21 September 2006
$1.7M Deal Lets Winnipeg Replace Rail with Bike Trail
Winnipeg Manitoba - Winnipeg announced a deal on Thursday
that, if approved, could turn a 6.7-kilometre abandoned rail line into a bicycle path that could also become a rapid
transit line.
The $1.7-million deal would see the city buy Canadian Pacific Railway's dormant Marconi line, which runs through the
northeast quadrant of Winnipeg, and initially create a bicycle path and walking trail from Glenway Avenue in North Kildonan to Nairn
Avenue in Elmwood.
The deal was brokered by local businessman and philanthropist John Buhler, the chief executive officer of Buhler Industries. Calling
himself a bit of a railway buff, Buhler said he owns land adjoining the Marconi line.
"It's such a beautiful piece of property right to the heart of the city all the way to Birds Hill Park," Buhler said on
Thursday.
"I envision it as a rapid transit line, but there's no reason why a rapid transit line can't be sometime in the future, and a
bicycle path be the initial start of what's to be done on that line."
Buhler credited Mayor Sam Katz with making the deal a reality.
"All the time, I said I can't buy a 99-foot... six-kilometre piece of railway track in the centre of the
city. We have to know what we're going to do with it," Buhler said.
"Then I started communications with Sam Katz and he said, "Hey, you're probably getting a better deal than we're getting, and
so keep it up. And so, Sam was the driving force behind all of this."
But Katz gave Buhler much credit with saving the city about $1 million.
"The city tried purchasing the Marconi line over two years ago for more money than John Buhler closed the deal for, and we weren't
able to do it back then," Katz said.
"So it just goes to show that the expertise and the wisdom and the reputation of John Buhler was significantly helpful in closing
this."
Katz said while the city is still discussing the idea of a rapid transit system, a southbound line from downtown to the University of
Manitoba would still be the city's main priority.
However, he added that the land purchase will make it much easier for the city if it wants to develop rapid transit in the northern part
of the city.
Buhler has donated more than $7 million in recent years to charitable projects in southern Manitoba, including $500,000 toward a theatre
and music hall at the Mennonite Collegiate Institute in Gretna and $3.5 million to the John Buhler Research Centre at Winnipeg's Health
Sciences Centre.
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