Planned Border Closings Rankle Communities

(The Gazette)

Opposition is growing to the Canadian Border Security Agency’s (CBSA’s) recent decision to close two Canadian border stations south of Montreal next spring.

The mayor of Franklin, Suzanne Blair, will be holding a news conference next week to launch a petition drive. And the largest employer in the region, Les Vergers Leahy, has written federal authorities a strong letter of protest.

News of the proposed closings has also been greeted negatively south of the border.

Gary Douglas, president of the Plattsburgh-North Country Chamber of Commerce, told Plattsburgh’s Press-Republican that the unilateral decision by Canada to close the two border stations violates the 2002 U.S.-Canada Smart Border Accord.

“The failure of the Canadian government to co-ordinate with the U.S. government is absolutely mind-boggling,” he said. Read more here.