By Jack Lessenberry

We haven’t heard much about the great Detroit River bridge debate since the November election. That’s when Michigan voters overwhelmingly rejected Ambassador Bridge owner Matty Moroun’s attempt to amend the state constitution to preserve his monopoly.

Earlier last year, Governor Rick Snyder bypassed the Michigan legislature and used a little-known  provision of the constitution to sign an agreement with Canada allowing for a New International Trade Crossing to be built south of the existing bridge.

The Ambassador Bridge is currently the only way heavy freight can be moved across the river, at least between Port Huron and Buffalo. The governor and virtually all business interests agree that a backup is essential.

So why aren’t shovels in the ground? Well, the short answer is bureaucracy.

Because it is an international crossing, a presidential permit is needed. The Obama Administration has signaled it is strongly in favor, but getting a permit takes months. After that, there are needed site preparation measures. Building a billion-dollar bridge is a bit more complicated than adding a deck in your back yard. But Roy Norton, Canada’s consul general in Detroit, told me he expects to see actual work begin next year, or in 2015 at the absolute latest.

Yet something else worrisome has now happened. The government has never allowed hazardous materials to be transported across the Ambassador Bridge – not even when it was new, back in 1929, and trucks were much lighter than now.

But now the Ambassador Bridge company wants permission to allow trucks start taking HazMat across the bridge. Until now, HazMat has to be transported via the Detroit-Windsor truck ferry, a small, family owned operation, or through Port Huron.

To the astonishment of many, the Michigan Department of Transportation, or MDOT, is in favor of allowing the Ambassador to transport such materials – though not explosives. They did this, however, without consulting Windsor, which isn’t happy. And while this hasn’t been highly publicized, MDOT has received an avalanche of protest, especially from the largely Hispanic community near the Ambassador Bridge.

Now, it isn’t clear when the state will make a decision, and MDOT has not yet scheduled a required public meeting to discuss the proposal.

Gregg Ward, the co-owner of the truck ferry, has, of course, a vested economic interest in preventing this from happening. But he has been a strong supporter of a new bridge, which he expects will be certified for HazMat and put him out of business.

In the meantime, he raises two major reasons other than his own wallet not to allow HazMat on the Ambassador Bridge. First, since the bridge is in private hands, the government doesn’t inspect it, and hence doesn’t really know how structurally sound it is.

Second, the fire department has said it would be unable to respond if a truck crashed and burn atop the bridge. That’s because there’s no emergency water system up there.

Those two things would certainly give me pause. We’ve functioned just fine till now without allowing hazardous materials to be trucked across one of our most controversial bridges. And with a new bridge coming, it seems to me that in a case like this, better safe than sorry isn’t a bad cliché.

Former state lawmaker Paul Opsommer’s decision to take a job with a company owned by Ambassador Bridge owner Manuel “Matty” Moroun should leave voters with cynical thoughts. They should translate their concern into pressing current lawmakers to pass ethics laws that keep outgoing lawmakers from becoming lobbyists without a cooling-off period of at least a year.

Opsommer, a Republican who had represented the DeWitt area in the House, reached the end of his term-limited time last year. Barely a month after leaving office, he announced last week that he’s taken a governmental affairs position with CenTra Inc., a Moroun family transportation interest, where he will work on policy efforts on both state and federal levels. As chair of the House Transportation committee, Opsommer was an often vocal opponent to efforts to build a new bridge between Detroit and Canada that would compete with the Ambassador Bridge, which is privately owned by the Moroun family through its Detroit International Bridge Co.

Opsommer says he did not take a position with the bridge company to avoid the appearance of impropriety, but it’s hard to see how the public could find much difference. The perception can’t be easily eliminated.

Michigan would be well served to limit senior executive branch officials and lawmakers from jumping directly into lobbying jobs or industry jobs in areas over which they had oversight, such as insurance, health care or transportation. It’s time for reform.

Lobbying oversight needs teeth

Speaking of ethics reforms, Michigan could do a lot to improve its oversight of lobbyists’ spending. An LSJ report this week showed that lobbyists spent some $36.6 million in 2012 to influence public policy in the state, up 3 percent from 2011 and nearly double what was spent in 2001.

The Center for Public Integrity, which did an in-depth state-by-state analysis of ethics, transparency and accountability issues, gave Michigan an overall F grade for integrity and specifically a zero score on key areas of involving lobbyists. A key reason is that while the state has reporting requirements, the center’s review found such reports are not filed frequently enough and are not sufficiently comprehensive. In addition, there are no requirements for auditing lobbyists’ disclosures. And while there is a fine for being late with a filing, there are insufficient penalties for any violations of rules such as spending limits.

Michigan is one of only eight states that got an overall F for in its public integrity score card, and ranked 44th out of 50 states. Again, it’s time for improvement.

An LSJ editorial

The Windsor Star

Anne Jarvis

He called the owner of the Ambassador Bridge a greedy, manipulative liar. He appeared on Comedy Central’s late-night satirical The Daily Show. He campaigned in the U.S. election.

For a diplomat, Roy Norton isn’t very … well … diplomatic.

When Norton was appointed Canada’s consul-general in Detroit in 2010, then-Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon’s instructions were brief: Get the new bridge.

Norton thought it would be a no-brainer; the Windsor-Detroit border is the largest conduit for the largest trading relationship in the world. Then he ran into Matty Moroun, the billionaire no-holds-barred owner of the Ambassador Bridge who spent tens of millions of dollars on campaign contributions to legislators, misleading ads and a bid for a constitutional amendment, all to protect his monopoly. Getting the new crossing, decided Norton, would require an unorthodox approach. That unconventional approach turned out to be key.

“I don’t think there’s anything to apologize for,” he said in an interview at the consulate in the Renaissance Center in downtown Detroit. If the situation had been reversed, he said, “you can bet the U.S. consul-general in Toronto would be doing exactly what I’m doing – taking every opportunity to convey the facts because U.S. interests are under attack.”

At 58, Norton has grey, thinning hair and glasses and wore a non-descript suit. He’s serious and reserved. He’s also interesting. He has several post-graduate degrees in public policy, administration and international relations from Harvard and Johns Hopkins. Originally from Ottawa, he has been a senior bureaucrat and advisor at Queen’s Park and on Parliament Hill, worked in Canada’s embassy in Washington, D.C. and was on one of the negotiating teams for NAFTA.

And he’s funny, with a dry wit.

(Norton likens Canada’s offer to pay for Michigan’s share of the bridge to the movie Argo, about how Canada helped rescue American hostages in Iran. “Whenever America’s interests are threatened,” he said, “it can count on Canada to come to the rescue – or in this case, front the cost of the bridge.”)

When he took over the job in Detroit, people sighed with relief. Norton knew the file, and he knew American politics.

No Canadian consulate in the U.S. is as important as the one in Detroit, which covers Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. More than 17 per cent of all Canadian exports to the world go to these four states.

“This is quite literally where the rubber hits the road for both of our manufacturing economies,” Norton told the Canada-U.S. Business Association in one of his first speeches.

