Совет города Норт-Бэй отклонил предложение о пожертвовании $200 тыс. исторической железной дороге

North Bay council rejects $200K donation to Heritage Railway and Carousel Article content A $200,000 donation to the Heritage Railway and Carousel Company was rejected by North Bay city council Tuesday night. Coun. Jamie Lowery told The Nugget after the two-and-a-half hour meeting he was surprised to see the majority of council reject the donation on behalf of Invest North Bay to the North Bay Heritage Railway and Carousel Company. “I take my hats off to them that they can raise $1 million in the North Bay community. I think it’s tremendous,” he said. Recommended Videos The railway and carousel company are in the process of raising $1 million to construct the Redpath Mining Heritage Railway Station. Construction is expected to start right after Labour Day 2027, with completion of the building in the spring of 2028. Lowery said he put the motion forward to “recognize the prosperity of the City of North Bay through its rich railroad history, scenic waterfront and the tireless efforts of our volunteers. This gesture helps ensure future generations, visitors and citizens will enjoy our tremendous community.” He praised the volunteers for their dedication and unwavering support. But not everyone was on board. Coun. Gary Gardiner said he is not supporting the $200,000 donation. “The city has already agreed to make a substantial investment in the train station and that will happen next year, infrastructure related – water, sewer and fiber optics. It comes at a cost of about $125,000. That will go into next year’s budget. We’re already investing in this project. He said when the campaign leader Rod Johnston presented to council he didn’t request anything from the city beyond the infrastructure investments. “It’s a surprise to them that this motion is before council tonight. They were not aware of it. I just think it’s not right.” Deputy Mayor Maggie Horsfield said the volunteer group is already over halfway to their goal, they have other plans in place for fundraising efforts and they are still in the process of completing grant applications. “At this time when I made a few phone calls, if there were conversations that had taken place and this is why this donation was being considered, they were completely blindsided,” she said. “And so with that I don’t think it’s representative of where this group is looking to get support from the city at this time. And that it’s better to have consultation to ensure we have alignment with our community partners before bringing something like this forward.” The motion was defeated with only Coun. Lowery, Coun. Mark King and Coun. Chris Mayne in support of providing the donation to the train and carousel group. The $200,000 will now go into the city’s coffers. Want to share your response to this story? Please mail your letter to the editor to [email protected]. Letters can run between 200 to 950 words. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.