Barrie’s southern border is slated for retail development with a new grocery store.
City councillors approved a motion Wednesday night to rezone land at the southwest corner of Mapleview Drive East and Yonge Street from agricultural to general commercial, with site-specific provisions.
The rezoning application comes from Sobeys Developments Limited Partnership.
This development would provide approximately 82,193 square feet of commercial floor area in six buildings, a mix of retail and local services, including a food store and a restaurant, on almost 8.7 acres.
“Southeast Barrie is the last area of Barrie with a singular grocery store,” said Coun. Sergio Morales, who repress this part of the city. “It’s the last area that has only one grocery store.”
That would be the Zehrs Markets at 620 Yonge St., at the corner of Big Bay Point Road.
“Competition and options are valuable in the best of times,” Morales said. “In times of high inflation, even though it won't be built overnight, this is very welcomed infrastructure for this area of Barrie.”
The site-specific provisions in the rezoning would permit reductions in the front-yard setback, an increase in building height to 14 metres and an awning/canopy encroachment for the development of six commercial buildings at 651, 659, 665, 669 and 673 Mapleview Dr. E.
Morales said he had concerns about access points — the in and out roadways — to the development in what is a busy area.
“We never want to create collision points or points that collisions are likelier,” he said. “We want to make sure entries into the proposed development are at controlled (by traffic signals) intersections.”
“Traffic flows there are going to be incredibly high,” said Mayor Alex Nuttall.
Michelle Banfield, the city’s director of development services, said site-plan approval is still required following the rezoning, which comes with a concept plan.
“That’s to provide some comfort that the use they are asking for can actually be supported on the site,” she said. “There’s definitely some additional work that happens between zoning and site-plan approval including … firming up where the access points are, building locations, all sorts of things.”
City council could consider final approval of this rezoning at its March 8 meeting.
South of this property is agricultural land owned by Rainsong Land Development and Crown (Barrie) Development.
The draft plan approved portion of the Rainsong land could be the future home of a recreation centre, library and elementary school, in addition to single and semi-detached and townhouse residential uses.
The Crown Development land is proposed for multi-unit residential uses and mixed uses.
These plans remain preliminary, however.
A public meeting on the Sobeys rezoning application was held June 7, 2022 and no public submissions were received at the meeting.
This land was the subject of an appeal to the former Ontario Municipal Board (OMB), resulting in a settlement between the City of Barrie and Sobeys Capital Incorporated in May 2016.
Sobeys has an existing grocery store in Barrie at 37 Mapleview Dr. W.
