It has been a long time coming, and a late Friday (August 31) tweet from International Trade Minister Jim Carr is the news the community of Churchill has been waiting for.
A deal to sell the rail line and the Port of Churchill has been complete between Omnitrax and a consortium of Northern Manitoba communities and two companies from Ontario and Saskatchewan. With the deal complete, work on repairing the critical rail line is expected to begin this week. In announcing the deal, Carr said the collaboration represents a progressive approach towards redefining relationships with First Nations and Inuit people in Canada. It also reinforces the significance of the rail line and its importance in the lives of the people in northern Manitoba.
While there is still a great deal of work to be done this is tremendous news for the residents of Churchill who have been in a state of flux for more than a year. Since the closure of the port, the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce (MCC) has worked with the provincial and federal governments, along with local leaders to get to the point. Following the news, MCC president Chuck Davidson spoke with CTV News and said the new owners are committed to the long-term growth of the community and that can only be good for northern Manitoba.
You can see MCC’s comment from CTV’s story on the Churchill deal by clicking here.
