Wilmot council to review criteria for future of Prime Ministers Path

The fate of a controversial project in Wilmot Township is back up for debate. CTV’s Jeff Pickel takes a look at its history.

A controversial project is back up for debate in Wilmot Township.

Council is expected to review a draft recommendation on the future of the Prime Ministers Path.

The statue collection, which was set up beside Castle Kilbride in Baden, was removed in 2021 following community outcry over the legacy of Canada’s former leaders. Protestors doused the statue of Sir John A. Macdonald with red paint on multiple occasions in response to his involvement in the residential school system.

The decision to store the statues has become a polarizing issue in Wilmot. Some felt the project wasn’t appropriate for the community, while others wanted to see the tribute to former Prime Ministers back on display.

Those who voted to shelve the Prime Ministers Path no longer serve on council, so new members are left to decide the future of the project.

The company hired to help them make that decision have called it a challenging process.

“I think when we first started this project there was this idea that maybe the outcome was going to be: ‘Should the statues stay or should they go?’” explained Denise Soueidan-O’Leary, LURA’s project facilitator. “What we’ve realized over the course of the engagement process and the public consultation is that it’s obviously not that simple. Turns out, it’s complicated. Where does the funding come for this? Where would they go?”

If the statues are moved, the question is where.

“Should they be on township land?” Soueidan-O’Leary asked. “Should they be somewhere else?”

Instead of making specific recommendations, LURA created a set of criteria for council to consider before making a final decision. One is an acknowledgement of the controversial past of some of the former Prime Ministers, while another suggestion was to leave the red paint on Sir John A. Macdonald’s statue.

Residents weigh in

Residents got their first look at the recommendations on Wednesday.

“I’m really pleased with the different ideas that they’ve come up with and some of the different solutions,” said one woman. “I really hope, going forward, that something positive will come out of this.”

She was hopeful about the community’s ability to move forward with the Prime Ministers Path.

“I think it’s something positive, and it’s a learning tool. And it should be continued.”

The final recommendations are expected to be presented to council next month.

Cost of the project

According to the township, $162,177.37 was spent on the Prime Ministers Path between the start of 2020 and end of 2024. The federal government provided a grant of $45,000, while the remaining $117,177.37 was paid through the tax base. The township also shared the following breakdown of costs:

• $12,657.41 for legal advice in 2020
• $29,205.12 for statue storage from 2020 onward
• $29,408.64 for statue removal in 2020 and 2021
• $45,792 to the First Peoples Group for the first round of public engagement in 2021
• $45,114.20 to LURA for the ongoing PMP Engagement Project