Barrie city council proposes new turf sports field along waterfront
The City of Barrie is looking to take a step forward with plans for a new multi-use sports field along the waterfront, which will be brought to the general committee this week.
The proposed motion includes the recommendation for the field to feature a turf surface.
With only two existing turf fields in Barrie, Maple Ridge Secondary School and J.C. Massie Field at Georgian College, both owned and operated by their respective institutions, the City has identified the urgent need for a third turf field.
"When you think about the growth here in the City of Barrie, the number of people that are moving here, certainly we need to have more recreational space than we had in the past," said Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall.
The proposed premium synthetic turf surface for a multi-use field at South Shore Park is part of a larger $4.5 million project, which also includes relocating Barrie's Sea Cadets to a new facility.
However, the project has faced opposition from residents concerned about preserving the waterfront's natural greenery.
"I can understand there is a need for facilities. I don't necessarily see that they have to remove the last piece of natural planting in the City to do that," stated Bill Scott, former chair of the Allandale Neighbourhood Association.
Design concept for a new multi-purpose field along the Allandale Waterfront in Barrie, Ont. (Source: City of Barrie)
In contrast, the proposal has garnered support from various quarters, including the Barrie Soccer Club, which sees the potential for expanded recreational space as beneficial for multiple groups.
The Club said, "We asked the City to consider additional 'all weather' field space as youth soccer is trending to be an eight-to-nine month outdoor sport, and fields of this nature are so desperately needed. A recreational space would benefit not only Barrie SC, but likely many other youth clubs, including the Royal Canadian Sea Cadets of Barrie."
That sentiment was echoed by local business owners who could benefit from more downtown traffic.
"Anything we can do to help bring families downtown and rejuvenate the businesses down here would be great," noted Joe Turner, general manager of Donaleigh's Irish Public House.
If approved by council on May 15, the project aims to start construction in October and be completed in July 2025, pending the successful completion of the permit phase this summer.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Drive one of these vehicles? You may pay 37 per cent more than average insurance costs due to thefts
As the number of auto theft incidents rises in Canada, so have insurance premiums for drivers, even the ones whose vehicles aren't stolen.
'I'm not wealthy': Ontario senior shocked she owes $40,000 in capital gains after gifting land
An Ontario senior who wanted to help her daughter and grandson eventually own homes one day decided to give them two lots on her property as a gift—but she didn’t know it would eventually cost her tens of thousands of dollars.
NDP want Liberals to scrap proposed election date change that could secure pensions for many MPs
The federal New Democrats want to amend the Liberal government's electoral reform legislation to scrap the proposal to push back the vote by a week and consequently secure pensions for dozens of MPs, CTV News has learned.
Largest vaccine production plant in Canada opens in Toronto
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is announcing the opening of a major vaccine production plant in Toronto today — part of Canada's efforts to build up the domestic biomanufacturing sector in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
These are the world's 20 best cities for foodies, according to Time Out
Some travellers pick a city break based on the destination’s cultural offerings. Others eye up cities with buzzy nightlife or opt for a destination hosting a festival or event. But for many vacationers, the most exciting part of any trip is the food.
Video shows driver in Toronto frantically getting out of car being pushed by truck
A CP24 camera caught the moment a driver frantically got out of her car as it was being dragged by a truck on Avenue Road Wednesday afternoon.
Israeli centrist party proposes vote to dissolve parliament
Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz's centrist party proposed on Thursday holding a parliamentary vote on dissolving the parliament, but it was unclear whether he had enough support to bring about an early election.
Exorbitant fees get Gazans out with no help from Ottawa
The comforting sound of giggling grandchildren has chased away the cloud of anxiety that has loomed over Mohammed and Intisar Nofal's home for the past seven months.
BMO services restored following outage from data centre fire alarm, the bank says
Bank of Montreal clients saw services restored Thursday morning after an overnight, false fire alarm caused outages, the bank says.