While Norton’s predecessors entertained the principle players at lunches and dinners,trying to get their endorsements, Norton took on Moroun. The new consul-general hit the road, testifying before legislative committees at the state capitol in Lansing, teaming with Gov. Rick Snyder and lieutenant governor Brian Calley and speaking to dozens of groups across the state.

“In no developed country have I ever seen such blatant and comprehensive efforts by a single special interest to bend an entire population to its will,” he told the Southern Wayne County Regional Chamber last fall.

He called Moroun “cynical, manipulative and greedy.” He called his ads “all lies.” He said Moroun had taken Michigan hostage.

It was very undiplomatic. He was accused of slander.

“I call it as I see it,” he told me. “I try to be as frank, candid and forthright as I can. We have to cut through all the chaff and help (people) understand the facts.”

He said he suspects Windsor blogger Ed Arditti is on Moroun’s payroll. He said he reads Arditti’s blog  because “it’s good to hear what the other side is saying.”

“He’s trying to smear me, is he?” Arditti replied.

But he wouldn’t say if he’s paid by Moroun.

“I’ve had that (question) for 10 years,” he said. “I don’t deal with that any more. It’s insulting.”

When the Morouns got Proposal 6, which would have required a referendum for a new bridge, on the ballot last fall, Norton, Snyder and Calley criss-crossed the state, urging voters to defeat the initiative. Again, it was very undiplomatic. The Morouns accused him of trying to sway a foreign country’s  election.

Norton was very effective.

“There is a fair bit of cynicism here,” he told me. “There seems to be a disinclination to believe (politicians). By contrast, I stand up, raise my right hand and literally swear it’s not going to cost Michigan anything, and people seem to take note. Canada seems to have standing in Michigan.”

Norton was “absolutely essential,” said Calley, who invited him to Snyder’s State of the State speech last month, where the governor called him a “tremendous person.” In addition to his standing as the consul-general, he was clear and convincing. He also charmed audiences with his humour. Even his Canadian accent helped, said Calley. It made him sound “very distinguished.”

By far, Norton’s riskiest move was appearing on The Daily Show last month.

“Define zero,” comedian Al Madrigal asks over and over about how much the bridge will cost Michigan.

“Zero. Zero dollars, zero outlays, zero risk, zero liability,” Norton answers, first serious, then wary, then exasperated before finally smiling.

Polls before the show was taped Nov. 5  showed voting on Proposal 6 would be close, and Democrats were likely to approve it. Democrats are also likely to watch The Daily Show, Norton reasoned.

“The Daily Show was another means by which to provide facts to a target audience,” he said.

The show often skewers government officials, but he figured “if (the show) had an opportunity to take down a billionaire monopolist, it was more likely to do that than take down the government of Canada.”

He was right.

Construction of the new bridge will start next year, “absolutely by 2015,” Norton said. A presidential permit is expected in several months. Then Canada will begin buying property for the bridge in Detroit. (Yes, Canada will own land in Detroit. But Norton assured MichEconomy.com last month, “We are reconciled to the outcome of the War of 1812. We are not trying to take Detroit over again.”)

Moroun owns some of the land needed. Michigan will expropriate it.

Norton still expects Moroun to challenge the agreement to build the bridge, approved without the state legislature.

The U.S. Congress must also approve $250 million for a customs plaza. That could be difficult, Norton conceded. It’s a lot of money in a country with a budget crisis. Moroun will argue his proposed twin span would use the existing customs plaza. Norton will go to Washington this month to start ‘educating’ Congress.

“This isn’t a project for Michigan,” he said. “It’s a project that’s in the interests of tens of millions of Americans.”

thestar.com

By: Lee-Anne Goodman The Canadian Press

Ray LaHood is stepping down after four years as transportation secretary for the Obama administration.

LaHood, 67, visited Detroit more than a dozen times during his tenure — more than any other U.S. city. He was instrumental in awarding federal funds for light rail on Woodward Avenue and helping to bring hundreds of millions of dollars to create a Detroit to Chicago high-speed rail connection.

He was also committed to the Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC).

“I think everything is possible in Michigan when it comes to transportation,” LaHood told the Oakland Press this week. “I think of the leadership of the governor (Rick Snyder) with Canada on the bridge crossing; what that will mean in terms of jobs, what that will mean in terms of the kind of relationship we have with Canada in terms of exports and imports.

“They need to get this project under way, get it done, and continue this kind of continuity of leadership that exists.”

The bridge project requires a presidential permit before it can proceed.

There have already been several candidates announced as a possible successor to LaHood, including former Michigan governor Jennifer Granholm.

A Canadian government official expressed gratitude to LaHood for his work on the bridge file.

“We wish Secretary LaHood well in his future endeavours and would like to thank him for his continued support of the Detroit River International Crossing project,” said Mark Butler, spokesman for Transport Canada.

“Transport Canada and the U.S. Department of Transportation have an excellent working relationship which will continue into the future. The Government of Canada continues to work with the Obama Administration to obtain the necessary approvals to proceed with construction of the project.”

Butler said the U.S. Department of State is in the midst of reviewing public comments and expects a decision on the presidential permit soon.

Snyder’s office also expressed gratitude to the outgoing LaHood.

“Secretary LaHood has been a good partner on several issues of importance to Michigan, including the (the DRIC bridge),” said Ken Silfven, spokesman for Snyder. “However, we’re confident that the (DRIC) stands on its own merits and don’t expect his departure to impact this critical project.”

Dozens of properties still need to be expropriated and tenders issued, but little progress has been made since November, when a ballot motion sponsored by Ambassador Bridge owner Matty Moroun that threatened to kill the project was defeated.

“Everything really hinges on the presidential permit,” Silfven said. “We understand that approvals of this magnitude do take time, so we’re in good shape. We still hope to hear sooner rather than later but I won’t speculate on a time frame.”

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Canada, according to Kirsten Hallett, whoever that is

Not only am I from Canada, I’m from Ontario, the America of Canada (The good parts of America. The rest of America is covered by Alberta). As you can see above, Ontario is the centre of the whole freaking universe. Ontario is to Canada as America is to the world. We’re the economic powerhouse, simply the best. And not only am I from Ontario, I’m from Ontario’s largest city, Toronto. Here is the country according to a Torontonian:

That Kirsten Hallett chick clearly didn’t know what she was doing/isn’t from Toronto

All this is meant to introduce the fact that it’s okay for me to make fun, because as a Torontonian, I feel America’s pain, and because I feel America’s pain it’s okay for me to have a bit of fun at her expense.

I would like to devote this post to something America is very good at: WAR! Specifically, the War on Terror* and the War on Drugs. That’s right. America is so good at war that, in addition to its actual military presence across the globe, it now fights concepts. Seriously, America. Never has a nation waged so many wars at once. You keep so many balls in the air where other nations would have seen them crashing down. Besides, if your balls came crashing down you’d just start the War on Balls.

