There’s good news for recreational users of the Burlington canal shipping piers.
Hamilton-East/Stoney Creek Liberal MP Bob Bratina says the federal government has agreed to allow continued public access while negotiations continue to resolve safety and liability concerns.
“The government is not going to take any permanent steps in the near future about blocking public access to those piers,” said Bratina, “and that’s great news because there was a threat that, as early as next week, work might have begun” on the installation of steel gates.
Transport Canada first indicated, late last year, that it planned to block access to the concrete piers that line the shipping canal from Lake Ontario into Hamilton Harbour/Burlington Bay.
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Residents of Hamilton and Burlington have responded with a 1,900-signature petition opposing the change. Bratina says he will present that petition next week in the House of Commons.
After more than 100 years of public access to the piers for fishing, walking, running and other recreational pursuits, Bratina said it’s “almost an issue of squatters’ rights.”
“We’ve got a lot of irons in the fire,” adds Bratina, as negotiations continue with the federal government towards a permanent resolution. He believes “it’s going to work out for the best, no matter who ends up being the responsible agency for safety and liability on the pier.”
Transport Canada spokesman Clay Cervoni had previously said “as this property does not have the necessary infrastructure to mitigate the possibility of personal injury, limiting access to this site is necessary, particularly during inclement conditions.”
The plans quickly drew opposition from the mayors of both Hamilton and Burlington.
Hamilton Mayor Fred Eisenberger has said he would work to prevent the closure, calling the piers “a popular spot for walkers, sightseers, photographers and people fishing, not only by local residents of the Beach Strip community but people throughout Hamilton and Burlington.”
Despite not owning the piers, Burlington Mayor Marianne Meed Ward has told Global News they are considered a part of a $50-million regional waterfront park that includes Spencer Smith.
“It actually envisions and includes access to those piers,” Meed Ward said.