Crews tearing down former Barrie YMCA building to make way for new project
Demolition crews are dismantling the former YMCA in Barrie to make room for a proposed development.
"We've seen affordability and vacancy at all-time lows across Ontario, and Barrie in particular, is in desperate need of new housing supply, and we're answering that," says Greg Jones, SkyDev president.
SkyDev purchased the land on Grove Street in February to construct residential rental units.
"It will be three buildings. The height limit in the zoning is about 25 storeys with bottom interconnected podiums between the buildings," Jones explains.
Jones expects to submit a site plan application by September. He hopes to have shovels in the ground in one year.
NEW MULTI-PURPOSE YMCA HUB
The Simcoe Muskoka YMCA is developing plans for a new $40 million multi-purpose community hub that will include programs, child care, meeting spaces, a public café and space for a youth centre. A fitness facility will provide transitional beds for at-risk youths.
Additionally, the new facility will host cardiovascular and cancer rehabilitation programs for post-care patients in partnership with Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre.
In June, the province invested $29 million in the project located downtown on the former Barrie Central property.
"It's a game-changer for us as we move forward," says YMCA president and CEO Jill Tettmann. "We know there are many needs of youth in the downtown area. The youth transitional housing would be the first in Simcoe County."
With more than 5,000 people using the Y yearly, organizers hope the new YMCA hub will triple its numbers.
Officials hope to be able to open the new YMCA facility in the fall of 2024.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.