Building Barrie is all about becoming ‘future ready’ — helping the City thrive as the heart of Simcoe County and as its only designated urban growth centre..

Building a Framework that Supports Growth - City of Barrie Posting

Did you know that between 1981 and 2006, Barrie’s population tripled?  Our city grew from a mid-sized community to one of a large urban centre. The rapid pace of growth has slowed somewhat in recent years, but the population continues to climb. It is forecasted that by 2031, Barrie’s population will reach 210,000. This month, Barrie takes another step in building a framework that will support not only this future growth, but also the costs and opportunities that come along with it.

“Our strategy is all about becoming ‘future ready’ — helping the City thrive as the heart of Simcoe County and as its only designated urban growth centre. It’s about moving forward and upward, and realizing Barrie’s inherent potential — both today and tomorrow,” says Eric Hodgins, Growth Management Coordinator.

Under the Provincial Growth Plan, the city of Barrie is to grow to 210,000 people and 101,000 jobs over a 20 year planning period from 2012 to 2031. The City is also required to plan for 40% of this growth as infill and intensification within the former city limits and 60% in the new expansion lands that became part of South Barrie in 2010.

The growth management program strategy is to build a city where everyone has access to safe drinking water, a clean and healthy environment, walkable neighbourhoods, connected communities, and convenient access to transit. The plan has been designed to ensure growth pays for growth to the greatest extent possible.

The end result is a strategy for the City as it moves forward with the development of its downtown and existing built-up areas, the remaining designated greenfield areas, as well as the newly annexed lands located in south Barrie. This strategy will guide and direct population and employment growth within the city to the year 2031 and ensure that Barrie continues to develop as a complete, well-balanced and sustainable community.

The strategy is intended to ensure a complete community with the same levels of service as today that include delivery of safe, clean drinking water, collection and treatment of wastewater and stormwater, and transportation choices for people to move about the city. Other services such as parks, libraries, and emergency services are to be expanded as required to accommodate the needs of new residents.

Furthermore, new development financing tools are being proposed that will allow the City to proceed with the new infrastructure required to support future growth over the next 20 years while adequately managing the risks of infrastructure replacement and maintaining existing levels of service for the residents and businesses of Barrie. However, even with new financing tools, the City will have to continue managing its budget very carefully in the coming years.

Upon approval of the staff’s recommended growth management strategy the results of the fiscal impact analysis will be presented to the development community to begin discussions leading towards financial agreements in accordance with the new Financial Policies Framework. Further information regarding the next steps in the growth management program will be presented in the near future.

For more information, please visit barrie.ca/growth.

Celebrating Women in Business Nominees and Winners in Barrie - Congrats Shannon!

There was enough girl power in the room to keep the lights on.

The seventh annual Women in Business event at the Barrie Country Club – that began with a neighbourhood power outage – was handled with enough aplomb and humour to set the mood for the women's business award ceremony, Thursday.

From a humorous keynote address by the newly minted Barrie Police Chief Kimberley Greenwood, to the quick wit of KOOL FM's Dale Smith as master of ceremonies, the 200 women and men in attendance enjoyed a relaxed, well-organized luncheon and charity auction that raised $7,680 for the Canadian Cancer Society.

“That's the most money we've raised to date for the cancer society,” said Barrie Examiner publisher and event organizer Sandy Davies.

“It is so nice to honour the women in our community, because so many of them work so hard and don't get the recognition for what they've accomplished. I'm glad I don't have to decide who wins the Woman of the Year award – that's a separate committee – because there are so many deserving businesswomen.”

The Woman of the Year award went to Jane DeCola of Brabary on Commerce Park Drive.

DeCola said she was both shocked and honoured by the award.

“Did you not see the list? There are a lot of women here who are very deserving,” DeCola said.

In the business of sizing and selling women's undergarments, DeCola said she started her business more than eight years ago because she was tired of driving to Toronto for the same service.

