had nothing to do:

• Gordon Orr,
  Marketing and Communications Officer will be responsible for the following:
  
  
  Housing and Children’s Services (Community Development and Health Commissioner)
  Ontario Works (Community Development and Health Commissioner)
  Huron Lodge (Community Development and Health Commissioner)
  Cultural Affairs (Community Development and Health Commissioner)
  Environment and Public Works Operations (City Engineer)
  Engineering and Corporate Projects (City Engineer)
  

Perhaps he could arrange for showings of the newest movies that he is reviewing for the residents of Huron Lodge as well.

Items Of Interest

A few things that may interest you.

MORE ON CARETAKERS

A little birdie told me that there were some unhappy people at City Hall over my BLOGs on what is happening to the caretakers. I wonder if employees will be gagged now:

• "...today Rona Warsh and John Miceli are absolutely beside themselves. They are angry both with your article and with the fact that someone emailed you the letters. Warsh thinks it was one of her people that did that. She is pondering a change to email policy to disallow the forwarding of email outside the corporation, but I don't know how that would be enforceable.
  
  So you've stirred the pot on this one. No doubt that Jean will claim victory over Miceli on this Square off.
  
  What started in 2007 as a way to ensure the caretakers had enough time to do everything they need to get done has transpired into union vs. union vs. management.
  
  And now supervisors don't know what to do regarding the garbage pickup. Can no one make a decision or was your article too distracting?"

Oh my goodness. A policy not to forward emails. What would the consequences of that be? How idiotic.

Hmmm, will there be a ban on fax machines next so no one can fax copies out. Expect there to be scanners placed at all exits from the building and employees to be patted down too as they leave to ensure that no one carries out hard copies of emails either.

Pathetic. Is that all that management has to worry about!

And just to rub it in:

• "From: [Name of person]
  
  Subject: RE: Campus Operations: Centralized Refuse and Recycle Collection
  
  
  After I forwarded the email and many read it, many discussions and concerns were raised about this new initiative that need to be addressed. I contacted [Name of person] directly to ask him several questions, and I asked him if I could relay his answers to you now. He agreed.
  
  I told some of you that it was my understanding that the cuts had already taken place within the caretaker group. The few that remain, have been doing the job of many; picking up garbage and recycling from individual offices and desks takes up a good deal of their time. The time spent on these tasks takes away from other tasks, such as cleaning common areas, vacuuming and cleaning of washrooms. Placing the garbage and recycling in a central area will actually lessen their load to allow them to get their other jobs done.
  
  [Name of person] confirmed this to be true. He told me that only 4 full time and 2 part time caretakers remain to handle both buildings. No further caretakers will be added to the numbers, and yet the same tasks need to be performed; they used to have 16 caretakers. The move to a day shift has been slowly put into place and most all work during overlapping shifts between early morning and late afternoon.
  
  Some have expressed a fear that emptying their own garbage and recycling will allow the remaining caretakers to be laid off. [Name of person] tells me this is NOT in the plan.
  
  Some have expressed a distaste for emptying their garbage into a larger container. We are reminded that we already handled the garbage when we placed in in our own container earlier in the day, so it ought not to be toxic. If it is really messy, we should place it in the larger container right from the get go.
  
  While I don't think it happened on our floor, there have been a few times when the caretakers were berated for removing items from personal garbage cans and recycle boxes. For instance, some staff have placed shoes, socks, boots, umbrellas, and other personal items in these containers, only to have them tossed out. This then caused grief to the caretaker who assumed it was garbage, and had to listen to the backlash from this action.
  
  Over the last couple of years, the caretakers have become part of our daily experience. Most of us know them by name and they know ours. That we are concerned over their well-being shows that we have developed working relationships with our fellow workers, and we don't wish to disrespect them by doing their jobs.
  
  From what I understand, their jobs have changed - they work different hours than in the past, they have fewer coworkers and help, and yet they still have to take care of all of our needs. If their job now requires that they come to our floor twice a day to empty garbage and recycling, perhaps the onus is upon us to ensure that we have done our bit and emptied our personal containers.
  
