Windsor, Ontario. June 2024 marks five years of delivery for the Gordie Howe International Bridge Community Benefits Plan, with the project team unwavering in its commitment to enhance the communities closest to the project. Today, thirteen organizations serving Sandwich/west Windsor and Delray/Southwest Detroit are the latest recipients of $200,000 (CDN) in Community Benefits Plan funding.
The funding is part of the Community Organization Investment initiative, which offers grants up to $25,000 (CDN) to organizations serving the communities closest to the project. Seven organizations from Windsor and six from Detroit were selected following an application and review process. Funded projects will be delivered between July 2024 and June 2025, including:
Canadian Initiatives
- Windsor Symphony Orchestra: Education, community outreach and concert programming
- CJAM Student Media: 2024 Higher Grounds Music Festival
- Windsor-Essex Community Housing Corporation: Kickstarting the West
- Society of Saint Vincent de Paul: Fridge/freezer purchase and programming support
- Bike Windsor Essex: Virtual guided bicycle tours
- Assumption University: Father Joe Quinn Education Series
- Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary: Family activities and events
US Initiatives
- New City Kids: Transformational Teen Life Internship program
- Hispanic Police Officers’ Association of Michigan – Detroit Chapter: Grants for Youth Sports in Southwest Detroit
- Southwest Detroit Business Association: Experience Southwest Detroit
- Trinity-St. Mark’s Pantry and Gardens: Feed the Homeless
- Unity in Our Community Timebank: Let’s Get Moving
- Southwest Economic Solutions: Literacy programming at Campbell
To date, this initiative has invested $700,000 (CDN) in events, programming and infrastructure improvements. All funding recipients and their projects align with community priorities identified during previous public consultation.
Following five years of successful delivery, the Community Organization Investment initiative has been extended for an additional year, with the final application period set to launch in November 2024. With these additions, over 100 projects have been or are being delivered collaboratively through the Neighbourhood Infrastructure Strategy with the help of over 70 local partners.
QUOTES
“Our commitment to community investment has yielded astounding results for the Windsor-Detroit region over the past five years, with over 100 projects underway or complete through the Neighbourhood Infrastructure Strategy. I am incredibly proud of the work we’ve accomplished in collaboration with our valued delivery partners.”
- Charl van Niekerk, CEO, Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority (WDBA)
“The extension of the Community Organization Investment initiative for an additional year is a direct response to community feedback and the success of the projects completed to date. I look forward to seeing these new projects come to fruition in the Sandwich and Delray communities and congratulate the successful recipients.”
- David Henderson, CEO, Bridging North America (BNA)
“Our partners in Canada continue to deliver on promises to help vital organizations, including some in Southwest Detroit focused on helping youths, the unhoused and reading programs. Even before this transformational bridge is open, the project is paying dividends in communities on both sides of the border.”
- Bradley C. Wieferich, Director, Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT)
“Local community organizations are working day in and day out to build stronger and healthier West End neighbourhoods in Windsor. The Community Benefits initiative is supporting their vital work and positively impacting the lives of residents in our community. Between the battery plant, Ojibway National Urban Park, and the Gordie Howe International Bridge, our federal government is leading the remarkable revival and transformation of our landscape, our economy and our region for the better. The future is bright for Windsor-Essex.”
- Irek Kusmierczyk, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages and Member of Parliament for Windsor—Tecumseh, on behalf of the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities
QUICK FACTS
- The Gordie Howe International Bridge Community Benefits Plan includes two components: the Neighbourhood Infrastructure Strategy and Workforce Development and Participation Strategy.
- Funding through the Community Organization Investment (COI) initiative is available annually between 2020 to 2025 and is one of over 50 initiatives that make up the Neighbourhood Infrastructure Strategy. More than 50 projects have received COI funding over the past five years.
- The 2024 application process ran from November 2023 through January 2024, resulting in 24 eligible submissions. The project’s Local Community Group, comprised of stakeholders from the host communities, played a significant role in reviewing applications and providing recommendations to the project team.
- Through this initiative, community organizations can apply annually for funding for events, programming and infrastructure improvements in amounts ranging from $1,000 - $25,000 (CDN). All funding recipients align with priorities identified during public consultation including community partnerships, community safety and connections, aesthetics and landscaping and economic benefits.
- The Gordie Howe International Bridge Community Benefits Plan is being delivered by Bridging North America with collaboration and oversight from WDBA and the State of Michigan.
RELATED PRODUCTS
- Supportive Statements
- Fact Sheet: 2024 Community Organization Investment Funded Initiatives
- Winter 2024 Community Benefits Quarterly Report
ASSOCIATED LINKS
- Community Organization Investment Recipients 2020-2023
- Gordie Howe International Bridge Community Benefits Plan
ABOUT WINDSOR-DETROIT BRIDGE AUTHORITY
Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority (WDBA) is a not-for-profit Canadian Crown corporation created to deliver the Gordie Howe International Bridge project between Windsor, ON and Detroit, MI through a public- private partnership (P3). WDBA is responsible for overseeing and managing the construction and operation of the new crossing. For more information on WDBA visit GordieHoweInternationalBridge.com and follow the project on Facebook at facebook.com/GordieHoweBridge.
ABOUT BRIDGING NORTH AMERICA
Bridging North America (BNA) became the private-sector partner to design, build, finance, operate and maintain the Gordie Howe International Bridge project in September 2018. BNA is comprised of some of the most recognized leaders in the construction and infrastructure industry which includes North American and international companies. BNA partners have significant experience carrying out major infrastructure projects such as the Rt. Hon. Herb Gray Parkway in Windsor, Ontario; New Champlain Bridge Corridor in Montreal, Quebec; Autoroute 30 in Montreal, Quebec; Eglinton Crosstown LRT in Toronto, Ontario; Réseau Express Métropolitain (REM) in Montreal, Quebec; Automated People Mover at LAX Airport, California; Harbor Bridge, Corpus Christi, Texas; Tappan Zee Bridge in New York and San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, California.
ABOUT MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) is responsible for Michigan's 9,669-mile state highway system, comprised of all M, I, and US routes. MDOT also administers other state and federal transportation programs for aviation, intercity passenger services, rail freight, local public transit services, the Transportation Economic Development Fund (TEDF), and others. MDOT works directly with WDBA on the US components of the Gordie Howe International Bridge project.
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Gordie Howe International Bridge
Media Relations Team
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