Belleville City Council passed a motion from Councillor Kathryn Brown on Monday putting strict guardrails on talks with Alto.
Brown says residents have raised serious concerns about expropriation, farmland loss, emergency response times, and environmental impacts that aren’t being addressed.
She’s also warning about a new southern route option near Highway 401 that she says could bring major disruption to Belleville’s urban and commercial areas.
The motion rejects non-disclosure agreements and demands transparency.
“The City of Belleville needs the ability to engage honestly with Alto, but at the same time, the residents and businesses deserve clarity about when confidentiality requirements are being used, what information is being requested, what access is being provided to Alto, and how our public accountability is being maintained, and public accountability means transparency, not non-disclosure agreements,” Brown said in discussing her motion.
The motion passed in a recorded vote of 8-1, with the lone no vote coming from councillor Margeret Seu.
On Wednesday, 11 members of the Eastern Ontario PC MPP caucus put out a joint statement regarding the high-speed rail project, stating that local voices “deserve to see their feedback reflected in the project’s planning, route selection, and delivery.”
Members of the caucus include Bay of Quinte MPP Tyler Allsopp, Hastings—Lennox and Addington MPP Ric Bresee, and Northumberland—Peterborough South MPP David Piccini.