  I hope this clears up some of the anxiety caused by the reading of the new directive when it first made it way to us. I beleive the truth to be as I stated. This will not lead to layoffs - these have occurred already and the remaining 6 are doing the job of 16.
  
  Thanks," [As written, typos and all]

ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE BRIDGE COMPANY'S ASSOCIATED COMPANY

It seems inconsequential but it is not:

Central Transport relocates jobs to Delray area of Detroit

WARREN, Mich. – Less-than-truckload carrier Central Transport International Inc. expects to position itself for growth and improved customer service by consolidating some terminal operations into a newly acquired facility in southwest Detroit.

Central Transport plans to consolidate most of its metro Detroit terminal operations into a facility on West Jefferson Avenue that was formerly operated by competitor YRC Worldwide Inc.

Central Transport initially will move most of its terminal operations in Romulus into the Delray facility.

The move is expected to immediately transfer 100 jobs to Detroit and may bring up to 400 jobs over time.

“The Detroit terminal will make us faster, more reliable and reduce our handling of loads,” said John Locke, executive vice president of Warren, Mich.-based Central Transport. “The new facility also enhances other logistics opportunities with customers. All of this translates to increased customer service and satisfaction.”

“The Delray terminal is purpose-built for the less-than-truckload (LTL) business, which is what we do,” Locke said. “It’s larger than our Romulus facility and this is a great opportunity for us to save on our infrastructure costs. There are few LTL companies that could use a terminal like this.”

Central Transport is part of the CenTra Inc. family of companies, which also includes the Detroit International Bridge Co., owner and operator of the Ambassador Bridge."

MDOT's Mr. Shreck immediately repsonded by saying:

• "The approach ramps for the planned Detroit River International Crossing bridge project between Windsor and Detroit would cross one corner of the parcel. DRIC is a joint project by the governments of Michigan, Ontario, the United States and Canada to build a new publicly owned bridge from Detroit’s Delray district to Windsor.
  
  Moroun bitterly opposes the DRIC plans because it would siphon traffic and toll revenue away from his bridge. With Moroun now owning the Yellow Freight land, the DRIC coalition would have to resort to a government taking of the property, or at least the corner of it. That could lead to a court fight.
  
  Bill Shreck, a spokesman for the Michigan Department of Transportation, said Moroun’s purchase of the parcel shouldn’t hold up plans for DRIC. Noting that governments have the right to seize property for public uses under eminent domain, he said the only fight would be over how much the state had to pay for it."

I think Bill better do a bit of expropriation research before he makes such a comment again.

THERE GOES SOUTHWEST DETROIT

Imagine if DRIC and DIFT both get approved.

Oh you don't know what DIFT is:

• "The Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for a study regarding the Detroit Intermodal Freight Terminal (DIFT) has been completed by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The study has centered on stimulating economic revitalization in southeast Michigan by improving rail freight transportation opportunities and efficiencies at a consolidated terminal in southwest Detroit. The terminal is located in southwest Detroit between Wyoming and Livernois avenues south of I-94...
  
  A key feature of the FEIS is the agreement reached among MDOT and all four Class I railroads operating in Michigan - CSX, Norfolk Southern, Canadian Pacific, and Canadian National Railroad - to jointly develop the project. The consolidated terminal will accommodate existing and future demands, while supporting the needs of residential neighborhoods and businesses in the area.
  
  "This is a significant accomplishment in that it represents the largest public/private venture in Michigan history, with the railroads agreeing to pay a large share of the costs," said State Transportation Director Kirk T. Steudle. He added that no public/private partnership legislation is needed to make the project happen."

Oh, I guess P3 legislation would have to be passed for the DRIC bridge. I wonder if the Michigan Senate would go along with that. I doubt it!

