City council has approved a $10.5 million plan to replace the Charles Brooks Memorial Peace Fountain along Windsor's riverfront.
Council approved a plan at Monday's meeting that will see a new floating fountain, very similar to the previous one, installed in the Detroit River at the foot of Reaume Park at 236 Pillette Rd. along Riverside Drive.
The plan will see $9 million spent on the new fountain and another $1.5 million to allow it to be stored at the park during the winter months.
Charles Brooks youngest son, George Brooks, says he's so proud of council.
"That they've realized the importance of the memory of my father, grassroots in the community. I'm immensely proud of how we're moving forward. This is a new day. This is a beginning," he says.
Brooks, the former president of the United Auto Workers Local 444, was shot and killed at the union hall on Turner Road in 1977 by a disgruntled Chrysler worker who had lost his job.
"The concept of peace, of world peace, and that we can actually effect the world from our own front yard," he says.
Brooks believes the fountain and his father's message of peace will always be important to his family, and they hope it remains important a hundred years from now.
"He was a man way ahead of his time, based on the words Kenny Lewenza used. I'm overwhelmed; it was fantastic. I'm proud of my city," he says.
The new peace fountain is expected to be installed sometime in 2026, at the latest in 2027.
Along with the new peace fountain, a city committee will be created to explore the creation of a day for peace event on September 21, the World Day of Peace.