With several full and part-time staff, DeCola said their mandate is to take the guess work out of bra-fittings and sell quality products.

DeCola is also an avid community volunteer with several charities including Hospice Simcoe, Relay for Life and the Canadian Cancer Society.

Laurie Crosson offered her services as a business coach and said she simply helped DeCola focus in on her own strengths.

“She's so open to assessing her own challenges and finding ways to overcome them, it's wonderful to see her win this award,” Crosson said.

Kathy Currie-Eyres won the Heart & Soul award. She was out of the province, so her daughter accepted the award on her behalf.

And Christina Petsinis of Lakehead University, and a former Innisdale Secondary School student, won the Future Woman of the Year award.

Not only is Petsinis an honour student and recipient of the President's Scholarship, she was also recognized for helping to create the Sportapalooza event at Innisdale for several hundred special needs children.

In her address, Greenwood spoke of being one of 110 women in a mix of 5,000 men at the Metropolitan Toronto Police force when she started more than 30 years ago.

Greenwood said she had many firsts, including the first woman to run the community response unit, the first female staff sergeant to take maternity leave, the first female commander of one of the busiest divisions in Toronto, the first director of the Toronto Police College and the first female chief of police in Barrie.

She spoke of her early years wearing a skirt and a silly cap, having to share the public washroom with prisoners (because there were no women's facilities), as well as working undercover to portray a bank teller and having to tackle a bank robber when he held up the bank.

Yet, as much as she spoke of her early days as an officer, she now believes the “brass ceiling has been smashed” and that policing is an exciting career for women to chose for a profession.

“In my heart, I believe in Canada, decisions are not made on race, not made on gender and not made on culture,” she said. “I used to say I want to make a difference and now I want to be that difference.”

After the power was restored and lunch was served by staff who gave no indication they had been getting by using just gas stoves and generators, auctioneer Scott Ward ran a vigorous auction with items donated by local businesses.

One of the most popular items bid upon was the four-hour tactical unit training experience with the Barrie Police Service that began at $300 and was eventually sold to Shannon Murree of Re/Max Chay for $3,000.

Thanks Barrie Examiner!

Article - Province hasn't made any decision on if Barrie will get a new campus

Ontario's Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities has not made any decisions about new university campuses, and that includes Barrie.

There's not even a short list of communities where new campuses could be built. The process is still at the planning of policy stage.

“We are developing a policy on the creation of new campuses and the major expansion of existing campuses,” said ministry spokesman Gyula Kovacs. “The new policy will help ensure sustainable growth and innovation in Ontario’s post-secondary education system and is particularly important in this period of fiscal restraint.”

Ontario's Liberal government is running a $15-billion-plus deficit, at last count.

Asked if the province has made any decisions on new university campuses in Ontario, Kovacs' answer was “no.”

It was the same answer about any approved, current funding in any provincial budget to pay for any new university campuses.

“The ministry is continuing to develop a policy to guide major capacity expansions,” he said. “Funding sources for capital investments will be determined at a later date.”

The Liberals promised to build three new Ontario university undergraduate campuses in the 2011 Throne Speech.

A Canadian Press story identified Barrie, Milton and Brampton as sites to be picked, although the province did not confirmed them at the time.

City council asked the province to designate Barrie as a site for the province's next university campus.

“Several communities and institutions have contacted the ministry to request information about the forthcoming policy or to communicate an interest in developing a new campus,” Kovacs said. “However, at this time, no decisions have been made.”

Sudbury-based Laurentian University, which already partners with Georgian College in Barrie, has a 2012-2017 strategic plan which includes a downtown campus here.

With a downtown Barrie campus, Laurentian wants to significantly increase its full-time enrolment, better integrate classroom learning with real-world experience and increase its proportion of international students.

Laurentian has pledged $14 million toward the $60-million campus, as has Barrie city council. The campus requires about 20 acres of land for a 162,000-square-foot facility, with a private student residence and 500 on-site parking spaces for 3,000 students, or 2,500 full-time equivalents.