Naturally, it and DRIC were looked at individually from an environmental perspective and not together or else someone would have figured out that people would be run out of that area of Detroit just like the people in Delray. It would become a wasteland

I guess Ken Cockrel Jr forgot about his previous Motion. Environmental Justice anyone:

• RESOLUTION IN OPPOSITION TO THE DETROIT INTERMODAL FREIGHT TERMINAL (DIFT)
  
  WHEREAS The Michigan Department of Transportation is planning construction of anintermodal freight terminal in Southwest Detroit; and
  
  WHEREAS The proposed Detroit Intermodal Freight Terminal project would be an 840-acre complex of terminals to be operated by four railroad companiesfor nil and truck use; and
  
  WHEREAS MDOT secured a consultant to assess the feasibility of three different "nil strategies" for development of the DIFT and, having completed that process, is proposing to build the DIFT under what is known as "Rail Strategy 3," and;
  
  WHEREAS Based on MDOT's own projections, implementation of DIFT Rail Strategy 3 would bring an additional 16,000 trucks into the surrounding neighborhoods each day even though this area is already overburdened by excess truck traffic; and
  
  WHEREAS Diesel exhaust fumes contain numerous toxic substances and have beenproven to be a major health hazard particularly to children and seniorcitizens; and
  
  WHEREAS Southwest Detroit already has the state's highest level of "particulate matter," a substance found in diesel exhaust fumes; and
  
  WHEREAS Bringing 16,000 additional trucks into Southwest Detroit daily would generate more noise, create additional wear and tear on city streets, and pose a safety risk from truck drivers who might travel residential streets; and
  
  WHEREAS Construction of the DIFT under Rail Strategy 3 would require the displacement of people from 75 homes or apartments and the movement of 78 businesses; and
  
  WHEREAS The economic benefits of this project to Detroit residents and particularly those who reside in the surrounding neighborhoods have not been documented; and
  
  WHEREAS At numerous public hearings on this issue, including three conducted by the City of Detroit Planning Commission, resident opposition to this project was overwhelming; and
  
  WHEREAS the City Planning Commission last month voted unanimously to recommend opposition to the DIFT Rail Strategy 3; and Now Therefore Be it
  
  RESOLVED That the Detroit City Council opposes the construction of the Detroit Intermodal Freight Terminal under Rail Strategy 3 having determined that this project would do a huge disservice to the quality of life in Southwest Detroit; and be it finally
  
  RESOLVED That the Detroit City Clerk provide copies of the resolution to the director of MDOT, the director of the Southeastern Michigan Council of Governments, Governor John Engler, all members of the Michigan House of Representatives and State Senate, Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, and Congressman John Conyers.
  

No Love Affairs

It just could not last

CUPE/EDGAR WAR CONTINUES

Can you believe that the deal between the Union and City has not been signed after 6 months. What does Edgar (aka Eddie) want to do, force them to go back on the picket lines and in the cold weather too!

He better do that before PETU organizes as well so he can blame them if there are problems. Now John Miceli will learn how it is to be used and to take the blame.

It is interesting to see all of the anti-CUPE posts still being made on the Star website. Good stuff for the failed Edgar and the hardliners for re-election.

But what is this...arbitration to resolve the issue? Imagine using people from 4-500Km away to do that. Where are Edgar's principles about absolutely no arbitration! Let's hear it already.

Amazing, CUPE people could be quoted but "City administrators, including CAO Helga Reidel, who was lead negotiator for the city, could not be reached for comment."

What's this really about---I told you about the caretakers. Here is what else I have been told:

• "On Thursday, Local 82 will be given formal notice of the intent to contract out garbage."

Demonize CUPE in advance by damaging propaganda spewed out by the Messenger. It's a good tactic to use. Notice that Councillor Lewenza was mentioned too to continue to discredit him.

He and his colleagues did not need to know anything or they might have forced a closure to try to bring people together after the 101-day strike. It would have been the "Vanilla" thing to do:

• "city council has not been made aware the deal has not yet been signed."

CUPE and Lewenza in one story. A Twofer.

