Congrats to our friends, the Pulis' for having this vision and making a difference to our downtown Barrie core! Here's an article in this weeks Barrie Examiner
Property owner breathes life back into downtown building
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| Kyle Pulis, of Pulis Investment Group, stands near a the Mulcaster Street building that hit the headlines last fall as being captured in a painting by Group of Seven artist Lawren Harris. The Pulis Group ‘rehabilitated’ the building, one of a number of properties that they have worked on in Barrie and Orillia. J.T. MCVEIGH/BARRIE EXAMINER |
Something is different on Mulcaster Street.
Ignored for years except for the occasional visit from a police officer or two, the red brick walk up in Barrie’s downtown has pretty well stayed off of the radar.
That is until a couple of year’s ago when a 23-year-old named Kyle Pulis, from Brampton, took a look inside and saw promise.
The last time that happened was over a century ago when some artist named Harris stuck an easel across the road and painted a moment in time.
Group of Seven founder Lawren Harris’ A Street in Barrie made it to Sotheby’s Auction House in Toronto a couple of weeks ago, and although the painting wasn’t sold, director of Sotheby’s, David Silcox, estimated that at some point the painting should fetch somewhere between $900,000 and $1.2 million.
Pulis, of Pulis Investment Group, didn’t know about the painting or the auction, but he did know the property.
“Going through these old units really reminded me of the trips to New York where they took the old buildings and were able to turn them into high-end apartments, the same with areas of Toronto,” said Pulis.
And from there a plan was formed.
It wasn’t without its challenges.
Although a great deal of the old trim work, crown moldings, and even solid hardwood floors were in restorable shape, there was still a lot of work to do.
“So when I can into this here, I was 23. When I bought it, and this was my fourth project that year, even my agent thought that I was crazy when I bought this.”
However after conferring with his team of contractors, Pulis got the thumbs up and work began.
Pulis’ founded his investment company with his father David, creating a private investment group whose clients want to invest in real estate in some way, but either don’t have the time or the expertise to tackle a project.
Clients are very much interested in niche investing, and they are looking for profit, but with a conscience.
“They (clients) are really drawn into that idea of revitalizing part of the downtown,” said Pulis, “They are investors that keep a profit in mind, but they also want to be a part of cleaning up the downtown.”
For Hany Kirolos, director of the Economic Development Office for the city of Barrie, this is nothing but good news.
“Any rejuvenation in our city core that is within our zoning requirements, and results in either residential or business traffic, is great for a city centre revitalization,” said Kirolos.
Having private investors take a stake in the city’s downtown can have an enormous impact on the nature of a neighbourhood.
“The best example of this is Yonge and Dundas in Toronto where 20 years ago it was a derelict area with closed shops. Now it has become a mini Times Square changing the focal point to culture, to business and residential space,” Kirolos said.
Transitions aren’t easy, but the rewards are pretty high.
“We have a lot of projects like this in Hamilton and it’s the same thing there; the neighbours come out and say thank you. It is really good to be part of the revitalization of places like downtown Barrie,” said Pulis.
He knows that he is dealing with a niche market, people who want the convenience of modern construction, but enjoy the warmth a century building exudes.
“Here, what I found is that because the tenants are all from pretty much the same demographic, that they create a community, he said “They are all really into the building, excited to hear about the history. Then they fall in love with the story, they fall in love with the neighbours and they really fall in love with the building.”
Pulis believes more opportunities like this are available. He has seen that with his project in both Barrie and Orillia.
Granted they are costly, but with willing investors and a skilled contractor work force, he feels the heritage of a neighbourhood can be saved.
“I know they (Barrie) are doing a lot of work, like cleaning up the waterfront, bringing people back into the downtown, building condos,” Pulis said,
“They are doing their part, so it’s not hard to see business owners and property owners along the strip here, doing our part.”
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