JTF-2/Airborne destined for land north of Trenton?

[The Bread Guy]

The latest via CTV.ca:  last man standing still trying ....

The fight between an Ontario farmer and the Department of National Defence is likely to end in the government's favour unless protesters are able to inflict political pressure, according to a real estate lawyer.

Approximately 200 acres of Frank Meyers' farm in Trenton, Ont. face demolition this week, to make way for the Canada Special Forces Command's new headquarters and training camp the DND plans to build there.

Now in his mid-80s, Meyers has been fighting the move for more than seven years.

Meyers, whose family has worked the farm since 1787, was to be compensated for the land transfer under the terms of a confidential deal reached last November, but the farmer says he "never got anything."

"I didn't understand a thing. I was never given a copy of anything," Meyers told CTV's Canada AM on Wednesday morning. He said he's asked government representatives to meet with him since the hearing, but "nobody comes to see us. We've asked them. We've called them."

In the letters he was distributing to visitors at his farm Tuesday, Meyers declared three points of contention with the deal.

Besides providing "no benefit" and being "a causal source of harm," Meyers wrote that it "lacks the capacity to compel performance" and "lacks the power to force i (sic) or my person to be bound to perform under any and all of its terms and conditions."

The government took possession of his land in August 2012, but his family never left. Now, with the prospect of bulldozers, more than 91,000 people have signed an online petition, and a Facebook page trying to raise awareness has almost 28,000 likes.

However, Meyers does not have the law on his side.

"Every level of government -- federal, provincial and city -- has the right to take away your land," real estate lawyer Mark Weisleder told Canada AM. "What they have to demonstrate though, is that it's for the greater public good. That's the test." ....

 

[The Bread Guy]

The Info-machine cranks up a Backgrounder on the proposed expansion - maps attached....

In the early 2000s, the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces began considering a new location to accommodate the growing needs of the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command (CANSOFCOM), as their current facility in Dwyer Hill, Ontario was too small.

Following the identification of this requirement, an extensive options analysis was conducted in 2005 and 2006 to determine the best possible option.  The key criteria for a new location included close proximity to an existing DND/CAF facility; easy access from all parts of Canada; and an area large enough to support various requirements such as water-oriented training.

That said, the primary criterion was to identify potential locations that would result in minimal disruptions to the local population, affecting the fewest people and avoiding impacts to public infrastructure such as roads and railways. With the view to limiting disruptions to surrounding communities, particular attention was given to areas where the Government of Canada owned unused property contiguous with Canadian Armed Forces facilities.

In light of these criteria, DND/CAF analysis determined that expanding 8 Wing Trenton was the most appropriate course of action.  It was then determined that expanding directly north of the wing was the most appropriate course of action, considering the significantly higher number of residents and established businesses whose land and installation would have had to be purchased or expropriated east and west of the selected area.  Furthermore, expanding east of the selected area would have meant expanding in an area not contiguous to the Wing and creating additional restrictions due to the landing strip final approach. Also, a storage unit, pharmaceutical warehouses and a municipal works depot are being built immediately west of the selected area, thus making this area unsuitable for the expansion.

8 Wing Trenton is the largest Royal Canadian Air Force Base in the country and the hub of Canada’s strategic airlift capability, which will facilitate the deployment of our Special Forces. 8 Wing Trenton’s prime location along Highway 401 allows for a rapid response to emergencies in major Canadian population centres, like Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa.

In 2007, with a view of purchasing their properties, the Government of Canada began approaching residents of the area bordering the northern edge of 8 Wing, RCAF Road to the west, Whites Road to the east and the railway track to the north.  A total of twelve homeowners were affected.  The situation was explained to each homeowner and a price for their land was negotiated based on market value. As of May 2012, all but two landowners voluntarily sold their properties to the Government of Canada.  The last two properties were expropriated in May 2012 and, subsequently, compensation agreements were signed.

Over the years, the Wing has been able to build and maintain solid working relationships with the Municipality of Quinte West.  The municipality has been consulted and continues to be consulted on various aspects of the project to ensure local concerns were addressed; including the increased traffic flow on municipal roads around the site.

In May 2010, the municipal council of Quinte West unanimously adopted a resolution supporting the acquisition of  “"all lands required for the relocation of the JTF2 unit to the City of Quinte West through the use of all means necessary up to, and including, expropriation"”.  Shortly thereafter, the municipal council of Belleville adopted a similar motion. The Quinte West municipal reiterated this position in a new resolution in February 2014.

Work on the 400-acre expansion of 8 Wing Trenton and the construction of a new training and administrative campus has begun with the site preparation, which includes the demolition and removal of buildings on DND property.  Once completed, detailed design and construction of the new campus will commence.

The expansion of 8 Wing Trenton, and the associated construction, is expected to have a long-lasting positive economic impact on the community and the region, generating many direct and indirect job creation opportunities stemming from the construction of the project and the arrival of new families once the installations are completed.

 

[421_434_226]

Hey, I can see my house and where I work in the first picture.

 

[MacIssac]

I have frank(farmer) on my facebook lol

 

[The Bread Guy]

Bumped with the latest, via an open letter in support of the last man standing ....

On the night of Wednesday the 22nd of May, certain interested parties took the opportunity of darkness to plant cement “Jersey Barriers” around a farm near C.F.B Trenton.  Frank and Marjorie Meyers’ farm is being successfully hunted down by CFB Trenton because they need the land. Frank & Marjorie have been hunted for years. They are older than those chasing them and are in the way of progress and military prerogative. Lots of people support their right to live out their life on the land they own and nurtured to make their livelihood, but some pencil pushing military power tripper decided, “we need this land”. If that self-important git would like to meet me, it would be my pleasure.

