The visit to Whitby on Friday last (Feb. 16) of the Hon. C. D. Howe, Minister of Transport in the King Government, to look over prospective airport sites between Whitby and Oshawa, gives rise to the hope that something definite and favorable will result, in as much as the Minister was very favorably impressed with what he saw.
The particular site visit by the Minister and Whitby and Oshawa Committee, it will be recalled, comprising approximately one thousand acres, was much in the limelight early in 1918, when it was inspected by Sir Samuel Hoare, on behalf of the British Government, which at the time was looking over airport sites in Canada. Sir Samuel, who is now Lord Privy Seal in the British Cabinet, at that time declared that it was one of finest airport sites he had seen after a tour of Canada, and this information was given the Minister by Whitby Chamber of Commerce President, Francis J. McIntyre. It might be interesting to note here that plans of the site were made in 1918 at the suggestion of Mr. F. Howard Annes, and that Mr. Annes was able to produce one of these plans for the benefit of the minster.
One encouraging aspect of the situation with respect to locating an airport near Whitby is the splendid spirit of co-operation which now exists between the Councils of the City of Oshawa and the Town of Whitby. Joint meetings of a very harmonious character have been held by a committee representative of the two municipalities, and some tangible results may be forthcoming which will benefit both the industrial city and the county town. While the site in question proposed is a little closer to Whitby than it is to Oshawa, it is, nevertheless, a fact that both places stand to gain from any favorable action taken by the government.
The minister on Friday, promised to send his surveyors to Whitby to look over the airport site, and no time should be lost or stone left unturned by the joint committee to impress upon the government that here in reality is one of the foremost airport sites from every standpoint in the Dominion. Close to the Lake, all level land lying between two progressive municipalities with water, electric power and sewage, to say nothing of railway and highway transportation facilities available, the site in our opinion would be hard to beat and one can only visualize what it will mean to the two interested municipalities and to the district as a whole if it should be selected.