But the province still needs to pick Barrie as one of the new university campus sites, fund its share of the cost to build it and pay the operating expenses – salaries, benefits, etc.

Source - Bruton - Barrie Examiner

#Barrie - Little Lake Health Centre - Great Facility for Seniors and Dementia, etc

A unique seniors community for Barrie is one step closer to reality after a groundbreaking ceremony, Friday morning.

The $90-million Little Lake Seniors Community and Health Centre will be located on 11 acres of land near Duckworth Street and Cundles Road East. It will feature three integrated buildings, including a community health centre, a retirement residence and an adult/seniors lifestyle condo.

The development will provide a range of living options from independent condos to assisted living along with "exemplary health care" that will optimize seniors’ health and minimize the need for hospital-based care, according to spokeswoman Shannon Puna.

"The health centre (and its) wellness services will focus on keeping our population healthy," she said. "It will be a state-of-the-art, community-based regional health centre and will be geared to seniors' services and people with complex needs. It will be considered a one-stop shop, a centre of excellence, and will integrate all the health and wellness services in one facility."

Puna said the health centre will be closely affiliated with Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre, North Simcoe Muskoka Local Health Integration Network, Georgian College, and Barrie and Community Family Health Team.

"Little Lake Health Centre is led and funded by physicians and partners with strong ties to the local community and unsurpassed dedication and enthusiasm for this project," she said. "This exceptional care model will reduce the need for hospital-based services, allow for a smoother transition from hospital to community, and reduce the duplication of services in hospital and in the community."

The health centre will also have minor surgery, diagnostic imaging, a lab and pharmacy, home health-care services, family doctors, specialists, a health and wellness clinic, rehabilitation facilities as well as chiropractic, optometry and dentistry services, Puna added.

The 160-unit, five-storey retirement home will be located on the far eastern portion of the property. It will also have services for assisted living and comprehensive care for people with dementia.

The centre part of the property will have 250 seniors' condo units, ranging up to eight storeys and focus on independent adults and seniors.

Construction of the health centre is already underway and is expected to be completed by next summer. The retirement home will take 16 to 18 months to complete and the condominiums will be completed last.

Also affecting this area of the city is the $44-million road and highway ramp reconstruction of Duckworth Street and Cundles Road East, along with Highway 400, which has already begun.

Source - Ian Barrie Examiner

PROJECT AT A GLANCE:

• Little Lake Seniors Community and Health Centre is a $90 million development at Cundles Road East and Duckworth Street.
• It will feature three integrated buildings: a community health centre, a retirement residence and an adult/seniors lifestyle condo.
• The Health Centre will have minor surgery, diagnostic imaging, a lab and pharmacy, home healthcare services, family doctors, specialists, a health and wellness clinic, rehabilitation facilities as well as chiropractic, optometry and dentistry services
• The 160-unit, five-storey hight retirement home will also have services for assisted living and comprehensive care for people with dementia

Economic minister unveils growth plans for Simcoe and Muskoka

Some changes on a map should mean more growth and jobs for the area could be in the works after a provincial government announcement in Barrie, Friday.

Minister of Economic Trade and Employment Dr. Eric Hoskins unveiled plans at Barrie City Hall for an expansion of the boundaries of the Southwestern Ontario Development Fund (SODF) and the Eastern Ontario Development Fund (EODF).

Those changes mean that Barrie and the rest of Simcoe County, as well as the District of Muskoka, will be eligible to apply for government money earmarked for creating jobs and growth.

"Businesses, not-for-profit organizations and municipalities in the two regions can now apply to receive support for projects that will create jobs, encourage innovation and attract investment to their local communities," Hoskins said.

Eligible sectors include advanced manufacturing, processing, life sciences, information and community technology, tourism and cultural industries.

"So far, the Southwestern Ontario Development Fund and the Eastern Ontario Development Fund have created and retained more than 27,700 jobs," he said.

