ldoto
January 3rd, 2008, 06:33 PM
Thu, January 3, 2008
Three plans are being floated for links across Lake Erie to Ohio or Pennsylvania.
By CHIP MARTIN, SUN MEDIA
Talk of a ferry crossing for Lake Erie is heating up.
And the talk is about three proposals to link Ohio, Pennsylvania and Ontario ports.
The three proponents will present their cases to port authority officials at a meeting east of Cleveland next week as the officials consider which is worth pursuing from the American side of the lake.
The proposed links are:
- Erie, Pa., to Port Dover.
- Cleveland, Ohio, to Port Stanley.
- Fairport Harbor, east of Cleveland, to Port Burwell.
Port authorities in the Ohio counties of Cuyahoga (partnered with Cleveland), Lake and Ashtabula (partnered with Erie) have called the gathering to decide which plan is worth pursuing in a bid to enhance the daily $88 million worth of trade between Ohio and Ontario.
The most recent plan has come from the tiny lakeside village of Grand River, which is working with Short Sea Lines for the Fairport Harbor-to-Port Burwell link.
Grand River Mayor Chris Conley said yesterday he and representatives of other smaller harbour authorities will also be on hand Jan. 7 as officials assess the relative merits of the three plans.
"All of these people are going to decide what's the best ferry, and, combined, work toward that end," he said.
Conley's community sees becoming an international border crossing as an important economic boost to the area, which has seen a decline in manufacturing.
"Mine's the best," Conley said, noting it would move more transport trucks than rival proposals and more cars and passengers.
"The only way to keep this ferry in the black is by what she can carry in the hold," he said, noting the bid from nearby Cleveland would accommodate fewer trucks. And Cleveland is beginning a 20-year plan to relocate its harbour, which would delay ferry plans.
"Why are you even in the ferry hunt and why are you not helping me?" Conley said he has asked Cleveland officials.
The more easterly crossing from Ashtabula-Erie to Port Dover is so close to Buffalo, it would shave little off travel times between Ohio and the Toronto area compared to the land route, Conley said.
Conley said aside from the hundreds of jobs and economic stimulus the $465-million project would bring, it would reduce carbon emissions significantly and help clean up the environment.
He has met with officials in Ontario, including those in Oxford County who like the idea of a closer link to Ohio.
Central Elgin Mayor Sylvia Hofhuis said the Port Stanley plan has the strong backing of Cleveland officials. They've secured federal U.S. funding and are "very keen to get going," Hofhuis said.
But the delay is on the Canadian side of the border: Central Elgin is negotiating with the federal government to take ownership of the Port Stanley harbour. Until then, Hofhuis can't make any deal with her Ohio counterparts.
"When we get the harbour, we will begin serious negotiations with (officials in) Cleveland," she said. "They're quite willing to help us in any way they can."
At Port Burwell, dredging of the mouth of the Otter Creek would be required, Bayham Mayor Lynn Acre noted.
"We're interested in it for economic development and because of the help we could get with dredging," Acre said.
"And there would be a lot of environmental benefits, getting all those trucks off the road. This could create a new trade route between Ohio and the Greater Toronto Area."
She said Bayham hopes to contribute toward a feasibility study by getting money from Ontario's rural economic development program.
"It's too good an opportunity to let it go adrift," she said .
Acre said she's supportive of Conley and the Fairport Harbor proposal and hopes the meeting of cross-lake harbour officials next week will pave the way for a mutually beneficial cross-lake link.
FERRY PROPOSALS
1 Cleveland, Ohio, to Port Stanley
Proponent: Royal Wagenborg
Service: Passage for 500 passengers and 225 cars or 75 transport trucks, with two or three crossings daily
Crossing time: Three hours
2 Fairport Harbor, Ohio, to Port Burwell
Proponent: Short Sea Lines
Service: 3,000 transport trucks (half northbound, half southbound) each day, or each ferry trip with 398 cars or 600 people
Crossing time: Two hours
3 Erie, Pa., to Port Dover
Proponent: Erie- Western Pennsylvania Port Authority
Service: 58-metre fast ferry with room for 46 cars and nearly 250 passengers
Crossing time: 80 minutes
Three plans are being floated for links across Lake Erie to Ohio or Pennsylvania.
