HOWE BRIDGE OPENS DOORS
Officials look at workforce needs for new span
With Gordie Howe International Bridge construction underway, the focus now turns to the total number of jobs to be created and exactly what Windsor might see as part of the project’s $20-million community benefits promise.
The Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority answered questions Friday during its annual public meeting held at the Capitol Theatre. More than 2,000 workers are expected to eventually have a direct hand working on the bridge project itself during the period of construction, scheduled to stretch into late 2024, the target date for the bridge to open to traffic.
But many more spinoff jobs will be created, ranging from providing materials to additional hotel and restaurant jobs as a result of feeding and housing workers on the massive border crossing.
More than 300 people, largely managerial and supervisor positions in preparation for the construction, have already been hired by the project’s contractor — a global consortium of companies known as Bridging North America. “Work has started,” said bridge authority board chairman Dwight Duncan. “It’s not necessarily all visible. We have detailed drawings being done, managers being put in place. But within the next six months, things will really start to progress.
“Then you have a multiplier effect. A lot of these folks are already looking for homes to rent or buy while they are here. They are staying in hotels, going out to dinner, so those places are experiencing ( job growth) too.”
Those interested in working on the Howe project, whose theme “At the Ready” was unveiled Friday, can find the latest list of available jobs on the bridge authority’s website at www.wdbridge.com under “opportunities.”
In terms of properties still required for the Howe bridge on the Detroit side, there remains about four per cent still not in hand — primarily held by Ambassador Bridge owner Matty Moroun. But there are no concerns, Duncan said. Expropriation of those lands — called condemnation in Detroit — continues to be fought in court, but even if not successful there are “contingency plans” of building around the properties if required, he said.
“We will have the properties we need, when we need them,” Duncan said. “But in the event of circumstances we have another way of dealing with it. It’s not ideal, but we don’t have any concerns (about Moroun’s properties).
“This (bridge) is happening no matter what.” Also of concern to many in Windsor, especially those closest to the new bridge in Sandwich, are exactly what type of community benefits will be provided.
Funds to improve the surrounding host community are a requirement of the major infrastructure project.
A local working group has been formed and more than 250 suggestions “of what people want to see,” have so far been submitted to the bridge authority for consideration, said Heather Grondin, the bridge authority’s vice-president of communications.
Further consultation in the coming days will narrow the list under several categories defined by the bridge authority, she said. They include community partnerships, landscaping, mitigation measures and improved community safety. The first of those opportunities for the public to provide feedback will be on Dec. 4 when the bridge authority hosts a public information session at Mackenzie Hall from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
“We will talk to the community to gather more feedback on priorities of where people want us to spend the funds,” Grondin said. “Bridging North America will present a final list of initiatives to WDBA and we will ultimately decide the final plans.”
Using the funds for such expenditures as purchasing the former Windsor Jail or creating a health centre in Sandwich is outside the bridge authority’s mandate. But Grondin listed improvements that may be considered, including a bike-sharing program, connecting a multi-use trail from the new bridge to the Herb Gray Parkway trail, increased streetscaping and additional tree planting for buffering.