Future plans for Prime Ministers' Path project in Wilmot needs more community input, councillors say

Wilmot Township councillors say they need to discuss the future of the Prime Ministers' Path project and ensure everyone in the community is heard going forward.

The project, which would have seen 22 bronze statues placed in the park beside Wilmot's township office, was put on hold in July 2021 after a council vote.

The statues of Sir Robert Borden, Kim Campbell, William Lyon Mackenzie King and Lester Pearson were removed from the park that month and placed in storage.

Another statue for the Unfortunate Four — Sir John Abbott, Sir Mackenzie Bowell, Sir John Thompson, and Sir Charles Tupper — was never installed and remains in storage. The statue of Sir John A. Macdonald was removed in July 2020 from its place beside Castle Kilbride and placed in storage, where it also remains.

Ending the project was a recommendation from First Peoples Group, an Indigenous advisory group the township hired to hold public consultations on the project and prepare a report on the issue.

But that all happened with the previous council and in October 2022, an entirely new council was elected to serve the residents of Wilmot Township.

Coun. Kris Wilkinson brought forward a notice of motion during Monday night's meeting to ask township staff to look at options for ways to "proceed with a permanent plan for the Prime Ministers' Path statues" project.

He suggested that could include possibly holding a referendum on the project.

Wilkinson said when he was campaigning ahead of the 2022 municipal election, the project was the top issue he heard from people.

"Our citizens desire resolutions and want their opportunity to have their voices heard," he said. "We want this township to heal and come to a resolution that's agreeable."

Wilkinson said the spirit of his motion is to understand what options there are to move forward and then he wants to hear from people.

"Personally, I think there's an opportunity here for a combination of facilitated community meetings in addition to potentially facilitating a referendum," he said. 

"I don't know that that is the right option for everybody but it's one that I personally feel strongly about."

People 'felt totally excluded'

Wilkinson's motion passed unanimously.

Coun. Lilliane Dunstall said during her time canvassing during the election, "it became evident that a large number of New Hamburg residents were not happy with the way the Prime Minster's Path was handled."

She said people felt unheard in the debate "or worse yet, having their voices totally dismissed."

"They felt totally excluded from the decision-making process," she said.

Coun. Steward Cressman said he knows reopening debate on the issue could be "like ripping a Band-Aid off or picking the scab of something that has had some healing associated with it."

But he also wants to see a facilitated process to allow people's voices to be heard "in a respectful manner."

Coun. Steve Martin agreed a plan needed to be created, but worried a referendum might cause further divide in the community. He suggested a working group should be created, which was also recommended by First Peoples Group.

Coun. Harvir Sidhu said he wants to have as much communication with residents as possible.

"There's no perfect way to do this. Let's leave our minds open and be open to the possibilities," he said.

Glen Mathers spoke to councillors on behalf of Createscape Waterloo Region, which is the group behind the project. He kept his message to them short.

"The Prime Ministers' Path is important. End of sentence. That's all I have to say. Done," Mathers told councillors.

The staff report is expected to come back to Wilmot Township council on Feb. 26.

Rocky history of project

The prime minister statue project has faced controversy from the start. The initial idea was that the privately funded project would see the creation of 22 bronze sculptures of past Canadian prime ministers to mark Canada's 150th birthday.

Proponents had also hoped the statues could be used as a teaching device for the public. 

Previous attempts to place the statues in Victoria Park in Kitchener and at Wilfrid Laurier University were met with controversy. 

Here's a timeline of the project:

• In March 2014, Kitchener city council rejected the proposal in an 8-1 vote, pointing to a survey that indicated residents opposed the idea. 
• In June 2015, project organizers thought they had found a home for the sculptures at Wilfrid Laurier University, but shortly after the project was announced, a petition circulated to stop it. Opponents to the statues said that celebrating the country's past prime ministers would be culturally insensitive given the university is built on land that traditionally belongs to Indigenous people and that not enough consultation was done.
• In February 2016, the university's board of governors nixed the idea, a move criticized by Conrad Black who said the university "folded like a $3 suitcase" in the face of opposition to the project. 
• In April 2016, Wilmot council voted unanimously to allow the project to be placed in parkland beside Castle Kilbride and the township's administrative offices. The first statue, that of Macdonald, was installed in June 2016.
• In July 2020, the Macdonald statue was removed from its place beside Castle Kilbride and placed in storage, where it remains.
• On July 5, 2021, Wilmot council voted unanimously to end the project and remove the four remaining statues. Those statues were removed by July 7, staff said.
• On Jan. 15, 2024, Wilmot council voted unanimously to ask staff to prepare a report that looks at a permanetn plan for the project.