BARRIE, Ont. – The lack of recent, local backlash shouldn’t be taken as acceptance of the process leading to large residential development on Barrie’s old fairgrounds.
Or so says Arnie Ivsins, who lives on nearby Alfred Street and has long questioned the 4,000-plus residences being proposed on 55.3 acres at Highway 400 and Essa Road.
City council gave final approval March 6 to a motion supporting a community infrastructure and housing accelerator (CIHA) application to the province. This gives Ontario’s minister of municipal affairs and housing the power to make orders to respond to municipal requests to speed approvals of rezoning — in this case from highway industrial to residential and open space.
In a letter all councillors are receiving, Ivsins says he takes issue with March 6 comments made by Coun. Jim Harris, who represents this part of the city.
“What you didn’t hear in the last two weeks was a lot of residents coming here and saying ‘what are you doing?’” Harris said at the council meeting. “I hope that people have noticed that and I think the people in the area are reasonable and they’re rational and they’re understanding and they’re not against having something built.”
The Ward 8 councillor noted that while council heard deputations at its March 6 meeting from Craig Busch of Vision Barrie, Norman Speake of the Barrie Curling Club and Ryan Windle of developer Greenworld Construction, no neighbours spoke.
“For the residents in the area, I can tell you this week the amount of calls I’ve had, emails I’ve had about concerns are the same as the amount of deputations that we’re seeing tonight, at this presentation, from residents,” Harris said.
“There wasn’t a deputation from a resident of the area. And I’m not saying every resident loves it, every resident is 100 per cent behind it; I’m saying there is no concern, no large concern, with what’s being presented to go to the ministry in this CIHA order," he added.
Ivsins says he’s been following plans for the old fairgrounds since 2007, when Osmington was the developer, and since then has made deputations to council, submitted letters and petitions.
He notes that during this CIHA process, Mayor Alex Nuttall favoured moving the application forward and that councillors rarely vote against the mayor — although Couns. Amy Courser and Bryn Hamilton voted against the CIHA motion March 6.
But Ivsins opted not to make a deputation to council that night.
“I decided to retreat, spare council members and the public hearing me repeat the same argument I made previously, and wait for the next battle,” he wrote.
Ivsins says deputations made by Allandale resident Cathy Colebatch and himself on Dec. 6, 2023 should be considered, as should opinions on the Allandale Neighbourhood Community Facebook page.
“Ms. Colebatch, myself and many others have never said no to developing this property, but to develop it with common sense,” Ivsins wrote. “You know how dedicated and active Ms. Colebatch and myself have been with this matter.
“I believe you (Harris) have failed to take into consideration the majority of your constituents' concerns. As the city moves forward with this development, I will do my very best to make sure that you, the mayor and city councillors indeed hear our voices on this important matter that greatly impacts our neighbourhoods," he added.
Harris says he understands Ivsins’ position.
“As always, I respect and appreciate each resident’s position,” the councillor said Tuesday. “However, the facts are I did not receive any concerns from residents over the last two-week cycle. In my time as Ward 8 councillor, I have yet to experience a single development application when leading voices in Allandale didn’t use every opportunity to let me or council know where they stood.
“In addition to receiving no direct comments, posts on two active Allandale Facebook pages which highlighted the general committee decision (Feb. 28, approval of CIHA application) netted no written responses," Harris added.
Harris said he has continued to offer to meet with Ivsins on the fairgrounds matter.
The CIHA application only deals with the property’s zoning. The city should still have some control of what gets built there, as the province has been requested to send the plans back to the city for draft- and site-plan approval. Both plans show what goes where on a parcel of land, from buildings and roads to sidewalks and parks.
There is also to be direction from the Ontario ministries of municipal affairs and housing, education and transportation, as this residential development has potential school sites and transportation concerns — on Essa Road, for example.
City staff will investigate the use of the rail spur extending from the future Allandale transit hub, now being built, to the fairgrounds for use by Barrie Transit, for public transportation.
The CIHA also cannot be transferred to another landowner.
Harris noted 40 per cent of property would be green space or school space, and that the density of the project would not increase.
Within 15 days of passing the council resolution, the city must submit the request to the minister of municipal affairs and housing with the required supporting information. The minister would undertake a review and has the sole authority to issue a CIHA order and to impose conditions on that order.
A CIHA order cannot be appealed, and there is no required timeline to issue a decision.
Greenworld asked the city to support the CIHA order and initiate its application.
That order would support the development of 4,054 total condominium residences — highrises, mixed-use highrises and townhouses, along with commercial uses and a school block. That breaks down to 13 residential towers of 15 to 40 storeys, 113 townhouses and 98 three-storey townhouses for 175 and 199 Essa Rd. and 50 Wood St.
Also proposed in the new development is 196 parking spaces for the townhouses and 3,260 spots for the highrises, including those in a five-storey parking podium.
There could be a public/private park almost a half-acre in size and walking trails. Commercial uses would front Essa Road, and there would be no development on the Wood Street property, which includes Hotchkiss Creek. It would be for stormwater management and open-space uses.
City planning staff support the application for a CIHA order because the proposed development would contribute to the number and variety of residential units available in Barrie, and say the land-use and planning approvals should be efficiently addressed to ensure the construction and occupancy of this project as soon as possible.
A CIHA can be used to regulate land use and the location, use, height, size and spacing of buildings and structures to permit certain types of development.
The requesting municipality is responsible for providing public notice and undertaking consultation and ensuring the order, once made, is available to the public.
The minister can provide an exemption for other necessary planning-related approvals from provincial plans, the Provincial Policy Statement and municipal Official Plans, if specifically requested by the municipality, and impose conditions on the municipality and/or proponent.