To: Mayor Mark Walas and Council, Municipality of Brighton

To: Mayor John Williams and Council, Municipality of Quinte West

To: Mayor Peter Mertens and Council, Municipality of Prince Edward County

Subject: The March 14, 2014 Federal Government/Parks Canada announcement of funding for the replacement of the West Murray Canal Swing Bridge 

Dear Sirs,

At the public meeting on April 23^rd, 2014, the MCDO proposed a process to solve the problem of Parks Canada building a single lane replacement for the Brighton Murray Canal swing bridge. We outlined the process and promised to follow up within the week with a detailed proposal to enact the process.

The outline we described at the meeting was as follows:

1. Ensure the unanimous motions passed by the three municipalities regarding suspending the single lane bridge plan were delivered to each of MP Norlock and Parks Canada and a response received as to how they would respond and proceed.
2. To work together with MP Norlock, the Municipalities, Parks Canada and the Federal Government to get the current single lane bridge plan suspended and the funds retained and combined with any additional funds needed to build a suitable replacement bridge within the same timelines as currently under consideration for the single lane replacement bridge project.
3. We requested an Information Disclosure from Parks Canada of all relevant documentary information regarding the proposed single lane replacement bridge, including: The governing bridge agreements; Any applicable policies relevant to the Trent Severn Waterway and specifically the Murray Canal; Traffic studies; Economic, tourism and traffic growth assumptions; Requirements analysis; Decision criteria; Decisions; The resulting design details and project plan for the single lane bridge, including costing and including any alternatives considered; And, the written specific ‘options’ offered to the municipality with respect to funding or taking over operation of the new bridge.
4. We proposed to ask the three Municipalities for Support and Resources to enable MCDO to work with the Municipalities, within timelines that would maintain the current bridge replacement schedule and maintain the window to the existing funding, to accomplish the following:
   1. Quickly conduct a Public Consultation to identify requirements for a suitable replacement bridge for today and many years into the future.
   2. Develop Additional Federally Financed Options to provide the additional funds needed for the above.
   3. Communicate and meet with the appropriate Federal Government officials to ensure the Additional Federally Financed Options are thoroughly communicated to the key decision makers, policy makers and influencers who can assist us.
5. We will continue with our outreach communications program to ensure the public is well informed about the bridge issue and its linkages to the broader wellbeing of the communities the bridge serves.

Following our letter is our quantified proposed action plan and timeline to address the above.

Our organization respectfully submits this plan, as promised, for your review and suggestions. We offer this in the spirit of cooperation and community action. We believe our organization can provide public awareness, public input and crucial non-governmental perspectives that will be critical to a successful resolution of the Murray Canal single lane bridge issues. We see the bridge issue as a turning point we will look back on, profoundly impacting the fortunes of the Murray Canal District and the three surrounding municipalities.

We are standing by to meet with you as soon as possible to discuss further and address any questions or comments.

Sincerely,

Dave Dingle, Co-Chair MCDO

Dave Ware, Co-Chair MCDO

Philip Spencer, Co-Chair MCDO

Attachment: MCDO Proposed Action Plan

Murray Canal District Organization

PO Box 903

Brighton ON K0K1H0