Sandwich Towne residents got a chance to have their voices heard Saturday.
The area will be wedged between two multi-billion-dollar construction projects — the Gordie Howe International Bridge is set to begin construction west of the community in 2018, and the Ambassador Bridge Company just got their new span approved to the east.
A little more than 200 people made their way through Mackenzie Hall on Sandwich St. at Brock St. for a community outreach meeting, according to Windsor-west MP Brian Masse.
He tells AM800 News, as expected, many residents are concerned about traffic and the debris the projects can bring to the community, but some residents raised issues that many may not have thought of.
"We had one woman and her husband who have health issues and need to move, but their property is being affected negatively by because of all this and financially they can't do it," says Masse. "What do we do about hardship situations, those are real problems for real people that did nothing wrong."
The Windsor-Detroit International Bridge Authority is providing funding as part of the Community Benefit Framework for construction Gordie Howe International Bridge.
Masse says many residents want Sandwich Towne left in better shape than it was found.
"More business, a bank for example was raised with regards to a priority," he says. "As well as just common areas of public parks and environment, creating a more complete society here in Sandwich Towne."
The area also has a large amount of group or student housing, some of which have absentee landlords — Masse says the topic of housing standards was also raised by several people in attendance.
The issue of unregulated group rentals is going before city council Monday night.
"You have a lot of property standards being stretched, violated, or not being enforced," he says. "At the end of the day it's a subsidy for the person who owns the property, many of these being people outside this community that really don't have a connection to it whether it be in Sandwich Towne or other parts of the city of Windsor."
Masse has been circulating a survey and going door to door to collect input over the past week to go along with the meeting.
He is taking all the recommendations gathered from the community to all three levels of government.