By CHIP MARTIN, SUN MEDIA
Talk of a ferry crossing for Lake Erie is heating up.
And the talk is about three proposals to link Ohio, Pennsylvania and Ontario ports.
The three proponents will present their cases to port authority officials at a meeting east of Cleveland next week as the officials consider which is worth pursuing from the American side of the lake.
The proposed links are:
- Erie, Pa., to Port Dover.
- Cleveland, Ohio, to Port Stanley.
- Fairport Harbor, east of Cleveland, to Port Burwell.
Port authorities in the Ohio counties of Cuyahoga (partnered with Cleveland), Lake and Ashtabula (partnered with Erie) have called the gathering to decide which plan is worth pursuing in a bid to enhance the daily $88 million worth of trade between Ohio and Ontario.
The most recent plan has come from the tiny lakeside village of Grand River, which is working with Short Sea Lines for the Fairport Harbor-to-Port Burwell link.
Grand River Mayor Chris Conley said yesterday he and representatives of other smaller harbour authorities will also be on hand Jan. 7 as officials assess the relative merits of the three plans.
"All of these people are going to decide what's the best ferry, and, combined, work toward that end," he said.
Conley's community sees becoming an international border crossing as an important economic boost to the area, which has seen a decline in manufacturing.
"Mine's the best," Conley said, noting it would move more transport trucks than rival proposals and more cars and passengers.
"The only way to keep this ferry in the black is by what she can carry in the hold," he said, noting the bid from nearby Cleveland would accommodate fewer trucks. And Cleveland is beginning a 20-year plan to relocate its harbour, which would delay ferry plans.
"Why are you even in the ferry hunt and why are you not helping me?" Conley said he has asked Cleveland officials.
The more easterly crossing from Ashtabula-Erie to Port Dover is so close to Buffalo, it would shave little off travel times between Ohio and the Toronto area compared to the land route, Conley said.
Conley said aside from the hundreds of jobs and economic stimulus the $465-million project would bring, it would reduce carbon emissions significantly and help clean up the environment.
He has met with officials in Ontario, including those in Oxford County who like the idea of a closer link to Ohio.
Central Elgin Mayor Sylvia Hofhuis said the Port Stanley plan has the strong backing of Cleveland officials. They've secured federal U.S. funding and are "very keen to get going," Hofhuis said.
But the delay is on the Canadian side of the border: Central Elgin is negotiating with the federal government to take ownership of the Port Stanley harbour. Until then, Hofhuis can't make any deal with her Ohio counterparts.
"When we get the harbour, we will begin serious negotiations with (officials in) Cleveland," she said. "They're quite willing to help us in any way they can."
At Port Burwell, dredging of the mouth of the Otter Creek would be required, Bayham Mayor Lynn Acre noted.
"We're interested in it for economic development and because of the help we could get with dredging," Acre said.
"And there would be a lot of environmental benefits, getting all those trucks off the road. This could create a new trade route between Ohio and the Greater Toronto Area."
She said Bayham hopes to contribute toward a feasibility study by getting money from Ontario's rural economic development program.
"It's too good an opportunity to let it go adrift," she said .
Acre said she's supportive of Conley and the Fairport Harbor proposal and hopes the meeting of cross-lake harbour officials next week will pave the way for a mutually beneficial cross-lake link.
FERRY PROPOSALS
1 Cleveland, Ohio, to Port Stanley
Proponent: Royal Wagenborg
Service: Passage for 500 passengers and 225 cars or 75 transport trucks, with two or three crossings daily
Crossing time: Three hours
2 Fairport Harbor, Ohio, to Port Burwell
Proponent: Short Sea Lines
Service: 3,000 transport trucks (half northbound, half southbound) each day, or each ferry trip with 398 cars or 600 people
Crossing time: Two hours
3 Erie, Pa., to Port Dover
Proponent: Erie- Western Pennsylvania Port Authority
Service: 58-metre fast ferry with room for 46 cars and nearly 250 passengers
Crossing time: 80 minutes