Hoskins said the province has committed more than $88 million in regional support to the two funds, leveraging at total investment of more than $837 million.

"Today's announcement is good news for Barrie and all the communities that make up Simcoe County," Barrie Mayor Jeff Lehman said. "The Ontario government's support will now be available in a new way to help our local economies innovate and grow.

"We have a number of programs we've been working on and this is an opportunity for us to apply for funding."

Finally being a part of the SODF is welcome news, he added.

"We didn't think of ourselves as part of the southwest (area of funding). We were surprised we didn't fit in the basket," he said.

Hoskins said the government originally drew up the geographical boundaries for the Southwestern Ontario Development Fund after discussions with stakeholders.

"The government set boundaries that were as broad as possible at the time," Hoskins said. "But since then we have heard loud and clear from municipal leaders like Mayor Lehman, as well as from leaders like Mayor (Graydon) Smith in Bracebridge and across Muskoka.

"We heard that these regions face similar economic challenges as other municipalities that are already included in the northern, eastern and southwestern Ontario regional funds."

Simcoe County Ward Cal Patterson said the SODF money would encourage innovation and attract investment.

"Not only will this help the county's more than 16,000 businesses increase productivity, our communities will be better equipped, allowing them to be competitive and create local jobs," he said. "From plastics to glass manufacturing and pharmaceuticals to aggregate resources, the county's economic base is diverse and growing, and today's announcement will go a long way to ensuring this trend continues."

Source: Barrie Examiner

Residents of a Burton Avenue trailer park who received eviction notices on July 31 are being encouraged to not give up hope.

Barrie Mayor Jeff Lehman encourages them to attend Sept. 23 council meeting

Residents of a Burton Avenue trailer park who received eviction notices on July 31 are being encouraged to not give up hope.

Approximately half of the 225 residents from the trailer park at 196 Burton Ave. attended a meeting at Unity Christian High School, Wednesday night, to discuss their options.

The city has received a rezoning and subdivision plan application for the land for 96 street townhouses with the possibility of 20 walk-up units in a maximum three-storey building.

Ward 8 Coun. Arif Khan, Mayor Jeff Lehman and Simcoe County director of social housing Cathy Kytayko listened to concerns and answered questions from the residents, many of whom are worried the investments in their mobile homes will be greatly reduced or lost altogether.

Dino Melchior, of Melchior Management, has been managing the park for 15 years and said the owners previously turned down several offers to sell the land.

Earlier this year, the option to redevelop the land and evict 86 homeowners was made by the numbered Ontario company Melchior represents.

Melchior told the Examiner recently that he and his associate have forwarded several local mobile-home vacancies to the tenants, as well as looking for a trailer mover to take on the large project and offer a volume discount.

“The removal is strictly the responsibility of the tenants,” Melchior said at the time, adding with the $3,000 cost mandated by the Residential Tenancies Act per unit, they're already spending $270,000 to help the tenants move.

Lehman has stated the the city does not have the power to intervene in a landlord-tenant matter.

But during Wednesday's meeting, he told park residents to keep an open mind and consider all their options.

"We don't have a solution, not yet, and the solutions won't be the same for everyone," Lehman told the crowd. "We need to understand your concerns. The reason we are here is because we want to help. We're morally obligated to help.

"We didn't evict you, but we are here to help you," he added.

Khan told the residents at the beginning of the meeting, "it's going to be emotional and we expect that. You are residents of the city and taxpayers in the city. Your concerns are not falling on deaf ears.

"We get it loud and clear that you don't want to move. We'll assist in any way we're allowed to."

Jim Mallyon, who moved into the trailer park with his wife in June 2012, believes he was misled by the property owners.

"Prior to buying our trailer we asked how long the park was going to there. We were told 25 or 30 years and that it wasn't a problem," he told the panel. "Right now I'm looking for a place to move to. I can't afford to just sit here. It will cost $10,000 to $20,000 to move my unit, depending where I can get it moved to."