Credit: thecomedynews.com

I have personally been touched by both of these wars. Our border is really no longer undefended. America is quietly waging its war on Canadian terrorists and drug lords and the border is tightly guarded. For instance, a few years ago I was accompanying my terrorist of a grandmother down south to visit family. She no longer likes traveling alone. The problem is that although she has admitted to needing accompaniment, it is still offensive to offer too much help, and so, as her chaperone, you do end up feeling a little bit terrorized. She has been known to travel with three passports, all with different spellings of her name and different birth dates. She’s a border security nightmare! I would like to thank America for recognizing this and subjecting my grandmother to an extended security search that led to the rest of our conversation during the four hour trip consisting of her asking me “Why would they do that to me?” over and over, followed by “I don’t understand. I don’t understand.” My explanation about the War on Terror, extended security measures etc etc. fell on deaf ears. The young TSA agent had made her, an 80 year old woman, expose her bare midriff in public, and had then stuck her hand inside the band of her pants. I don’t blame my grandma for feeling violated. I wasn’t really sure who the terrorist was in this scenario, but I felt pretty terrorized by the end of our journey. Here is a graphical representation of the terror, as experienced by me:

America, I’m not sure you can declare victory in this battle, but you definitely succeeded in terrorizing a terrorist, so props, small victory for you!

I would also like to congratulate you for a small success in your War on Drugs. Last year I got all gussied up in my best ‘I’m going to fit in with the locals’ outfit (shown below) and headed off on a road trip with my new beau. We were going to Florida to pick up some parts for his business and to pop in and say hi to his grandparents while we were there.

My Everyday American Look

This beau of mine is a man of few words, but he has an air about him. He exudes, as we say in Canada, ‘le badasserie’. He pissed off border security the second he opened his mouth. I’m not too sure if it was because we rolled up in his super badass Canadian Marijuana Mobile Ford F-150, or if it was because of his one word answers and the fact that he seemed reluctant to name his company or reveal where his grandparents live. Probably the latter, since the former is completely ridiculous.

Attempting to cross the border in the Super Badass Canadian Marijuana Mobile

Completely ridiculous… yet it is how I was treated! We were asked to pull over and go inside so border security could do an extensive search of the truck (where, for the record, THERE WERE NO DRUGS!). To this day I will never know what happened to my boyfriend behind those closed doors, but I do know what happened to me. I was separated from my boyfriend and told not even to look at him, let alone try to talk to him. I was then taken to a holding cell where I was stripped down to my bare necessities, told to put my hands on the wall, head on the wall, and to spread my legs. They then pat me down and ran hands through crevices that no stranger should ever touch! First my grandma and then me! All this while ridiculing me on my choice of a boyfriend and ignoring any attempt at being conversational on my part. Why? Because, as they told him, in America he’d still be doing serious jail time. Why? Because when they ran his passport they found that he’d been charged with a minor drug offense at the age of 19, 10 years ago. Those charges were eventually dropped. Seriously, America. Seriously!? I have been to Europe and Asia, including the Middle East, and I think that was the biggest culture shock I have ever experienced. I have never broken a single law, so being treated like a criminal was quite an interesting experience. Oh wait, I accidentally stole an undershirt at the age of 6 because my mom forgot to take it off of me while trying on clothes at a store. Does that count? Would I still be doing serious jail time for that? Congratulations on keeping me from crossing into your country, American border guards. I am clearly a threat. The most skilled undershirt theif in all of Canada. I’m so skilled I’ll steal the undershirt right out from under your regular shirt without you knowing.

So, to sum up, the War on Terror and the War on Drugs claimed victories by:

1. Feeling up my grandma at the airport

2. Feeling me up in a holding cell at the Ambassador Bridge

GOOD JOB!

Conclusion: America is impulsively handsy and needs to relax a bit. I invite America to visit its hippie cousin to the north. It could benefit from a relaxing ride in the Super Badass Canadian Marijuana Mobile, if such a car existed… which it does not. At least, not in my driveway.

*Please note that I was in Maine on Sept 11th, 2001, surrounded by peers with friends and relatives employed at the World Trade Center. I felt the effects of that day from within the country. I know people who were there. I truly do love NYC and am in no way intending to belittle the events of the day that brought the War on Terror to the forefront of the American political agenda and ingrained itself in the identity of many Americans. I just can’t believe that a TSA agent stuck her hand down my poor grandma’s pants… I guess it’s proof of random selection for these things though.

About Shan: 

Recently appointed Master Geographer and newly minted mom, Shan, a born and raised Torontonian, currently resides in small town Ontario because she met a charming country boy with dimples, a striking jaw line and hands that are as strong and firm as the mighty nation of America. It was pregnancy at first sight, immaculate conception, of course. She is the only one in town that does not drive a Ford F-150. Sometimes serious but more often hilarious, you can follow her shenanigans here: shansshenanigans.com.

Dimitrius Walker — a largely illiterate 35-year-old man from the Chicago area — told customs officers as he pulled up around 9 p.m. Jan. 12 that he had no intention of coming to Canada, but that he found himself on a poorly marked plaza with no way to turn around. He said he simply wanted to return to Detroit, a bail hearing was told Thursday.

Officers noted that Walker had made a wrong turn but searched his car in secondary inspection anyway. In his trunk they found a loaded 9 mm Luger — for which he says he has an Illinois permit — and arrested him and his 18-year-old son.

His son was released, but Walker was charged with possessing a prohibited firearm, attempting to smuggle and making a deceptive statement to customs officers. He originally said the gun didn’t belong to him.

He later admitted the gun and the accompanying 15 cartridges were his. When officers asked why he was carrying the weapon, he said it was because he “lives in hell,” referring to a rough area of Chicago. A Canada Border Services Agency report says he also said, “Man, I thought I was going to be able to turn around and go back.”

Justice of the peace Elizabeth Neilson disagreed with assistant Crown attorney Brian Manarin that Walker should be held in custody. Manarin called the offence serious and argued that if Walker was to get bail it should be significantly higher than the $5,000 to $6,000 proposed by the defence. Neilson set bail at $7,500. Walker must also pay $1,000 to reclaim his car.

Manarin noted that Walker had to go through a toll booth, which should have tipped him off about the pending border crossing and that he lied to Canadian officials. Manarin also outlined Walker’s police record, which included a 20-day sentence for a 1999 assault.

“It is lengthy, but I find that it is deceiving,” Neilson said. “Most of the entries did not result in conviction.”

“I face my responsibilities,” Walker testified, noting that he intends to return for his trial.

Walker, an unemployed former nightclub manager who has five children and another one on the way, said $5,000 would be a hardship for his family. Though his girlfriend works as a teacher, he testified that he receives food stamps and that his home was foreclosed on three days before his arrest.

He said he was coming to Detroit to see if his stepmother Mary Montagoe — who testified on his behalf, saying he has family that cares for him — could take him in temporarily.

Walker is facing another hardship.

He said while in jail, he has not seen a doctor as requested and has not received his regular medication that helps alleviate symptoms from a brain lesion. He visibly shook throughout the day-long bail hearing and spoke in a pronounced stutter — a condition he says he does not suffer as seriously when on proper medication.

Defence lawyer Christina Sweet suggested that Walker is facing an unduly harsh punishment for what she characterized as an honest error, and a “clash of cultures,” where Americans are allowed handguns and Canadians are not.

“He made a mistake by getting on the wrong exit,” said Sweet, noting that her client had neither a passport nor an enhanced licence required for crossing the border. “That’s plain and simple.”

