This just in:
City of Ottawa and Ministry of Transportation to make a joint announcement
Ottawa – Mayor Jim Watson and Minister of Transportation Glen Murray will make a joint announcement on Friday.
They will be joined by Madeleine Meilleur, MPP for Ottawa-Vanier and Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services, and Councillor Mathieu Fleury (Rideau-Vanier).
Date: Friday, November 29
Time: 2:30 p.m.
Location: Councillors’ Lounge
City Hall
110 Laurier Avenue West (second floor)
The transportation master plan city council approved on Tuesday included a move to have Watson approach the province to share the cost of a feasibility study — the most basic sort of pre-study study — for building a truck tunnel under Sandy Hill, to connect Highway 417 to the Macdonald-Cartier Bridge at the north end of King Edward Avenue. Maybe it’s something else, but we’ve got here (1) a “joint” announcement, not a provincial announcement that city people will also be attending; (2) the transportation minister and the mayor who was to make the request; (3) the provincial and municipal politicians representing the whole of the affected area.
If it is indeed a truck-tunnel study, compare and contrast this two-day turnaround time with how long it took Finance Minister Charles Sousa to turn down the idea of a second casino. That went on all summer, just so Sousa could poke Watson in the eye. You get a feel for who your friends are, in this business.
