Materials for bridge part of issue holding up project

Materials for bridge part of issue holding up project The sourcing of materials that'd be used to build a whole new public bridge from Detroit to Windsor is one of several obstacles that must be cleared before the project can proceed, a top official in the administration of Gov. "There are a couple of issues that need to be worked out at the national level, and that's one of them," Rustem said. "It's not just the steel, per se, but where all of the products are going to come from. Snyder is pushing the bridge as a means to clear a border bottleneck and assure access for Michigan exporters to their largest market in Canada. Ambassador Bridge owner Manuel (Matty) Moroun opposes the public span as unfair competition for his private bridge. Mickey Blashfield, head of government relations for the company that owns the Ambassador Bridge, issued a statement that said Snyder's closed-door negotiations with Canada "threaten to neuter the Michigan Legislature and pre-empt the will of the Michigan voters. The Canadians also are big backers of the bridge and have offered to front Michigan's $550-million share of related costs and recover the money from bridge tolls. Mark Butler, a spokesman for Transport Canada, said Friday that the Canadian government "remains committed to building a brand new publicly owned bridge between Windsor and Detroit which will benefit both countries. Snyder has said he is prepared to push ahead with the bridge without support from the Michigan Legislature after a bill to facilitate construction of the bridge was defeated in a Senate committee last year. government prefers to use domestic products in projects it is involved with, but the Canadian government, which has a major financial stake in the project, wants to use the lowest-cost materials, including Chinese steel. Blashfield is also heading a ballot initiative committee aimed at amending the state constitution to require a public vote to build the public bridge. Materials for bridge part of issue holding up project Trade News selected by Local Linkup on 03/06/2012