Outside court, Sweet said she thinks U.S. officials should speak with their Canadian counterparts about Americans who mistakenly turn into the bridge plaza and then have no choice but to proceed across. Some end up being arrested for having handguns, then face a possible minimum of three years in a Canadian prison.

“Somebody on the United States side should take a look at this and see that American citizens are coming over here and having this sort of thing happen to them,” Sweet said. “This isn’t the first time.”

Walker’s next court date is March 4.

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The Windsor Star

Doug Schmidt

Make no mistake – as far as the Ambassador Bridge ownership is concerned, the current secret talks between its Canadian Transit Company president and Windsor’s mayor are all about getting government approval for the twinning of its international span.

“Yes … we’re not walking away from that plan, we’re doing everything we can to rev up those plans,” said CTC president Dan Stamper.

The difference now is that, after years of brawling it out in the courts, the owners of the privately owned bridge, the single-richest commercial trade crossing in North America, want to make nice with their Canadian host municipality.

“We’d much rather work with the city than fight the city,” Stamper told The Star.

That’s probably because it’s been a losing fight so far for billionaire bridge owner Matty Moroun. City solicitor George Wilkki said this week that the municipality just received a $1.3-million cheque from the Ambassador Bridge representing court-awarded costs against the company and a residents group led by Hilary Payne that fought alongside it.

“We won the lawsuit — until that point the bridge had little incentive to sit down with us,” said Mayor Eddie Francis, just one of a number of politicians personally named in court actions launched by the owners of the Ambassador Bridge.

But there’s just as big an incentive for the city to sit down, namely to discuss the future of about 100 bridge-owned homes in Olde Sandwich Towne, all vacant and boarded up and representing a large neighbourhood blight.

“The city’s goal is, we want to restore a sense of normal to that neighbourhood,” said Francis.

The question remains, however, as to what the closed-door talks are about and where there might be a meeting of the minds.

“As far as I’m concerned, these discussions have nothing to do with a second bridge span,” said Francis. “Just because the Ambassador Bridge wants something doesn’t mean it’ll happen.”

The bridge company is well aware that the mayor and city council are under enormous political pressure to do something about the ugly neighbourhood eyesore represented by Indian Road and the surrounding collection of abandoned homes. City bylaw officers have been keeping close tabs on the situation, but as long as a private owner continues to pay taxes, tend to the grass and weeds, clean up after fires and vandalism and doesn’t allow the buildings to collapse, there’s little the municipality can do.

Stamper said it would have been his preference to see those homes torn down four years ago. The city hasn’t said no to demolition, but it has long argued the bridge company must first submit a formal plan outlining what it intends to do with property zoned residential and designated for protection under heritage policies upheld by recent court rulings.

Stamper said the several discussions he’s had with Francis so far are about “how to remove those houses that are causing so much aggravation for the community and for us.”

While a second span parallel to the west of the existing bridge is the ultimate goal for CTC, Stamper said the immediate objective is getting municipal and federal approval to expand the existing customs plaza. That’s needed to accommodate secondary inspection of cargo trucks that can currently only occur at an off-site location south on Huron Church Road.

The Ambassador Bridge has acquired properties along Indian Road and elsewhere west of the existing plaza, which Stamper said federal agencies would like to see expanded, but in between lies a stretch of municipally owned Huron Church Road.

“We will not have any discussions that include consideration of closing Huron Church or reconfiguring Huron Church,” said Francis.

One of the carrots being dangled in front of the city is a bundle of approximately 20 of the bridge’s 100 acquired west-side properties that Stamper said the bridge company doesn’t need for its plans. “I’m open to … what the community would like to see,” he said.

But Francis said: “Let’s be clear — they have a long way to go to rebuild the trust of this community.”

While agreeing the mayor should meet and discuss the situation with Stamper, MP Brian Masse (NDP – Windsor West) said the city should be wary given the bridge company’s record. “I don’t see how they should be rewarded, especially after what the neighbourhood has had to endure,” he said.

Masse, who has also had regular run-ins with the bridge company, said he’ll be at Sandwich and Mill Streets on Saturday to protest Canada Post’s proposed closure of its postal outlet at that location. “It didn’t help to lose a hundred households,” he said of the bridge company’s expansion plans, which he also blames for having “a role” in local school and business closures.

The parties involved in the mayor-bridge talks, including a representative of the Canada Border Services Agency in the most recent meeting, aren’t divulging details.

“I do trust the mayor on this issue,” said Ward 2 Coun. Ron Jones.

In an emailed response to a query by The Star, a spokeswoman for the CBSA would only say that it “meets regularly with stakeholders including municipal governments and bridge authorities.”

The owners of the Ambassador Bridge, built in 1929, recently filed an application with Michigan’s Department of Environmental Quality, proposing to take the existing bridge out of service and build a new one “to the west of the existing span bridge.”

According to a Canadian Border Services Agency press release, most of the guns were loaded, and the owners initially denied possessing them.

“The CBSA takes its border protection responsibilities very seriously, and our officers work diligently and vigilantly to prevent the smuggling of firearms across our borders to help make our communities safe,” said Rick Comerford, regional director for the Southern Ontario Region.

Anyone with information about suspicious cross-border activity is encouraged to call the CBSA at 1-888-502-9060.

The string of firearms seizures which included some smuggling charges prompted the Canada Border Services Agency to alert the media and remind Americans to leave their firearms at home or declare them at the border to avoid serious consequences.

“Seizing firearms at the border is very important to CBSA to ensure that our communities remain safe and it is important that everyone declare their firearm when seeking entry into Canada,” southern Ontario region CBSA communications manager Jean D’Amelio Swyer said Monday.

The intent likely wasn’t smuggling but it is still a concern, said William Anderson, a University of Windsor professor with dual citizenship who researches cross-border transportation issues.

“Certainly Canadians should be worried about Americans carrying concealed weapons in Canada. That’s why CBSA is pretty strict about it,” he said.

Americans need to think of crossing into Canada with a gun as serious as getting on a plane with one, something most Americans would not consider doing, Anderson said.

“There are a lot of Americans these days who just carry handguns for what they consider their personal protection and when those people come across the border I suppose there are times when it doesn’t even occur to them that it is not something that’s acceptable in Canada,” Anderson said.

There are signs at the border but travellers tend to think they won’t get caught, he said.

Travellers who do get nabbed can be charged with smuggling or trafficking of firearms. They will lose the firearm, have their vehicle seized, face fines to get the vehicle back on top of the fines or jail time for not declaring a firearm along with the issues of being arrested and having customs violations on their record for six years, D’Amelio Swyer said.

The first seizure was on Jan. 10. A Michigan resident tried to enter Windsor through the tunnel. During a secondary inspection, officers found an undeclared, prohibited revolver locked in a gun case in the vehicle’s trunk. Officers charged the person under the Customs Act for making untrue statements, possession of prohibited goods and smuggling.

On Jan. 12, two more Michigan residents tried to enter Canada, this time on the Ambassador Bridge. During a secondary examination of the vehicle, officers discovered an undeclared loaded automatic handgun. It was hidden in a duffel bag in the trunk. The driver claimed ownership of the gun and was charged with possession of a firearm and smuggling.

