Developer watch: Geranium donates $1/2M, renames Big Bay Point

By Laurie Watt Barrie Advance June 28 2012 

BIG BAY POINT — Geranium Corporation, which is developing the Friday Harbour landmark resort in Big Bay Point, has ledged $500,000 to the Lake Simcoe Conservation Foundation’s “Inspiring Greener Communities Program.”

“We share the goals of the foundation and want to see their ‘Inspiring Green Communities’ program become a catalyst for environmental awareness in Simcoe (County) and all around the lake,” said Geranium president Earl Rumm.

Developing the $1.5-billion resort – named Friday Harbour just a few weeks ago to capture the marina and recreational lifestyle that’s so easily accessible to the Greater Toronto Area – Geranium is the first developer to pitch into the conservation foundation’s communities program.

Friday Harbour will include a marina-style village, with the first set of 2,000 residential units, costing $250,00 each, ready in the fall of 2014.

With 1,000 slips, its marina will be the largest inland marina in Canada, and the resort will also feature an 18-hole golf course and a 200-acre nature preserve. 

Lake Simcoe Conservation Foundation executive director Cheryl Taylor said she hopes other developers follow Geranium’s example by investing in the communities initiative.

“Their commitment is an example of partnerships we want to encourage. We recognize our population is growing at an unprecedented rate. We need to ensure there is balance and work together to achieve sustainable and low-impact development and the continued creation and restoration of local trails and natural areas,” she said.

“When new residents move into their homes, this program will provide them with local eco-friendly products and services. It will connect them to the Lake Simcoe watershed and enable them to become active partners in their environmental community.”

By Chris Simon Innisfil Scope June 27 2012

Geranium Corporation wants everybody to work for the weekend, and then pay a visit to Friday Harbour.

During a presentation to town council last week, Geranium chair Earl Rumm officially unveiled the new name of the Big Bay Point Resort.

Now called Friday Harbour, the $1.5 billion facility will feature 1,600 residential housing units, 400 hotel rooms, 87 hectares of environmentally protected land, a golf course, 1,000-slip marina, conference centre, theatre, an indoor sports, recreation and fitness facility and about 40 shops and restaurants.

“It has been just over 10 years since I had the idea of building a recreational destination upon the Big Big Point area,” said Rumm. “Since then, it’s been 10 years of hard work. Together, we have created a one-of-a-kind resort community that will never be repeated on the shores of Lake Simcoe again. I’m excited that our collective dream is now becoming a reality. Let me be the first to invite you to Friday Harbour, the name we have chosen for Ontario’s newest resort community. Friday Harbour reminds us that everyone looks forward to the end of the work week, and a chance to kick back and relax.”

In October, Rumm told The Scope the name of the resort would be changed, since it has become synonymous with legal battles and ill will.

The project is expected to open in fall 2014, though the entire resort will be completed over a 10- year buildout. Geranium will begin selling housing units for the resort this fall, while home construction should begin next year.

“We began work on-site in February 2010,” said Rumm.

“We’ve been working recently on building the golf course, and have now commenced the excavation of Canada’s largest inland marina,” said Rumm. “We’re planning to open the resort in late fall 2014.”

However, others expressed concern over the noise and water quality impact of the resort.

“I’m concerned about the people who have waterfront property nearby,” said councillor Maria Baier. “Is there anything they would expect, in terms of changes in water quality or clarity?”

But the project needs to meet some incredibly strict environmental standards, says engineering manager Grant Shellswell.

“This development has an unprecedented amount of environmental controls in place, through various levels of government agencies,” he said. “There are multiple layers of protection in place between the construction site and Lake Simcoe and nearby environmental features. It is a very large construction site; to address some of the noise impacts to existing residents, there is a large area of trees that have not been removed from the site yet, to provide some buffering.”

The project will also have some significant economic benefits for the town, including 1,000 on-site and 1,500 spin-off jobs, over $50 million generated in development charges, and $190 million in annual visitor and homeowner spending, says Replay Resorts marketing expert Bill Green, whose firm was hired by Geranium.

“Resorts need to change,” he said, also noting the resort will generate $30 million in tax revenue for the municipality each year. “You don’t live the same way you did 30 years ago. We’re trying to create a place that’s a blend of a whole bunch of different things.”