Park resident Fleur Ottaway runs the Burton Avenue Mobile Home Owners Coalition and said she believes the trailer park tenants should be allowed to stay, adding the development has yet to be approved.

"The evictions aren't valid until there is an approved plan. The city shouldn't approve (the application)," she said.

Mandy Hillyard, a longtime poverty advocate in Barrie and the county, suggested the residents contact the Community Legal Clinic Simcoe/Haliburton/Kawartha Lakes.

"I don't want to see anyone homeless. There is an answer and the answer is in this room," she told the crowd. "This has been a real good start. There is so much emotion behind everything you're saying.

"I don't want you leave here frustrated, I want you leave here hopeful."

Lehman encouraged residents to attend a Sept. 23 council meeting where the applicant will make his application and members of the public will be able to express their views. The meeting begins at 7 p.m.

He also encouraged them to submit their concerns in writing by contacting the planning departments will their opinions will become of the record regarding the application.

Source: Barrie Examiner

Buying Real Estate In Innisfil? Better read this!

INNISFIL - Hundreds of Innisfil residents will be on the hook for septic inspections.

Some residents are not pleased with the town’s new septic re-inspection program, which was introduced during a recent meeting in Lefroy.

Director of development Don Eastwood was quick to explain the program is provincially mandated.

“This really was not dreamed up in town council,” he said during the meeting. “It wasn’t our choice to have to ramp up a program (and) hire on new staff. Frankly, it’s not everyone’s idea of fun to have your septic system inspected.”

Although the program is required by the province, the government is offering no financial support, which is why the town has decided to make it user-pay and charge each homeowner $129.90 for the inspection. The new re-inspection regulations fall under the Ontario Building Code and give municipalities five years to comply.

The goal is to identify septic systems that could pose a hazard to health and to municipal drinking water systems, and to ensure remediation.

Eastwood told those who attended the meeting that the town has identified more than 1,200 septic systems that fit the criteria — the bulk of them along the Lake Simcoe shoreline, either south of Lefroy or north of Alcona — which will need to be inspected by Jan. 1, 2016.

“It’s going to take us a couple of years to get 1,200 properties inspected,” Eastwood said, explaining that what is planned is a visual inspection only, looking for signs of problems which could include excessive vegetation, odours, liquid discharge, algal growth and “squishy soil.”

Only if problems are found would there be a second inspection and potentially a requirement to repair or replace the system.

“The municipality has the ability to issue an order to ensure those things are corrected,” Eastwood said.

Those residents within the septic re-inspection zones must bring in proof that their septic beds have been pumped out within the past year, provide a drawing showing the position of the system in relation to buildings, wells and property lines, and book the inspection as well as providing payment.

Although there are hundreds of septic systems affected south of Lefroy, only approximately 25 residents attended the meeting and most were not happy with the new program.

Resident Mark Thibedeau told Eastwood that he had installed a new septic system in 2012 at a cost of $20,000.

“I put it in in October (and) haven’t used it and now you’re asking me to get another inspection done?” he asked.

Eastwood was quick to assure residents that systems installed or inspected within the past year would be exempt.

“What’s the penalty for not complying?” demanded another resident.

“It’s going to cost you more than $129.90,” said Eastwood, referring to possible court action.

“Not necessarily,” retorted the resident, blaming both town council and external factors, including the Holland Marsh, for the pollution of Lake Simcoe. “Maybe we should be electing people willing to challenge the government. Go after the people who are polluting Cook’s Bay.”

Eastwood again explained that the province is demanding the re-inspections.

“We really have no choice but to comply,” he said, adding the penalties to the town and to taxpayers for non-compliance would be significant.

There was also resistance to the requirement to have septic beds pumped out within a year.

Property owners argued that those practising good septic-bed care, or using their properties only seasonally, might not need to have their beds or tanks pumped out at a cost of hundreds of dollars.

