Barrie downtown must include galleries, theatres and schools

By Laurie Watt Barrie Advance November 23 2010
BARRIE – Ontario’s vision of Barrie is of a vibrant downtown anchored by theatres, galleries and schools, says the province’s minister of infrastructure.
In an interview with The Advance, Bob Chiarelli explained how Amendment 1 to the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe would protect the environment, stop sprawl and encourage economic development in the city.

Now in a consultation period, the amendment fine-tunes the province’s Simcoe Area Vision, released June 4, 2009, and Bill 196, which added 2,293 hectares of Innisfil land to Barrie on Jan. 1, 2010.
The provincial plan forecasts the population of Barrie to grow to 210,000 by 2031, up from the 2006 Census population of 133,500. It also requires Barrie to triple population and employment in the downtown core.
“For cities, it’s going to be very exciting. You’re talking not only about sewer and water. It’s arts and culture, tourism, things that create the ambience of a vibrant city that’s dynamic and exciting,” Chiarelli said. “People will want to live there.”
He added schools would be part of a growth plan for Barrie “absolutely directed to the centre of the city”.
However, the Simcoe County District School Board is closing Prince of Wales Public School in June 2011 and board staff is recommending closing Barrie Central in June 2012 – which would take schools out of the province’s urban growth centre.
Chiarelli said school boards feel pressure to close schools while enrolment declines – but suggested they find ways to keep the space alive to not only enable revitalization in the core, but also give time for the student population to rebound.
A Re/Max study released Nov. 1 found that in Ottawa, where Chiarelli was once mayor, young professionals – who will have or are having kids – are moving downtown for the urban lifestyle. They are opting for townhouses, close to work and entertainment, and the only limit is supply as developers are continuing to focus more on the higher-end market.
Barrie, however, is set to offer a mix of housing types and styles that will see condo towers sharing space with walk-up apartments and townhouses.
The Re/Max study also showed entry-level purchasers bought 65 per cent of Barrie condos, while 35 per cent were downsizing from larger homes. Young professionals are adding to a mix of empty nesters and retirees at the high-end condo Nautica at Ellen and Victoria Streets.
While the city has told the public school board’s Barrie Central Accommodation Review Committee (ARC) that it is encouraging intensification in the city core, there remains the prospect that a major high school will be taken away.
Barrie senior planner Kathy Brislin told the ARC medium and high-density housing would make up a “disproportionate share” of new units, and she added the city also sees a need for community facilities in these more-dense neighbourhoods. A citizen-led planning initiative this year envisions schools as being critical in the city core.
And Chiarelli agrees, especially in light of projected growth.
“The City of Barrie and the province are on the same page. There is very significant consensus on the numbers for projected growth,” he said.
“Barrie’s already the largest city in the Simcoe area and it will become home to nearly one-third of the population over the planning period to 2031. That represents a very healthy growth rate of 1.3 per cent.”