The City of Barrie does not qualify for provincial disaster relief funding related to the July 15 tornado.
Municipal Disaster Recovery Assistance (MDRA) helps municipalities recover from extraordinary costs after a natural disaster, with eligible expenses including capital costs to repair public infrastructure, as well as certain operating costs.
For MDRA purposes, a disaster is defined as a sudden, unexpected and extraordinary natural event that results in eligible municipal costs at least equal to three per cent of a municipality’s own taxation levy.
Barrie’s own taxation levy for 2020 was $248 million. Three per cent of this is almost $7.5 million or significantly more than the expected financial impact to the city of $357,000, so the City of Barrie does not qualify for the MDRA program.
It’s estimated the July 15 tornado will have a total financial impact of $357,000 in 2021 on the city and the Barrie Police Services.
The incremental costs and lost revenues related to the tornado that have either been incurred to date — or are expected to occur in the coming months as the recovery efforts continue — include the repair or replacement of damaged street fixtures, equipment, trees, and recycling bins totalling $117,000.
Police-related costs are $83,000, city overtime is $54,000, clean-up costs such as waste and tree debris removal, street sweeping and waived landfill fees are $52,000, while lighting, generators and safety fencing is $27,000. Lost property tax and water/wastewater revenue are $21,000 and Barrie Transit is down $3,000.
At this time, city staff don’t have any information on additional operating costs relating to paramedic services, which are administered by the County of Simcoe.
It is anticipated that the city’s additional costs and lost revenues will be funded within existing budgets and any shortfalls will be recovered from the tax rate stabilization reserve.
The province also has the Disaster Recovery Assistance for Ontarians (DRAO), which can help homeowners, small owner-operated businesses and farms and not-for-profit organizations.
The city, along with local Members of Provincial Parliament, worked with the province to have this disaster recovery assistance program activated on July 15, 2021, according to city staff. Application forms, as well as information on eligible costs, are available on the province’s website by clicking here.
The insured damage caused by a series of EF2 tornadoes on July 15, one of which devastated a southeast Barrie neighbourhood around Prince William Way and Mapleview Drive East, is approximately $75 million, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada.
The $75-million estimate places the July 15 thunderstorms, which resulted in the tornadoes, in the catastrophic category — defined as an event that causes more than $25 million in insured losses.