Eastwood said the goal was to have all systems showing that they had been recently pumped out but acknowledged there may be exceptions.

“We’re prepared to look at exceptions,” he said.

Mayor Barb Baguley and other members of council attended the meeting, and came in for a share of criticism, particularly over the cost of the inspections.

“We don’t have sidewalks, we don’t have sewers. Why do we have to pay that?” a Gilford woman asked of the inspections. “Why should we pay more? You have casino money.”

There were questions over the inspection of holding tanks, tertiary systems that are already inspected annually by a third-party, and even which homes fall within the inspection boundary.

“The one-size-fits-all is a lie, just like panty hose,” Baguley said, adding there should be room for exceptions. “These kinds of one-offs are not the typical situation. There is some flexibility and judgment.”

Thibedeau suggested that the exceptions should be posted on the town website. “That’ll save a lot of phone calls.”

The re-inspection program is another step in a process that was initiated by the Walkerton tainted water-system disaster in an effort to ensure clean drinking water, a process that has also resulted in the Lake Simcoe Protection Plan and Source Water Protection Plans.

The province is requiring municipalities to carry out inspections of all on-site sewage systems within 100 metres of Lake Simcoe and other water bodies that drain into the lake, or that are within identified vulnerable areas near municipal wells.

The meeting ended with informal discussions, as residents spoke with inspectors Andrew Quattrociocchi and Ed Yohanna, other town staff, and politicians.

Eastwood said the goal was to present the program, listen to comments and reassure residents that “common sense will prevail.”

For more information, contact program administrator Terry Joyce at 705-436-3710, ext. 3540, or tjoyce@innisfil.ca, or inspectors Ed Yohanna at ext. 3544 or Andrew Quattrociocchi at ext. 3542.

Information packages are also available at the town.

Originally posted Barrie Examiner

Barrie: Residents get official notice to vacate Barrie trailer park

This is where I'm torn. Encourage progress and Development but these people also need affordable housing. Where can they go?

Here's the news article posted in Today's Barrie Examiner.

Frank and Gail Ruffolo have called their 14x55-foot trailer on Burton Avenue in Barrie their home since 2005. The couple and their neighbours now have one year to leave after receiving their eviction notices. The land the park sits on is being redeveloped. MARK WANZEL PHOTO

A large pink hydrangea bush blooms in the tiny little plot of land leased by one of the tenants of the Burton Avenue trailer park who received their eviction notice July 31.

“Where can we go? We don’t know where to go or the cost of moving to where we could go,” Gail Ruffolo said.

As she spoke, thunder rolled across the sky, unintentionally underscoring the fear the seniors felt when considering their eviction notice.

In out of the rain, Ruffolo and her husband proudly showed their mobile home, with its hardwood flooring and decorative wooden moulding Frank designed to border the ceiling.

He’s added foam for insulation under the trailer, in addition to the skirt he wrapped around the base of the trailer where the wheels — if there were any — would be. The Ruffolos are living on a pension after Frank fractured his back, he said.

“I can’t work. And I know these (other tenants) people can’t afford a dime to move. If they’re willing to move the trailer at their expense, fine. But how can the owners do something like this?” he asked.

Dino Melchior, of Melchior Management, who has been managing the park at 196 Burton Ave., for 15 years said the owners previously turned down several offers to sell the land.

“I know they’ve put off this decision several times,” Melchior said. “For the owners, it’s been the most difficult decision of all.”

Yet, the option to redevelop the land and evict 86 homeowners was made by the numbered Ontario company Melchior represents earlier this year.

To date, the city has received a rezoning and subdivision plan application to build 116 townhouses, along with medium-density residential units at 196 Burton, where as many as 225 people live in trailer homes.

At that time, Melchior said if the land is redeveloped, all tenants with land leases will get one year’s notice to vacate and be compensated $3,000 for mobile-home removal, per the Residential Tenancies Act.

