WINDSOR, Ont. – With U.S. representatives scratched from the guest list due to an ongoing trade dispute, the Canadian-only celebration for the soon to be opened Gordie Howe International Bridge that connects Windsor, Ont, and Detroit, Mich., was subdued on Friday.
“It would be a little disingenuous to think that on this particular week, when the president of the United States had launched 50 per cent tariffs on Canada, and then an additional 10 per cent, to be standing here shaking hands with our American counterparts, it would not feel right,” said Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens.
Billed as a towering beacon of trade and prosperity, the Gordie Howe Bridge spans 2.5 kilometres over the Detroit River. But the crossing now spans troubled and turbulent waters between two nations historically forged in friendship.
The border crossing was supposed to open back in June, but was delayed when U.S. President Donald Trump got involved, demanding that the terms of the deal, negotiated nearly a decade ago under his first presidential term, be reworked.
The bridge cost Canadian taxpayers roughly $6.4 billion dollars, money that is to be paid back from the bridge’s toll revenue.
A new “proposed agreement in principle” will run parallel to the original Canada-Michigan Crossing Agreement signed in 2012. Canada will now share 50 per cent of net bridge and crossing-related revenues after operational costs with the U.S. for the first 15 years.
In a Truth Social post Friday, Trump wrote that “Canada disinvited the United States of America to the opening of the Gordie Howe Bridge, which is fine, considering they are paying substantial TARIFFS to the United States, but the original Deal on the Bridge, which was terribly negotiated by a previous Administration, no longer stands. We changed the terms of the Deal so that the United States of America now gets 50% of the Profit.”
Though that isn’t exactly accurate, as Canada’s only previous deal was with the State of Michigan, both that deal and the new one remain in place, according to Canadian government officials.
Asked why it wouldn’t have been appropriate to stand on the stage and gladhand with American officials, Gregor Robertson, the federal minister of housing and infrastructure, told CTV News: “Given the back and forth between our levels of government, we thought it was more appropriate for us to focus on celebrating here in Canada today.”
Howe family celebrates father
On display during today’s coronation was a game of ball hockey. Some of the late Gordie Howe’s family members, 30 in total, travelled from across Canada and the U.S. to attend the opening, including his son’s Mark, Marty and Murray.
Howe was one of Canada’s finest sporting exports to the U.S.. Born in Floral, Sask., in 1944 Howe travelled to Windsor to try out for the Detroit Red Wings. He’d go onto win the Stanley Cup four times and become one of the most celebrated hockey players of all time.
“One of my father’s best qualities was he learned to accept everyone for who they were, and he wouldn’t be happy with the (trade) tensions that are going on,” said Mark Howe, Gordie’s second-oldest son, who like his dad was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
When asked what his father would say to those involved in the trade dispute, Marty Howe, Gordie’s eldest son, told CTV News his father would “tell everyone to sit down, get together, have some common sense and work it out.”
Those would be welcome words from an icon, who bridged Canada and the U.S. as a hockey superstar for decades.
As the Howe family deservedly soaked in the occasion, the fault lines in the cross-border relationship between Canada and the U.S. remained evident.
Barring another presidential intrusion, the Gordie Howe Bridge is set to open to both vehicle and pedestrian traffic on Monday. But even with road appearing to be cleared for the official opening, the future path this trade route may travel remains unclear.
With files from CTV News’ Stephanie Ha
Correction
The article has been corrected to reflect that the bridge will open to vehicle traffic on Monday.
