Developer unveils plans for Barrie Central site

The Barrie skyline could soon have two new additions.

On Tuesday, HIP Developments held a public meeting, inviting residents to see its new plans to build a 29-storey tower and a 25-storey tower on the former Barrie Central Collegiate property.

The apartment buildings would include 623 units in total.

"I think we've addressed Bradford Street as an urban front. We have the Prince of Wales Park as part of the plan, so a lot of the things we had previously, we are just building upon," said Scott Higgins, president of HIP Developments.

The Waterloo-based company bought the Dunlop Street properties from the Simcoe County District School Board for $5.8 million in 2017.

The project initially included three residential towers with a total of 600 units.

Last Summer, HIP scrapped its original plans after a supervised consumption site was proposed near the site on Innisfil Street.

"This forced us to push the front of the residential density to Bradford street where the Y was," said Higgins via Zoom.

The new YMCA is now expected to be built on the H-Block on Worsley Street, near the public library.

The Simcoe County Branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association told CTV News in an email that it has submitted several letters and is waiting on approval. There was no timeline provided.

Barrie city councillor Keenan Aylwin has been an advocate for the supervised consumption site and said he was disappointed that the developer decided to pause the project but has hopes for the new design.

"I'm hoping we can push the developer to include some affordable housing in this as we are facing an intense housing crisis in this city," said Aylwin.

Regarding affordable housing, Higgins said they included multiple bedroom units in the towers but that the current market and supply chain have presented challenges.

"At the end of the day, when you do one and two-bedroom apartments for 400, 500, 600 thousand dollars, that's the most affordable housing you can bring. I'll be the first to acknowledge nothing is affordable anymore," said Higgins.

In the meantime, the project will go through a phased approval process, with the city asking for community feedback.

"The applicant will look at those comments and try to address them in the greatest extent they can," said Michelle Banfield, City of Barrie development services director.

At the developer's meeting on Tuesday, several people shared concerns about what they would like to see included in the project.

A topic top of mind of many was the lack of grocery stores in the neighbourhood.

HIP developments said if it cant include it in their design, the project could attract a grocer to set up shop.