On Jan. 20, border officers stopped an American woman trying to cross the bridge into Windsor. When officers X-rayed her luggage, they found a loaded semi-automatic pistol that had not been declared. The gun was vacuum sealed in a clothing storage bag. The woman was charged for non-reporting, making false and deceptive statements and possession of prohibited goods.

A Michigan resident was arrested and charged with making false and deceptive statements and smuggling after trying to enter Canada at the Ambassador bridge on Jan. 22. Officers  pulled over a vehicle into secondary inspection where they found an undeclared, loaded semi-automatic pistol with 15 rounds of ammunition. It was under the driver’s seat.

On Jan. 23, yet another Michigan resident tried to cross the bridge into Windsor. At secondary inspection, border officers discovered an undeclared gun. The driver was charged with non-report of a firearm and making false statements.

CBSA has seized almost 30,000 prohibited weapons at Canadian borders since 2006. D’Amelio Swyer did not have specific statistics on the Windsor crossing or how many firearms were seized in previous years.

Travellers who declare a weapon at the border upon arrival are usually given the chance to turn around and return to the United States.

Anyone with information about suspicious cross-border activity can call the toll-free CBSA Border Watch line 1-888-502-9060.

An undeclared loaded automatic handgun concealed in a duffel bag in the trunk, seized on January 12. (HANDOUT/The Windsor Star)

Loaded semi-automatic pistol with 15 rounds of ammunition seized on January 22, from Michigan resident. (HANDOUT/The Windsor Star)

By Paul Mayne

Roy Norton never expected the troubled waters he would encounter pushing for a second bridge connecting Windsor and Detroit across the Detroit River. At Western Law Monday, he stressed how building that second span is a precondition to ensuring the manufacturing vitality of Canada and the United States for years to come.

“We’re counting on achieving redundancy and consumer choice in wanting to build another bridge,” he said. “But we can’t be certain, given the current bridge’s age, just how long it will last, which increases the urgency to getting along with another complementary bridge.”

The Ambassador Bridge, built in 1929, had an initial lifespan of 50 years.

The Canadian Consulate General, which he heads in Detroit, promotes Canadian interest in trade, investment, environment, culture and academic relations in the four states he represents – Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. Combined, the population of the four – 33 million – matches all of Canada.

In 2011, Ontario’s global exports totaled $181 billion – $142 billion of that (or 78 per cent) was to the United States alone. In fact, 29 per cent of Ontario’s exports, or $52 billion, are to the four states Norton represents. The United States sells more to Canada than it does to China, Japan, UK, Brazil and Russia combined. Half of Michigan’s global exports are purchased in Canada and, of course, cross the Ambassador Bridge.

So, you would think that kind of traffic would make a second span and easy sell.

Think again.

Since taking on his role as Counsel General in September 2010, Norton spent a disproportionate amount of time trying to persuade Michiganders of the importance of this project.

“Getting the predictable capacity to get stuff to us should be pretty important to them,” he said. “Getting to where we are today has been harder than, objectively, it should have been, which is why outside-the-box policy-making and diplomacy was required.”

Norton said the biggest stumbling block facing the construction of a new bridge has been Michigan-based billionaire and Ambassador Bridge owner Manuel Maroun. The trucking magnate wrestled the bridge away from Warren Buffet when it went up for sale in 1979, and has fought against a second bridge almost ever since.

Referred to as Canada’s top infrastructure priority since the mid-1990s, there have been 15 different possibilities discussed regarding a new bridge. In 2008, the Canadian government attempted to purchase the Ambassador Bridge from Maroun, but was met with a exorbitant price tag.

In 2010, Canada offered to pay for the whole thing, assuming full responsibility. Then-Transport Minister John Baird sold the idea to his cabinet members.

“With Michigan hard hit by the recession, unemployment hovering around 15 per cent and the auto industry barely alive, Canada, the relatively generous foreign aid donor that we are, is not in the habit of giving away free infrastructure to developed countries,” Norton said. But they did. And along with covering the cost of the $3.8 billion, six-lane project, Canada would also agree to pay $550 million for the connection from the foot of the bridge Interstate 75 on the U.S. side.

The New International Trade Crossing would be located a couple kilometres south of the existing bridge, connecting Brighton Beach in Ontario with Delray in Michigan.

Maroun jumped into the fray, spending $41 million in support of Proposition 6, which, if passed, would have required all plans for new bridges and tunnels to be approved in a statewide vote. That would have delayed – or killed – any hope for a new bridge.

Norton made countless speeches, gave numerous interviews across Michigan reiterating the fact the bridge was not going to cost residents anything. This was also brought to a nation-wide audience when Norton appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

“Canada seems to have a great standing in Michigan, but there is concern because Michiganders, and perhaps Americans in general, are predisposed not to believe their politicians,” Norton said. “While the governor (Rick Snyder) could say, as he had for many months, that this project would cost Michigan nothing, sadly many chose to believe the Maroun ads instead. At its base, cynicism is understandable, whoever heard of free bridge, but they did seem to believe me, being from a government and country they were prone to trust.

“So at the talks, when I raised my right hand and solemnly swore on behalf of the people of Canada that this bridge would cost the state of Michigan nothing, audiences in Michigan seemed to believe it.”

In the end 60 per cent of Michigan voters turned down Proposition 6.

Ontario has begun construction of the $1.4-billion Windsor-Essex Parkway (since renamed the Herb Gray Parkway), which will extend Highway 401 in Windsor to the new international bridge. Construction of the new 125-year bridge is expected to begin in 2014, with a completion date within a decade. Canada would recoup its costs through bridge tolls.

“At the end of the day, it won’t cost Canadian taxpayers anything,” Norton said. “Bottom line, we wouldn’t get the bridge if we weren’t willing to do this. We could be stubborn, cross our fingers and hope for the eternal life of an 83-year-old bridge, on which certainly the Canadian automotive economy depends, but even beyond that, so many jobs depend.

“We concluded that it’s a Canadian contribution to the future of North American manufacturing, not just Ontario. We shouldn’t be willing to bear the risk of a sudden disruption and no capacity. So it’s worth paying for.”

There hasn’t been a lot of news about the proposed bridge linking Detroit and Windsor since a ballot proposal that would have required Michigan residents to vote on its construction was defeated in November.

But the project is moving along, according to Roy Norton, Canada’s consul general in Detroit.

A waiver of the federal “buy American” requirement has been approved, allowing the contractor to use Canadian steel on the span. American steel also will be used. Rumors that Chinese steel will be used in constructing the bridge are untrue, Norton said.

The next step is approval of a presidential permit in Washington, which should be finalized in a few months.

“We don’t anticipate any difficulty,” Norton told me. “The process is taking its natural course.”

Once that final permit is approved, Canada can start purchasing land where the bridge will connect in Detroit. Canada must buy the property, Norton said, because the project agreement requires Canada to pay all of the bridge costs.

But the gentlemanly Norton says that Canada is not treading on U.S. sovereignty by purchasing land for the bridge in Detroit.

“We are reconciled to the outcome of the War of 1812,” he said. “We are not trying to take Detroit over again.”

Norton said he expects construction of the bridge to start next year.

“Yes … we’re not walking away from that plan, we’re doing everything we can to rev up those plans,” said CTC president Dan Stamper.