As I Blogged, but CUPE leaders will not listen:

• "That is why CUPE has no choice but to fight aggressively on the bad faith claim against the City and to go after back wages, all $30M of them. I trust that Edgar (aka Eddie) will be the first City witness who will be cross-examined. I'd like to BLOG a copy of that transcript!
  
  Being a push-over will accomplish little for CUPE. Peace in our time with Edgar and the hardliners will not work since slamming CUPE and the Lewenzas is their re-election meal ticket."

KISS AND MAKE UP

Caretakers UPDATE as CUPE and PETU get relationship counselling.

Big garbage containers welcomed City staff back to work. However, I am told:

• "John Miceli agreed to hold off until talking with 543."

HIT THE ROAD DWIGHT

This affair is over before it got started (except for Dwight paying a Red Bull alimony)

Remember Gord's comment:

• "it appears peace might be at hand.
  
  Later this month Francis and Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan will hold a meeting that, if all goes well, could allow the city to at last sign off on the province’s Parkway plan. Instead of lawsuits, there would be smiling faces all round. And lots of photo-ops. That would be good news for a departing Francis and better news for ministers Duncan and Sandra Pupatello if their career plans include getting re-elected here in 2011."

Yea, right. Now who could have leaked that information to Gord and then leaked the following to mini-Gord? The corrupt Councillor being protected by the Star and mini-Gord perhaps or someone else?

I wonder what the headline maker was thinking by this headline. It does have a double menaing. Clearly we know whom he does NOT want for Mayor:

• "Snake in path of Windsor-Essex Parkway"

Mini-Gord tells us:

• "Thousands of badly needed construction jobs associated with the enormous project could be delayed unless an agreement to protect the snake and several wildflowers also unique to the region can be reached.
  
  I don't think a delay is likely -- at least not for long. But some kind of deal to protect the so-called endangered species is going to have to be struck or the jobs could end up in legal limbo.
  
  Talks are now underway between Ontario's Ministry of Transportation, the Ministry of Natural Resources and the City of Windsor.
  
  A week before Christmas, David Estrin, Windsor's Toronto-based environmental lawyer, filed a 19-page critique of the way the province has gone about issuing permits for the parkway."

A great time for the news to be made public, right before the meeting too.

Has Dwight been suckered for the 3rd time or is this a warning to settle with Edgar or else?

And all those millions that could have been used for other tourist events rather than for Red Bull that Dwight foolishly will arrange to be paid out to glorify Edgar in this election year.

Poor Dwight, he did not even get to go to overseas like Edgar either to get the publicity.

It's not like Dwight to slip up like this politically. He must be getting too soft as Minister. Or maybe he has Provincial leadership on his mind.

I can hardly wait for some Liberal insider to tell me I am wrong after this Edgar stunt.

It's A Bird, It's A Plane, It's Super Berry

Now that Angela Berry has single-handedly demonstrated that the City ought never to be involved again in managing major projects like the 400 Building, she needs a new task to keep her occupied. One perhaps that will reconfirm what she wrote but with a different disastrous project.

It might be the Arena but she can do a Single-Source Audit Report in her sleep now if she just re-reads the BLOGs I have done recently and previously on this subject. It is a slam-dunk that she will find a lot wrong with how the arena project was managed just from the sole source side based on what has been said so far to justify it.

Don't ever expect an audit on the entire project in our lifetime. The results would be too embarrassing.

So what can we have Angela do---credit cards. How boring. No, we need to give her something very challenging and also troubling to some Windsorites.

I have got it: Huron Lodge!

I hope that I have an ally in this in Ward 2 Councillor Jones. Actually, given his history on the project, I am surprised he is so silent:

• "Council opts for lowest bidder; Lowest bid accepted; Any other choice would bring suit; Windsor Star 02-10-2004
  
  Facing a potential $3-million lawsuit, city council voted 6-4 to accept the lowest bid for the redevelopment of Huron Lodge instead of a higher bid by a local company which pledged to use almost exclusively local labourers...
  