The tenants received that letter July 31.

Melchior, and his associate Ender Joseph, said they have gone above and beyond their management responsibilities and forwarded several local mobile home vacancies to the tenants, as well as are looking for a trailer mover to take on the large project and offer a volume discount, instead of having each tenant work out their own more expensive deal to move their units.

“The removal is strictly the responsibility of the tenants,” said Melchior, adding with the $3,000 cost mandated by the Act per unit, they’re already spending $270,000 to help the tenants move.

But tenant Fleur Ottaway, who’s running a grassroots organization going under the name Burton Avenue Mobile Home Owners Coalition, said several other trailer parks in the area only have limited space; not nearly enough to take all 86 homes.

At Hoe Doe Valley, you have to buy the land, she said, and in Angus and Orillia, they only have a few spots available.

“Ours is a pre-fab home, it’s going to cost more than $3,000 to move it,” Ottaway said, explaining the Act was written to help out mobile trailer owners in the early 1990s and prices have sky-rocketed since then.

Ottaway said she’s been quoted about $12,000 to have her home moved, which won’t include any add-ons such as decks, foyers or rooms tenants have added over the years.

“The industry has evolved, but the Act hasn’t,” she said. “Everyone is really upset because the law isn’t really there for us.”

Mayor Jeff Lehman and Coun. Arif Khan say they aren’t taking the news lightly.

“It’s my understanding that the city does not have the power to intervene in a landlord-tenant matter, ie. to delay or prevent an eviction,” Lehman wrote in an e-mail.

“Given that the residents have been given eviction notices, my focus is therefore to assist them in finding an alternative place to live.”

Lehman notes that wait-lists for social housing are long and may not be an immediate answer for the mobile homeowners.

“City council, including myself, must sit in independent judgment of the planning application, and I will do that. But that aside, these residents are my residents, so I am going to do what I can to help them,” Lehman said.

Khan said he, too, contacted the County of Simcoe regarding social housing availabilities, and has approached senior levels of government for an increase in levels of social funding, but has yet to hear back.

He has also agreed to meet with the mobile homeowners and Simcoe County staff next week to explore viable options.

But he points out that the provincial Residential Tenancies Act offers the right of every landowner to file an application to rezone or develop their property in accordance with the Planning Act.

“I don’t blame those who don’t care to differentiate between municipal and provincial jurisdiction. At the same time, from an unemotional perspective, I completely support the property owners’ right to file their application,” Khan wrote in an e-mail.

Khan and Lehman are scheduled to meet with the Burton Avenue tenants Aug. 14 at Unity Christian High School at 25 Burton Ave. at 5 p.m. to discuss their options.

By Cheryl Browne, Barrie Examiner

How High is Too High in Barrie?

Open house this week to look a construction policies for tall buildings

In a maze of pipes, rods and scaffolding, construction workers continue their progress on the lower-level parking structure of the Collier Centre as the structure begins to take shape downtown. MARK WANZEL PHOTO

• 
  

How high should Barrie’s buildings get?

That’s the question city residents can help answer at Wednesday’s open house meeting on the proposed policies for tall buildings.

These policies are to provide city council, developers and residents with guidance and direction for assessing the merits of applications for tall buildings, including their design, location and orientation.

Buildings as high as 15 storeys are allowed now, but that restriction dates back to 1989 and might no longer reflect Barrie’s city centre’s designation as an Urban Growth Centre by the province, which means encouraging more residential and office growth in the downtown.

City staff have indicate that virtually every major condominium project in the city centre has been granted an exception to the height bylaw: Grand Harbour, Waterview, Nautica, Watercrest, Bayshore Landing and Marina Bay I and II.

These buildings exceed the height bylaw, anywhere from five metres in Marina Bay’s case to 18 metres, or about six storeys, in Bayshore Landing’s case.