The difference now is that, after years of brawling it out in the courts, the owners of the privately owned bridge, the single-richest commercial trade crossing in North America, want to make nice with their Canadian host municipality.

“We’d much rather work with the city than fight the city,” Stamper told The Star.

That’s probably because it’s been a losing fight so far for billionaire bridge owner Matty Moroun. City solicitor George Wilkki said this week that the municipality just received a $1.3-million cheque from the Ambassador Bridge representing court-awarded costs against the company and a residents group led by Hilary Payne that fought alongside it.

“We won the lawsuit — until that point the bridge had little incentive to sit down with us,” said Mayor Eddie Francis, just one of a number of politicians personally named in court actions launched by the owners of the Ambassador Bridge.

But there’s just as big an incentive for the city to sit down, namely to discuss the future of about 100 bridge-owned homes in Olde Sandwich Towne, all vacant and boarded up and representing a large neighbourhood blight.

“The city’s goal is, we want to restore a sense of normal to that neighbourhood,” said Francis.

The question remains, however, as to what the closed-door talks are about and where there might be a meeting of the minds.

“As far as I’m concerned, these discussions have nothing to do with a second bridge span,” said Francis. “Just because the Ambassador Bridge wants something doesn’t mean it’ll happen.”

The bridge company is well aware that the mayor and city council are under enormous political pressure to do something about the ugly neighbourhood eyesore represented by Indian Road and the surrounding collection of abandoned homes. City bylaw officers have been keeping close tabs on the situation, but as long as a private owner continues to pay taxes, tend to the grass and weeds, clean up after fires and vandalism and doesn’t allow the buildings to collapse, there’s little the municipality can do.

Stamper said it would have been his preference to see those homes torn down four years ago. The city hasn’t said no to demolition, but it has long argued the bridge company must first submit a formal plan outlining what it intends to do with property zoned residential and designated for protection under heritage policies upheld by recent court rulings.

Stamper said the several discussions he’s had with Francis so far are about “how to remove those houses that are causing so much aggravation for the community and for us.”

While a second span parallel to the west of the existing bridge is the ultimate goal for CTC, Stamper said the immediate objective is getting municipal and federal approval to expand the existing customs plaza. That’s needed to accommodate secondary inspection of cargo trucks that can currently only occur at an off-site location south on Huron Church Road.

The Ambassador Bridge has acquired properties along Indian Road and elsewhere west of the existing plaza, which Stamper said federal agencies would like to see expanded, but in between lies a stretch of municipally owned Huron Church Road.

“We will not have any discussions that include consideration of closing Huron Church or reconfiguring Huron Church,” said Francis.

One of the carrots being dangled in front of the city is a bundle of approximately 20 of the bridge’s 100 acquired west-side properties that Stamper said the bridge company doesn’t need for its plans. “I’m open to … what the community would like to see,” he said.

But Francis said: “Let’s be clear — they have a long way to go to rebuild the trust of this community.”

While agreeing the mayor should meet and discuss the situation with Stamper, MP Brian Masse (NDP – Windsor West) said the city should be wary given the bridge company’s record. “I don’t see how they should be rewarded, especially after what the neighbourhood has had to endure,” he said.

Masse, who has also had regular run-ins with the bridge company, said he’ll be at Sandwich and Mill Streets on Saturday to protest Canada Post’s proposed closure of its postal outlet at that location. “It didn’t help to lose a hundred households,” he said of the bridge company’s expansion plans, which he also blames for having “a role” in local school and business closures.

The parties involved in the mayor-bridge talks, including a representative of the Canada Border Services Agency in the most recent meeting, aren’t divulging details.

“I do trust the mayor on this issue,” said Ward 2 Coun. Ron Jones.

In an emailed response to a query by The Star, a spokeswoman for the CBSA would only say that it “meets regularly with stakeholders including municipal governments and bridge authorities.”

The owners of the Ambassador Bridge, built in 1929, recently filed an application with Michigan’s Department of Environmental Quality, proposing to take the existing bridge out of service and build a new one “to the west of the existing span bridge.”

dschmidt@windsorstar.com

Bridge boom-doggle

Regulatory change would allow hazmats on Ambassador

There are two family-owned businesses that provide a way to move trucks across the river between Detroit and Windsor. One is big, well-known and politically powerful, the other small and relatively obscure.

Now one of them is seeking a regulatory change that, if approved, would likely put the other out of business.

Should the rest of us care?

Definitely.

Here’s what’s going on:

The Detroit International Bridge Company, which owns the Ambassador Bridge and is controlled by billionaire Manuel “Matty” Moroun and his family, is currently prohibited from allowing trucks carrying hazardous materials from using the aging span that connects Detroit and Windsor.

That’s been the law since the Ambassador Bridge was built in 1929.

Because trucks can’t use the tunnel running under the Detroit River, the only legal way to transport hazardous materials across this crucial border crossing is the Detroit-Windsor Truck Ferry, located near Zug Island, downriver from the Ambassador.

John Ward and his son Gregg started the ferry operation on Earth Day in 1990.

“We chose this start-up date … to symbolize our commitment to environmental stewardship and a belief that marine transportation can reduce highway congestion, air pollution and consumption of finite fossil fuels,” Gregg Ward told Congress back in 2007, when he offered testimony about border security in regard to transportation issues, calling for more government oversight.

Click here to read the entire article.

Whether you’re white or Caucasianally challenged, this is worth your investigation at the very least.

1. Great way to meet passionate, sexy people in rockin’ outfits playing kick ass music.

2. The only excuse to have Bannock bread, smoked salmon, deer stew and plenty of liquor and tobacco all at once. This is a First Nations Rally, after all.

3. You’re a libertarian/care about the rights of the individual over corporate control.

4. You want to set the right example for the nation’s children.

5. You believe your word is your bond and the truth, honesty and sincerity matter.

6. We’ve been entrusted with a planet and while we’re supposed to use the resources we have, our goal should also be the safeguarding of the planet we’ve been given.

7. You believe corporations are NOT people and people matter more than profits.

8.  You’re a human being and believe in equality under the law.

9. I heard there will be fry bread. Everyone loves fry bread.

10. You like to party with good people and have a good time doing something positive. Or you just want to meet hunks and chicks. I’m not here to judge.

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“I personally don’t think allowing dangerous goods on the bridge is wise,” said Windsor fire department Chief Bruce Montone. “Far more consultation needs to take place.

“Professional courtesy suggests they should be talking to us. We certainly haven’t been consulted. That’s the problem, they only have jurisdiction over half.”

The Michigan Department of Transportation began studying the issue in 2010 following a bridge request to waive a hazardous materials ban that has been in place since the bridge opened in 1929.

Last month, MDOT  released an 18-page report which includes several recommendations for the bridge, the Windsor-Detroit tunnel and major roads leading to the crossings.

Under the recommendations, the bridge would be allowed to move any hazmat material over the crossing with the exception of explosives. In some cases, such as fuel tankers, an escort with flashing lights would be required to accompany trucks carrying the dangerous materials.

The report also recommends a full ban on hazmat goods in the tunnel and along about two kilometres of the Lodge Freeway (M-10) closest to Detroit’s  downtown.