  City administration had recommended the tender be awarded to London-based Southside Group whose bid came in $95,000 lower than Toronto-based Eastern Construction, which has had an office in Windsor since 1990...
  
  Councillor Ron Jones, speaking in favour of hiring local workers, said council shouldn't be fooled into thinking Southside will hire locally.
  
  "This is about local workers spending their money locally and we should be doing everything we can to ensure that happens," said Jones. "I think any one of us would be willing to spend $95,000 to draw $20 million in spinoff spending."

He is consistently in favour of local people (other than the Bridge Company it seems):

• "Taxpayers have a right to expect that they will get the best value when the city spends their money. And that includes purchasing services or equipment through the tendering process.
  
  But at least one councillor, Ron Jones, wants council to adopt "flexibility" in its purchasing policy: "I do believe in competition. But I also believe we have to take a serious look at our purchasing in the future and take into consideration local businesses that pay business taxes and have been good corporate citizens."
  
  As a result, Jones joined three other councillors -- Ken Lewenza Jr., David Cassivi and Tom Wilson -- and this week voted against the low bid a Tilbury car dealership had tendered for four trucks."



• "Councillors Ron Jones and Ken Lewenza Jr. said a fair-wage policy would not give local workers an advantage but would "level the playing field" by requiring the same wages for everyone.
  
  When the review is completed, the committee will make a recommendation to council about whether such a policy should be included in the new purchasing bylaw.
  
  The issue of a local preference policy was raised earlier this year when London-based Southside Co. Ltd. was awarded a $30-million contract to build a new Huron Lodge.
  
  Members of the local building industry said council should have awarded the contract to a bidder with more local ties even though it came in almost $100,000 higher."

Now take a look at this Court judgement which is very harsh and wonder why the Councillor is so silent. It involves Huron Lodge and I would have expected the Councillor to have spoken up by now in favour of the local contractors, even against the City.

I just hope the Councillor's phone calls are not leaked again. Heaven help him if he has spoken to any contractor over the past 3 or 4 years!

Actually, I am surprised that no one has demanded that the Integrity Commissioner, if we still have one, look into this comment in the latest Star story re the 400 Building:

• "Balsamo said he has frequent conversations with councillors about projects.
  
  "It's a small city, I talk to everybody, all the councillors," he said.
  
  "I know Eddie (Francis) very well, too."

Shouldn't Councillor Jones say in relation to Edgar:

• "The issue in front of us is discussions that may be taking place with a contractor respecting possible projects. That is an important distinction to be drawn here."

I don't know all of the gory details but it appears that the City is suing the London contractor for millions in deficiencies in a counterclaim. What a co-incidence that the City is holding back $3M which is the same amount it could have been sued for if it had not accepted the bid from the out-of-town supplier.

The real parties at risk are the local contractors, the subcontractors who have done their work years ago and have not been paid yet, who are owed money, and who have not had any allegations made against their workmanship but who still cannot be paid because of the City/Southside lawsuit.

What is shocking, and this is what concerned the Judge, is that as of November, 2009, the City has still NOT set out the deficiencies or the costs to remedy them. It has been three years already.

Frankly, I do not know why the Judge just did not toss out the City's claim. Maybe there are other reasons for not doing so that are not set out in his Judgement.

The Judge's last comment stating no reason has been given for the delay and that Windsor sitting on $3M is unacceptable is particularly damaging. I do not understand why the contractors do not amend their claim and ask for punitive damages from the City.

Are the contractors acting as the City's bank, effectively loaning the City money at no interest right now? Does the City not have the money to pay out any funds on this project until Budget 2010? Heck, we have an arena to pay for as well as out-of-town lawyers and consultants.

I know that if I sued for punitive damages, I would insist on examining Edgar (aka Eddie) first to get a complete understanding why the money has not been paid and no action has been taken before now to set out the specifics of the City's claim. I would be very suspicious that there is more going on than meets the eye and only the Mayor would know.

I am sure that Ms. Berry's report will enlighten us one day soon as the 400 audit did. She just needs to stay away from Kryptonite.