Public hearing scheduled for Ambassador Bridge's twin span proposal

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A public hearing will be held Tuesday in Detroit regarding a permit application by the Ambassador Bridge company to build its twin span.

The water resources division of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality will host the event, which begins at 6:30 p.m. with a one-hour informal question and answer session, followed by the public hearing at 7:30 p.m.

The hearing takes place at Detroit Western International High School at 1500 Scotten St.

The application for the permit was made by bridge company president Dan Stamper. It is not regarded as one of the major permits required for bridge owner Matty Moroun to build his proposed twin span because it deals strictly with wildlife and water quality issues in the Detroit River.

MDEQ officials indicated previously no information regarding traffic or air quality impacts will be accepted regarding the permit application.

The bridge company previously had the MDEQ permit in hand, but it reached its five-year expiration date earlier this year, forcing Moroun to go through the process a second time.

The twin span proposal is described in the application as a 1.17-mile long, cable-stayed bridge of which .48 miles will be over the Detroit River. The bridge will be 162.5 feet in elevation at the midpoint of the river.

The span would be just metres to the west of the existing bridge, with support towers on each shore – not in the water.

Among many outstanding permits or approvals the bridge company still requires on both sides of the border before it can build a twin span are from the U.S. Coast Guard, Transport Canada, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, the federal cabinet in Ottawa and a U.S. presidential permit in Washington.

For more information on the hearing, contact Jeremy Richardson of MDEQ’s Water Resources Division at 586-753-3860.

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