Skip to content

Affordable housing a huge factor in the city's growth, development

'There are many people who want to live in Barrie and start something new and we need to help that vision grow for them and the development of the community,' says city's planning director

There has been a lot of talk about future land use in Simcoe County centred on development and politics, but local realtors also hard at work trying to assist in finding homes for anyone looking to make the Barrie area their place to be.

The Barrie and District Association of Realtors (BDAR) is made up of nearly 1,000 realtors in the Barrie and Simcoe County region and are tasked with finding the right locations for their clients.

Many of the locations that realtors are searching for nowadays are for residential homes for first-time buyers and the much-needed affordable living areas.

BDAR president Tania Artenosi told BarrieToday that it is a busy time for local realtors, particularly with a large jump in the sales of apartment units.

“The city of Barrie itself has so many developments coming up and there is a growth plan that comes with those plans which needs to be referred to and looked over for realtors and developers,” said Artenosi. “It isn’t just Barrie, though, as places like Innisfil, Oro-Medonte and Essa are also looking at further development based on what’s planned out by the province and affordable housing is going to be a hot topic when plans are considered.”

An event this week at the BDAR offices on Veterans Drive saw close to 100 local and out-of-town realtors meet to discuss what is needed on their end of a region-wide mission to develop and house new residents and businesses in Simcoe County.

“Members were wanting to know about community developments, growth plan and what exactly is up and coming in the County of Simcoe,” said Artenosi. “With all of that information we reached out to all our community partners and organized one spot for them to talk about the future of the area.”

While there are many aspects to look at with a region’s growth, the City of Barrie's director of planning and building services, Andrea Bourrie, admits everyone needs to work together, and that includes the city.

“The population of Barrie is certainly growing, but so are the job opportunities that are needed for that growth,” said Bourrie.

“We’ve long had the traditional manufacturing and technology opportunities, but now we are involved now with the evolving and emerging trends such as entrepreneurship," she added. "There are many people who want to live in Barrie and start something new and we need to help that vision grow for them and the development of the community.”