AMBASSADOR BRIDGE OWNERS UNVEIL BIG PLANS FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TORONTO 002778

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/20/2015
TAGS: ELTN PBTS PREL CA
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR BRIDGE OWNERS UNVEIL BIG PLANS FOR
DETROIT

REF: TORONTO 2248

Classified By: Acting Consul General Michael Schimmel for reasons 1.4 (
b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: On October 20 the Detroit Free Press reported
that the Ambassador Bridge owners have proposed giving the
City of Detroit $30 million to &extend the lease8 on the
Detroit Windsor Tunnel and buy some land at the foot of the
bridge. Ambassador Bridge owners say they plan to construct
a 200-acre super inspection plaza for U.S. and Canadian
border enforcement officials. This article was published one
day after the latest meeting of the Detroit River
International Crossing (DRIC) Study, evaluating possible
sites for a new border crossing. Although the Ambassador
Bridge owners are publicly stating that there is no need to
construct a new crossing between Detroit and Windsor, they
appear to be quietly moving behind the scenes toward
construction of a second privately-held bridge span. END
SUMMARY.

Ambassador Bridge Owners Unveil &Big Plans8 for Detroit
-------------- --------------


2. (U) The Detroit Free Press reported on October 20, 2005,
that the Detroit International Bridge Company (DIBC),
operator of the Ambassador Bridge, proposes giving the City
of Detroit $30 million to &extend the lease8 on the Detroit
Windsor Tunnel and buy about 25 acres of land near the
bridge. Officials in the Detroit Mayor,s office touted the
benefit to the city budget, and Ambassador Bridge owners
emphasized the economic development benefits, estimating that
up to 3,000 jobs would be created by the project. Some
Detroit City Councilors, however, expressed reservations
about the proposal.


3. (U) The proposal involves creation of a 200 acre super
inspection plaza for both U.S. and Canadian border
enforcement officials in Detroit at the foot of the existing
bridge (at an estimated cost of $150 to $200 million). Under
this proposal, which would require the concurrence of the
Canadian government to station Canadian officials on U.S.
soil, all existing border inspection facilities on both sides
of the border at the bridge and tunnel would be closed, all
inspections would be consolidated on the new site, and a
secured two-lane road would be built from the new super
inspection plaza to the entrance to the Detroit Windsor
Tunnel. Ambassador Bridge officials claimed the resulting
efficiencies would dramatically reduce crossing times,
enabling the existing crossings to handle more traffic and
pushing the need for another bridge span or tunnel expansion
20 to 25 years into the future.


3. (C) Neal Belitsky, Vice President of Operations for the
Detroit and Canada Tunnel Corporation (DCTC),told PolOff the
DCTC lease with the City of Detroit to operate the tunnel
runs through 2020. He noted that the DCTC joint operating
agreement with Windsor runs through 2007. Belitsky said he
was not certain whether Detroit could legally sell its
operating lease with the DCTC.

Is A New Detroit River Crossing In The Cards?
--------------


4. (C) The Detroit Free Press article was published one day
after the latest meeting of the Detroit River International
Crossing (DRIC) Study, evaluating possible sites for a new
border crossing (NOTE: PolOff attended the meeting and will
send a report on its conclusions via septel. END NOTE).
U.S. participants in the closed-door meeting noted that
constructing a second span parallel to the existing
Ambassador Bridge, would probably be acceptable from a U.S.
standpoint, if the new crossing were publicly owned. But
David Wake, from the Ontario Ministry of Transportation, said
he expects the Canadian side will shortly rule out this
possibility for social and environmental reasons because it
would result in an increased volume of truck traffic running
on already congested local roads through downtown Windsor.
DRIC meeting participants agreed that, if the bridge span
twinning proposal is rejected by Canada, the U.S. side will
drop it from consideration.


5. (C) An Army Corps of Engineers representative at the DRIC
meeting, said the Ambassador Bridge owners have in recent
weeks come to the Corps offices in Detroit to discuss how to
obtain the permit required to construct a second bridge span.
She, and the Coast Guard representative at the meeting,
noted that the U.S. permitting process is basically
technical, rather than policy-oriented, and must be completed
within 90 days (for the Coast Guard) and 120 days (for the
Corps of Engineers). Wake said the bridge owners have been
in similar discussions with Canadian government officials.
He observed that the Canadian permitting process is similarly
technical, noting that it may also be difficult for the
Canadian government to avoid issuing a permit if/when they
are asked.


6. (C) Comment: Although the Ambassador Bridge owners are
publicly stating that there is no need to construct a new
crossing between Detroit and Windsor, they appear to be
quietly moving behind the scenes toward construction of a
second privately-held bridge span. Today,s article in the
Detroit Free Press shows the funds the Ambassador Bridge
owners are willing to expend to protect their revenue stream
(estimated at $1 billion per year by the Detroit Free Press)
and gain political support for their plans on the Detroit
side of the river. Opening a new span on the Ambassador
Bridge site could bring some benefits to the Detroit side of
the river where a highway construction project will soon
provide the needed road infrastructure to smoothly funnel
additional cross-border traffic onto I-75. But adding a
bridge span in downtown Windsor would present a difficult
challenge for officials on the Canadian side of the river.
End Comment.

LECROY