This meeting might be anything but neighbourly.
A proposal to build six storeys with 154 residential apartments at 114 Blake St., in east-end Barrie, is the subject of a neighbourhood meeting June 1.
The former site of Lake Simcoe Motel, which has since been demolished, needs to be rezoned for this development on 1.06 acres.
“I am actually outraged that they would even consider putting up such a large building on Blake Street at Rodney,” said Elizabeth Federer, who lives on nearby Collingwood Street. “I moved to Barrie two years ago from Toronto to get away from large buildings and large-scale construction.
“I have invested a considerable amount of money on my property and am quite upset that I will lose my view of the lake, which was one of the major reasons I bought my home,” she added. “I also find it very upsetting that this new build will change the neighbourhood drastically.”
John Ewart, who lives on Blake Street, says the project doesn’t fit the community.
“We are surprised and disappointed that the city would even begin to entertain such a large building, given the specific area with mostly beautiful older historical homes all around,” he said. “We moved to this part of Barrie a few years ago because we loved how beautiful and historic this area is.
“It would be an absolute shame to ruin what is so unique about this part of Barrie with such a building.”
Ally Wiles and Chris Eaton, who live on Rodney Street, were of the same opinion.
“We are appalled at the notion of a proposed amendment to the zoning bylaw that would permit a six-storey residential building with 154 units,” they said. “A building of this height will have damaging impacts to the historical value and environmental health of the area. It will devalue the homes in the area, largely due to the resulting lack of light.
“To change the zoning, for all the reasons outlined above, is not right. It’s just not right.”
Eaton and Wiles say they toured 51 Rodney as a possible home in July 2021.
“The prospect of living in the beautiful, historic, southeast end of Barrie was very appealing,” they said. “We particularly loved the large, historic, deep-rooted trees on the property. We recognized that they were positioned to receive sufficient sunlight to flourish and appreciated the heating efficiency of the natural light coming through south facing windows of the house. Sufficient sunlight for our planned vegetable garden was also a must.”
They checked the vacant lot directly south, at 114 Blake, and what might be built there one day.
“We did our research and were informed that the vacant lot was zoned for buildings that could not exceed two to three storeys in height,” they said. “This felt reasonable to us, and we did not feel buildings of this height would negatively impact the natural light that was so important to us.
“We were also informed that this zoning could not be changed to accommodate higher buildings as the rationale for such zoning restrictions was to preserve sunlight provision to protect the health of the bordering, historic trees on the property and near the historic neighbouring property at 47 Rodney St.”
So they bought 51 Rodney St.
“We felt we had made the best decision for our growing family, to invest our hard-earned financial resources into this lovely property,” they said.
Coun. Clare Riepma, who represents this area of the city, says 114 Blake is currently zoned to permit a one- or two-storey motel. The property is surrounded by one- and two-storey, single-family homes, with two of the adjacent homes designated as historic homes.
“The proposal to build a six-storey apartment building, in my view, is ill-considered and does not respect the surrounding neighbourhood,” Riepma said. “Many residents in the area have contacted me to express similar concerns.
“There is a significant demand in the area for one and two storey townhouses geared to seniors. This is an ideal site for such a use,” he said. “There are a lot of seniors in Ward 1 that live in houses that are much larger than their needs. By building smaller homes for seniors, larger homes would be freed up for families that need them.”
Wiles and Eaton say they understand the need for affordable housing and don’t oppose residential development at 114 Blake if it’s within the zoning bylaw’s height restrictions.
“We have confidence that our elected governmental officials and their colleagues will do the right thing in retaining the current zoning bylaw height restriction,” they said.
Su Murdoch, an historical consultant, says there are two properties with a heritage designation abutting 114 Blake, hers at 47 Rodney and 126 Blake, plus another at nearby 142 Collingwood. She says the proposed development would have an impact on the relationship of these properties to each other, and to other homes in the community.
The Provincial Policy Statement says that cultural and heritage resources should be preserved, and a heritage impact assessment looks at why buildings are protected and the impact of new development on those features.
But Murdoch says there’s nothing in the statement which prevents development.
The developer has been identified only as a numbered Ontario company, which has a Vaughan address.
The June 1 neighbourhood meeting is limited to the former Lake Simcoe Motel property.
Earlier this year, BarrieToday obtained a copy of a letter sent to area property owners, dated Nov. 23, 2021, from a Toronto realtor representing ‘a reputable and qualified buyer that has recently purchased 114 Blake St. and is interested in acquiring other properties on the street.’
The realtor says the letter’s intent is ‘to inquire if you have any interest in selling your property.’ The realtor goes on to say ‘my client can deliver an offer with flexible terms and closing date.’
Located at the northeast corner of Blake and Rodney streets, 114 Blake was owned by the Smith family, which built Lake Simcoe Motel, from 1863 until 1972. Following two suspicious fires in August 2016, the last remnants of the Lake Simcoe Motel were torn down and removed that December.
The Wednesday, June 1 virtual neighbourhood meeting on this proposal is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m.
To register, visit barrie.ca.
The next step is a public meeting on the rezoning application, followed by a staff report and recommendations to Barrie councillors, sitting as planning committee, and then a city council decision.
