A private members' bill to establish Ojibway National Urban Park has passed third reading and will now move onto the Senate.
On Wednesday afternoon, MP for Windsor West Brian Masse's bill C-248 passed third reading with a vote of 319 in favour and one against in the House of Commons.
Third reading is the final step in the House of Commons in the legislative process for a bill, but this bill has been years in the making.
The proposed National Urban Park would include Ojibway Park, Spring Garden Natural Area, Black Oak Heritage Park, the Tallgrass Prairie Park, Ojibway Prairie Provincial Nature Reserve, and Ojibway Shores, and would be over 900-acres of space.
The proposed park is also the last remaining, undeveloped natural shoreline in Windsor-Detroit and is home to hundreds of endangered species.
Speaking on AM800's The Shift with Patty Handysides, Mike Fisher, member of the Friends of Ojibway Prairie Board of Directors, says it's beyond exciting to see it move another step forward.
"There's been so much good news lately that there's many people who have been cheering this on for many years. And we've had just so many great announcements, and so much positive energy that have been happening and culminating into a great vote. So, I think it's been worth the wait I'll say."
He says it's nice to see all parties really come together after this long process.
"What we're really seeing over the past few weeks is everyone getting on board and working together because there's something fantastic being done by Parks Canada, and the City of Windsor, and the Town of LaSalle, and all of the local partners who have been talking with the public and holding open houses and looking at how big this project really could be."
Fisher says there are other lands nearby that could still be included in the next steps.
"When you attend a Parks Canada open house there's a draft study area that has a different set of lands that are the potential for the parks. So, what will be really interesting to look at is the private member's bill goes forward, and continuing efforts go forward working with Parks Canada and the City of Windsor, and all the partners, is just what does the park look like in inception, and all the lands that could be included, and what does it look like long-term?"
The initial discussion of the idea for the Ojibway National Urban Park was held in Windsor in August 2019 and over the past three years a consensus has developed for all publicly owned properties, parks, and preserves included to be combined into a National Urban Park.
In June 2022, in a vote of 169 for the bill and 147 against C-248, it passes second reading in the House of Commons.
In October 2022, at House of Commons Environment and Sustainable Development Committee Caldwell First Nation, the City of Windsor, Wildlands League, and Friends of Ojibway testified in favour of the bill. The vote to pass the bill at committee was 6 to 5.
The bill will now move to the Senate for further discussion and voting.
-with files from AM800's The Shift with Patty Handysides