Montone believes quick access to any accident or spill on the bridge involving a truck carrying hazardous materials would be difficult, with little ability to prevent contamination of the Detroit River.

“There are an awful lot of nasty products,” he said. “Just think of a radioactive spill getting into the water. The problems would expand exponentially. I shudder to think of the additional threats that could challenge us with.”

Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D — Detroit), who represents neighbourhoods where the bridge is located,  has sent a letter to residents encouraging them to respond to MDOT’s bridge recommendation.

MDOT is soliciting public response to the proposal and agreed Thursday to hold a public hearing at an unspecified date.

Tlaib said allowing hazardous material on the bridge poses a risk to neighbouring residents from gases, flammable substances, chemicals and poisonous materials.

She said the fact that there is a densely populated southwest Detroit neighborhood near the bridge “should compel MDOT to heed the concerns of stakeholders before granting permission to the Ambassador Bridge.”

In Windsor-Detroit, only the truck ferry is allowed to transport hazardous goods across the Detroit River — in part because of its location away from residents. Its docks are in the Brighton Beach industrial area and next to Zug Island on the Detroit side.

The truck ferry works well, said Montone. Hazardous materials are  thoroughly inspected, kept away from other traffic and residents and  contained on the barge.

“You have some level of control,” he said.

Truck ferry operator Gregg Ward, whose business could be shut down should the bridge be allowed to carry hazardous material, said there has been a lack of investigation on potential disasters connected to moving dangerous goods over the aging crossing.

He said it is unrealistic to expect an escort to make any difference moving hazmat across the narrow four-lane confines of the high-traffic bridge.

“The regulations are there for a reason,” he said. “The MDOT study failed to fully explain to the public what would be the enhancement to public safety accomplished by permitting hazardous materials on the Ambassador Bridge.”

Bridge president Dan Stamper and MDOT did not respond Thursday to a request for comment.

Neither Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation nor Transport Canada were consulted during MDOT’s hazmat study.

“We will review the report and convey comments we may feel are appropriate via the public consultation process,” said Bob Nichols, spokesman for MTO. “We look to MDOT to ensure any remaining consultation outreach would include key stakeholders including area crossing operators, local government and regulatory agencies.”

Bridge owner Matty Moroun’s poor track record in respecting community interests have to be considered before any approval to allow hazmat on his crossing is granted, said Derek Coronado of the local Citizens Environment Alliance.

“Trust is not the first thing that comes to mind when talking about Ambassador Bridge operations,” he said. “It would be interesting to know how this would work on a privately operated facility.

“There is an obvious risk factor and that underlines a serious problem in our economy,” he said. “So many of these materials that are toxic are because the production process has not looked at safer substitution of materials. The best way to prevent dangers from this pollution is prevent it at the source rather than look at ways to safely transport toxic materials.”

West-end resident and bridge watchdog Mary Ann Cuderman, whose bake shop is near the crossing,  said the onus is on the bridge company to  prove it has the ability to deal with accidents or spills.

“If something happened up there, if something started leaking like acid, what are they going to do?” she said. “There is a lot of questions they haven’t answered. We have to see the full picture before allowing this.”

MP Brian Masse (NDP — Windsor West) is seeking inspection reports on the bridge’s condition.

“There has to be complete accountability in knowing first about the infrastructure itself,” he said.

He also said the truck ferry should be the only approved hazmat crossing in Windsor-Detroit.

“This isn’t necessary,” he said. “We have a crossing right now that is fully developed, functional, with a proven track record of being safe. Why would you want to expose all that regular traffic and trade (on the bridge) to hazardous materials? It makes no sense.”

One illuminated window in an old house in Toronto.

Saw this illuminated cross on a garage when taking a walk.

Detroit at twilight. You can see part of the Ambassador Bridge.

Tiny twinkling lights in the distance appear much larger in this garden shot.

Click here to watch the video.

But continue to ignore the voices and concerns of Canada’s First Nation communities, protesters warned, and they’ll be back at North America’s busiest trade crossing in larger, and more disruptive, numbers.

Windsor police said organizers of the boisterous and colourful event, which authorities estimated was attended by about 600 First Nation members and supporters, kept their promise of a respectful gathering.

More than one chief who spoke out in Windsor, however, put Ottawa on notice that, should the government not heed the call to meet and discuss treaty rights with Canada’s indigenous leaders, they’ll return with much larger numbers.

Mgiizi Wright, 3, from Windsor participates in the Idle No More protest march on  Jan. 16, 2013. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

“Windsor has never seen a gathering of First Nations like this — we are here to send a strong message that we are united,” said Delaware First Nation Chief Greg Peters, who is also chairman of the London District Chiefs Council.

The native leaders warned the federal government not to ignore them in enacting omnibus legislation they feel infringes on treaty rights enshrined in the constitution. They said the grassroots Idle No More movement that recently sprouted up is not something they control.

“I as a chief cannot stop this — it’s a people thing,” said Glen Hare, deputy grand council chief on the Union of Ontario Indians, which represents 39 First Nations communities in an area roughly from Sarnia to the Ottawa Valley and west to Thunder Bay.

“We just want people to know we are here, we are part of this country too,” said Hare, who described the Windsor event as “a unity walk and to raise awareness — not a protest.”

“I’m here because I want a clean environment for my kids and grandchildren,” said Travis, who lives in Windsor but is a member of the Long Lake First Nation northeast of Thunder Bay.

Native drummers sing before marching along Huron Church Road during an Idle No More demonstration Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013, in Windsor, Ont. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

Travis, who would be identified only by his first name, said he was concerned  legislation that could have a dramatic impact on the environment and native-controlled lands was passed in the House of Commons without proper debate or understanding.

Darryl Stonefish, a Delaware First Nation member from Moraviantown, said the Idle No More movement is something all Canadians can embrace and that it represents “a start to let our people know we don’t have to stand back.”

There were many elders in native dress, as well as youths, among the Windsor participants who briefly blocked northbound access to the bridge.

“I’m here to support my people and our future,” said Tyneisha Doxtator, 15, of the Oneida Nation of the Thames. She and her teenage companions accuse the Harper government of “trying to assimilate us and take our treaty rights away.”

A convoy of protestors block all westbound lanes of Highway 401 at Puce Road during the Idle No More protest on January 16, 2013. The convoy started in Tilbury and ended up at the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ontario. (JASON KRYK/ The Windsor Star)

Hundreds of out-of-town aboriginal protesters began the day by gathering at a highway stop near Tilbury before proceeding at a snail’s pace down Highway 401 toward Windsor. OPP officers were stationed at most westbound exit ramps along the way, observing the passing convoy of  motor coaches, school buses and personal vehicles.

Windsor police said only officers scheduled for duty Wednesday were dispatched to the protest, so it didn’t cost taxpayers anything extra, and while it generated some inconvenience for the motoring public, they described the gathering as otherwise uneventful.

Even though northbound Huron Church Road was closed for several hours and U.S.-bound access to the Ambassador Bridge was virtually cut off, organizers said it was not a blockade.

“If we were going to blockade a bridge, we wouldn’t bring women and children and elders,” said Peters. “We’ll inconvenience people for an hour … we’ve been inconvenienced for 200 years.”