The current height bylaw gives council control over the design of the buildings. For example, the city got greater setbacks above the fifth floor for the new Watercrest building on Maple Avenue, resulting in a more attractive building and one which casts a smaller shadow.

Many residents of Bayshore Landing, which got an exemption from the height bylaw, however, have told council they didn’t want any new building across from them to be any taller than the 10 storeys set out in the bylaw.

But the advantages of taller buildings include greater densities to support transit, protection of farmland and open space, and higher tax revenue to the city.

Barrie began experiencing tremendous population growth pressures in the late 1980s. This included proposals for several highrise developments, ranging from 10 to 19 storeys, which were well above the the downtown’s three-storey tradition.

At the time, no Official Plan policy or zoning bylaw standards regulated height within the waterfront areas of what’s now the Urban Growth Centre.

A height review study in 1989 helped established height controls and building standards for development in this area.

Wednesday’s open house meeting runs 4-7 p.m. in Huronia Room ‘A’ on Barrie City Hall’s second floor.

City planning staff will present the proposed policies and will be available to answer questions following the presentation.

For more information, or to provide feedback, contact Aslam Shaikh atashaikh@barrie.ca or call 705-739-4220, ext. 4434.

****************************************************************************

The ‘Policies for Tall Buildings’ would be based upon the following guiding principles:

• Prevent adverse building shadows on waterfront amenity areas, on pedestrian-oriented streets, as well as existing and future planned open space areas.

• Foster a pedestrian-oriented environment that encourages street level activity.

• Protect views and access to Barrie’s waterfront.

• Integrate new development within the context of the local urban form.

• Minimize adverse micro-climatic impacts on the streets.

• Retain views of the Algonquin Ridgeline to preserve Barrie’s ‘natural setting’.

• Protect views of major geographical landmarks, buildings and principle viewing areas.

• Contribute to a visually interesting skyline for Barrie.

Source: City of Barrie, Barrie Examiner - Photographer Mark Wanzel

City of Barrie invites applications from citizens who desire to have their names considered for appointment to the North Shore Trail Working Group in a Non-Local Resident Role.

Just posted from City of BARRIE

Interested in being a part of the North Shore Trail Working Group?

August 6, 2013 at 4:27pm

The City of Barrie invites applications from citizens who desire to have their names considered for appointment to the North Shore Trail Working Group in a Non-Local Resident Role. The North Shore Trail Working Group:

• Serves in an advisory role to provide staff with input into the planning and development of the North Shore Trail; and
• Serves as an avenue of communication regarding trail-related issues for trail users, stakeholders and neighbours of the trail.

The City of Barrie is seeking to appoint three (3) citizens for a volunteer term of four years, concurrent with the term of Council. The group will meet at least two times annually, with additional meetings at the discretion of the group, with a potential start date of September 2013.

You must be a resident of Barrie and not an employee of the City or its Agencies or Corporations, nor the spouse, child or parent of a City Councillor or in a conjugal relationship with a City Councillor.You must be from a non-local neighbourhood to the North Shore Trail (i.e. other areas within the city).

Applications are available at the 6th Floor, Barrie City Hall; click here to download.  Please refer to the North Shore Trail Working Group Terms of Reference.

For further information, please visit Barrie.ca/NorthShoreTrail and/or contact Walter Fischer (705-739-4220 Ext. 5101) or Wendy Loevenmark (ext. 4743).

 Personal information received in response to this notice is collected under the authorities of the Municipal Act, S.O. 2001.

Applications containing details regarding your interest and applicable experience for the appointment may be directed to the undersigned within the Engineering Department. Please return your completed application to the address noted (in person, by mail, by email or by fax) no later than 4:30pm on Friday August 23, 2013.

Walter Fischer, Supervisor of Parks Planning and Development
Tel.: 705-739-4220, Ext. 5101
Fax: 705-739-4245
Email: wfischer@barrie.ca
The City of Barrie70 Collier Street, P.O. Box 400, L4M 4T5