Letter to the Grand Island Dispatch

“Islander’s Working for the Common Good” 

Congratulations Grand Islanders!  Your team effort finally brought common sense to the debate on the Peace Bridge Expansion project.  

Through the combined efforts of the hundreds of Islanders who participated in the Collaborative Workshop on December 7th, a clear message was sent to the Public Bridge Authority.  They now know that the least environmentally damaging alternative for a new bridge is the International Railroad crossing.   The collective knowledge and talents of our community carried the day breathing life back into this “rejected” alternative.  This is just the beginning of a process that will culminate in the scrapping of the ill conceived South of Grand Island and Grand Island bridge crossing alternatives.  

Despite the fact that our State Assemblyman incorrectly accused us of trafficking in wild rumors and accusations you were undaunted in your efforts to bring the facts to the table, so they could be considered by the Public Bridge Authority.   However, the battle is only beginning and your continued involvement is essential.  Working together with our Canadian counterparts we can make the International Railroad Crossing the best for the regional economy and our way of life. 

Teddy Roosevelt best summed up the daring of the people.  “Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because the live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.  Thanks, Grand Islanders you are the best. 

                                                                        Paul G. Leuchner