[ooyala code="oxOWlnODqThH6Ib5cTq3lqLUZAdaaqlg" image="http://ak.c.ooyala.com/oxOWlnODqThH6Ib5cTq3lqLUZAdaaqlg/3Gduepif0T1UGY8H4xMDoxOmdtO40mAx" title="First Nations 'Stand United': Chief Peters" ]

Bridge company president Dan Stamper said the economic impact of Wednesday’s mid-day protest was “minimal.”

Stamper said he spoke with Peters the day before to try to find ways to minimize any disruption.

He said the Ambassador Bridge has a permanent court injunction against any activity that interferes with international commerce but decided instead to offer a carrot rather than a stick. The CBSA emptied its parking lot for the day, which allowed the bridge to open for northbound traffic while Idle No More held its rally there. The bridge company even served coffee and water for the demonstrators.

“I thought it worked out fairly well,” said Stamper.

The Windsor protest march and rally was part of a nationwide day of action in support of First Nations. Provincial police were negotiating with protesters who blocked the railway lines east of Belleville, disrupting Via Rail trains between Toronto and Montreal and Ottawa.

“We have traditional rights, and we’re not letting them go,” said Caldwell First Nation Chief Louise Hillier, one of numerous speakers at the Windsor rally, which began with drumming and ended with more drumming and a massive circle dance.

dschmidt@windsorstar.com
and twilhelm@windsorstar.com

• See a photo gallery of the Windsor march
• See Poll Question

A convoy of protestors block all westbound lanes of Highway 401 at Puce Road during the Idle No More protest on January 16, 2013. The convoy started in Tilbury and ended up at the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ontario. (JASON KRYK/ The Windsor Star)

Access to the Ambassador Bridge was blocked by protestors participating in the Idle No More blockade on Huron Church Road in Windsor, Ont. on Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013. (JASON KRYK/ The Windsor Star)

Access to the Ambassador Bridge was blocked by protestors participating in the Idle No More blockade on Huron Church Road in Windsor, Ont. on Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013. (JASON KRYK/ The Windsor Star)

Access to the Ambassador Bridge was blocked by protestors participating in the Idle No More blockade on Huron Church Road in Windsor, Ont. on Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013. (JASON KRYK/ The Windsor Star)

Trucks sit idle and backed up for miles Wednesday, Jan 16, 2013, along Huron Church Road during a demonstration in Windsor, Ont. by Idle No More demonstrators. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

Access to the Ambassador Bridge was blocked by protestors participating in the Idle No More blockade on Huron Church Road in Windsor, Ont. on Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013. (JASON KRYK/ The Windsor Star)

Access to the Ambassador Bridge was blocked by protestors participating in the Idle No More blockade on Huron Church Road in Windsor, Ont. on Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013. (JASON KRYK/ The Windsor Star)

A Native drummer sings before marching along Huron Church Road during an Idle No More demonstration Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013, in Windsor, Ont. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star

Idle No More protesters march along Huron Church Road during an Idle No More demonstration Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013, in Windsor, Ont. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

Idle No More protesters march along Huron Church Road during a demonstration Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013, in Windsor, Ont. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

A protester holds a flag he says means “Canada is No. 1″ was among the Idle No More protesters who marched along Huron Church Road during a demonstration Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013, in Windsor, Ont. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

Idle No More protesters march along Huron Church Road during a demonstration Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013, in Windsor, Ont. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

Trucks sit idle and backed up for miles Wednesday, Jan 16, 2013, along Huron Church Road during a demonstration in Windsor, Ont. by Idle No More demonstrators. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

Idle No More protesters march along Huron Church Road during a demonstration Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013, in Windsor, Ont. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

A Windsor Police officer monitors Idle No More protestors blocking the entrance to the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ontario on January 16, 2016. (JASON KRYK/The Windsor Star)

Trucks sit idle and backed up for miles Wednesday, Jan 16, 2013, along Huron Church Road during a demonstration in Windsor, Ont. by Idle No More demonstrators. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

Native drummers sing before marching along Huron Church Road during an Idle No More demonstration Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013, in Windsor, Ont. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

Idle No More protesters march along Huron Church Road during a demonstration Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013, in Windsor, Ont. (DAN JANISSE/The Windsor Star)

A convoy of protestors block all westbound lanes of Highway 401 at Puce Road during the Idle No More protest on January 16, 2013. The convoy started in Tilbury and ended up at the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ontario. (JASON KRYK/ The Windsor Star)

The Detroit Free Press reports an agent with U.S. Customs and Border Protection delivered the new dog to nine-year-old Joseph Wilcken over the weekend.

The Waterloo, Ont., family’s previous dog, Ash, got loose Dec. 21 at the Ambassador Bridge.

A U.S. customs agent ran down the bridge ramp in pursuit of Ash, followed by Joseph’s father, Niels Wilcken.

Joseph’s mother, Ana Wilcken, says the new dog — Coco — is the same kind of dog as Ash, a Jack Russell terrier and pug mix.

She says her son was very upset through the holidays, but now is “so happy.”

The Canada Border Services Agency said the driver, a 40-year-old Windsor resident was headed to a “location in southern Ontario” when he was pulled over at the bridge for secondary inspection last Thursday.

The driver told customs officers he was transporting a shipment of tahini, rice and beans. But upon further inspection, they discovered 13,700 kilograms of loose tobacco with an approximate street value of $1.7 million.

No food products were found inside the truck’s trailer. The tobacco was in  114 unmarked boxes.

The CBSA would not say where the tobacco was headed and the driver has not been named.

“This seizure clearly demonstrates that our officers are vigilant when it comes to ensuring our border is not used for illegal activities,” Rick Comerford, regional director general for CBSA’s southern Ontario region, said in an email.

“Hats off to them. Glad they made the seizure. Hope there will be a few more,” said Dave Bryans, CEO of the Ontario Convenience Stores Association.

Ontario’s 9,500 convenience stores sell about 95 per cent of tobacco products across the province, but the black market of contraband cigarettes has estimated to have ballooned to an annual $2-billion industry, he said.

Bryans believes there are up to 150 organized crime gangs participating in the movement of tobacco in Ontario and Quebec — often shipping between aboriginal reserves where illegal cigarettes are manufactured.

“We have repeatedly encouraged the Ontario and federal governments that it’s time to take this serious,” he said. “This has been going on for years.”

Illegal cigarettes have “most definitely” hurt convenience store owners in Windsor, said Kim Chu, proprietor of Ray and Kim’s convenience store on Ouellette Avenue, who estimated tobacco sales equate to at least 40 per cent of her sales.

“You think of it only as a few customers, but if you multiply that all through Ontario, this is something that really cuts into yearly budgets,” she said.

Her store offers a large variety of other products, but many convenience stores sell mainly tobacco products and lottery tickets. For those locations, cigarette and cigar sales can represent more than 70 per cent of sales, Chu said.

She described the CBSA tobacco seizure as “not shabby” but given the large volume and value it also makes her uneasy “because this tells me the problem is prevalent.”

The Canada Border Services Agency seized loosed tobacco at the Ambassador Bridge worth about $1.7-million. (Handout/The Windsor Star)

Detroit Free Press guest writer