So for years now, the Meyers have been harassed and intimidated. Last night, in a cowardly attempt to avoid the press someone was ordered to begin the process of taking someone’s land away from them through coerced and mis-leading expropriation.

It could be that the nighttime was the right time because a whole bunch of commissioned officers had golf starting times at the CFB Trenton Golf Course. Yes, they have that much land available, but they need to take a Canadian’s land because they want it. SCOREGolf Magazine Describes the golf course as, ”…located on the north side of the airfield. The clubhouse includes a pro-shop, locker rooms, covered deck and a complete food and beverage outlet.” ....

 

[PMedMoe]

Wasn't that settled months ago?  I'm sorry, Mr. Meyers has had well more than his five minutes of fame..... 

 

[The Bread Guy]

I'm sorry, Mr. Meyers has had well more than his five minutes of fame..... 

Ten more minutes to go, it seems ....

An Ontario farmer who has fought for years to save his historic land from the Canadian military—a battle bolstered in recent months by tens of thousands of online supporters—will soon have nothing left to fight for.

Demolition workers gathered on Frank Meyers’s former property early Wednesday morning, installing a concrete barricade and delivering large metal shipping containers in preparation for a razing that his family—and many sympathetic strangers—have been dreading. Contacted by Maclean’s, a spokeswoman for the Department of National Defence (DND) confirmed that the controversial site has been “secured” for demolition, a “standard practice to ensure public safety.”

As for when the teardown will officially begin, DND won’t say. But the sudden prep work suggests the excavators will arrive at any moment, poised to rip down the old Meyers barn and numerous other sheds ....

 

[Tulsa01]

So I'm hearing that the cost of moving JTF2 from Dwyer Hill to Trenton has nearly tripled from $346M to over $1B, a final decision is due in Summer 2017. Some are saying now that the whole concept will likely be scrapped. What do you guys think? 

 

[SeaKingTacco]

I think that those who know, won't say.

Those who say, don't know.

 

[PuckChaser]

Would make a real nice photo op for the PM after the slash to funding this year. He could take a selfie with some assaulters.

 

[Good2Golf]

So I'm hearing that the cost of moving JTF2 from Dwyer Hill to Trenton has nearly tripled from $346M to over $1B, a final decision is due in Summer 2017. Some are saying now that the whole concept will likely be scrapped. What do you guys think?

I think since you're neither Mr. Forester, Monsieur Rochette, nor Mr. Pitfield, it doesn't matter what you've heard.

  :

 

[The Bread Guy]

Necrothread bumped with the latest ...

The federal Liberal government is pulling the plug on a decade-old plan to move the military's elite Joint Task Force 2 to a new base, ending years of speculation and uncertainty for the commando unit's members and their families.

The decision, announced Monday by Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan in response to a question from The Canadian Press, comes despite the previous Conservative government's having spent millions acquiring land for a new facility near Canadian Forces Base Trenton in Ontario.

"In the changing global security environment, we remain focused on making sure that the Canadian special forces are equipped to deal with these challenges," Sajjan said in an emailed statement.

"I want to assure those who are serving with JTF2 and their families that we have no plans to move this facility out of Ottawa."

While the minister did not provide reasons for the decision, defence officials have previously spoken of a desire to keep JTF2, whose primary role is counter-terror missions in Canada and abroad, close to Ottawa to guard against terrorist attacks ...

 

[daftandbarmy]

Necrothread bumped with the latest ...

"While the minister did not provide reasons for the decision, defence officials have previously spoken of a desire to keep JTF2, whose primary role is counter-terror missions in Canada and abroad, close to Ottawa to guard against terrorist attacks ..."

The distance from Hereford to London is still 130 miles.... just sayin'  :

https://www.google.ca/search?source=hp&ei=gQxCXsKDMO3A0PEPmsCfgA0&q=distance+from+hereford+to+london&oq=distance+from+hereford+&gs_l=psy-ab.1.1.0l4j0i22i30l6.2423.9203..10961...0.0..0.214.2230.15j7j1......0....1..gws-wiz.......0i131j0i10.KjpmnGXGzQo#spf=1581386885213

 

[dapaterson]

The distance from Hereford to London is still 130 miles.... just sayin'  :

But what colour is the boathouse?

 

[Old Sweat]

Hmmm, this is interesting because the "buzz" was that the MND at the time disliked SOF as unmilitary. So, he wanted JTF2 moved out of his riding.

There really isn't a classic boathouse.

 

[Cloud Cover]

JTF2 like all ninja forces, does not “guard against terror attacks.” What a stupid statement. They may respond to a terror attack if they are given notice.

 

[dapaterson]

There really isn't a classic boathouse.

You're no Sean Bean...

#Ronin

 

[PuckChaser]

Scuttled the move because of pushback by stakeholders, or because of the cost? The facility likely was in the neighbourhood of $500M, and why would they put that kind of money into the CAF with a $25B a year deficit?

 

[The Bread Guy]

The facility likely was in the neighbourhood of $500M, and why would they put that kind of money into the CAF with a $25B a year deficit?

If you believe Postmedia, according to the latest update article ...

... There have also been reports that the cost of the new base had skyrocketed in recent years, with Postmedia quoting internal Defence Department documents from 2016 as saying the price had more than tripled from $364 million to $1.2 billion ...

 

[PuckChaser]

Doesn't surprise me, probably wanted gold-plated urinals in there...