Barrie & Area: 1) Another homeless encampment in Barrie has been dismantled; 2)Barrie city council makes a move to target red-light runners

Barrie & Area: 1) Another homeless encampment in Barrie has been dismantled

Barrie bylaw officers, joined by police and several shelter staff from the Busby Centre were at a homeless encampment in a wooded area on Bradford Street near Tiffin Street on Wednesday morning, as a 24-hour deadline approached for residents to gather their belongings and leave the property.

This was the second known encampment to be dismantled since Mayor Alex Nuttall declared a state of emergency in the city earlier this month, citing public safety concerns.

About 10 residents were at the encampment when authorities arrived at the property, which was muddy from recent rain, as debris of all sorts was strewn around.

Late Wednesday afternoon, the County of Simcoe, which is responsible for shelter services, said local outreach teams and service providers continued to engage and support all 18 individuals at the encampment before the enforcement efforts by Barrie bylaw and police.

“Seven have been approved for the County of Simcoe’s motel voucher program (including couples and pets), three have transitioned into emergency shelter spaces, and the remaining chose not to accept accommodations,” the county stated in an email to Barrie 360.

Several residents at the encampment who were packing their belongings wore t-shirts with the words “survival is not a crime.”

On the driveway of the property, contractors stood milling about next to a truck and a bobcat, which was to be used for cleaning up the site.

According to an encampment resident, an elderly couple had been living in a tent on the site up until Tuesday, when they were moved to a motel, after having been uprooted from the Anne Street encampment in August during a police homicide investigation.

Another resident, who identified himself as Bill and is in his 50s, said he had been staying at the Salvation Army in Barrie for several months and had been involved in programs including housing placement with the County of Simcoe, but at the end of March, he said there were no possibilities of placement, so he had to leave the shelter, and he learned about the Bradford Street encampment from a friend living there.

He says the encampment grew in size when the one on Anne Street was closed down and the City of Barrie began cleaning it up.

“I’ve been a contractor, and I worked all summer building a restaurant for a fellow in town,” he explained, adding he had an appointment with a contractor later in the day. “It’s not that I don’t have work, it’s that I don’t have a sufficient amount of regular hours of work.”

Based on the income he receives from social services, Bill says he isn’t able to sustain a house.

He returned to the encampment on Wednesday to help clean up and remove debris, noting he is back living at the Salvation Army.

Notices of eviction were placed on tents and structures at the encampment on Tuesday, and according to another resident who was living there, they were given a notice more than a week ago that they would have to be off the property by September 24.

“Speaking from being in the system, there aren’t a lot of services; there just isn’t enough for everyone,” Bill says.

He says there are not enough beds for the number of homeless in Barrie, which he estimates to be around 500.

As for drug use, it’s in every encampment, mostly marijuana and methamphetamine at the Bradford location, according to Bill, quick to emphasize that not everyone is a user.

Asked if underlying conditions might be responsible for some of the drug use, Bill agrees.

“I think it’s mostly depression more than anything else,” he says, before looking around the encampment, “because of the state and where they’re at. You can’t get any more bottom than the bottom of this, right?”

2)Barrie city council makes a move to target red-light runners

Nuttall said the city needs to focus on red-light cameras.

“That’s where we need to turn our heads, ASAP, so that we can get the (provincial) funding to be able to institute them.”

Red-light cameras have been on the city’s radar.

Council approved a motion last March that asked staff to investigate the feasiblity of installing red-light cameras in Barrie https://barrie360.com/barrie-red-light-cameras/,i dentify the characteristics of an intersection that best supports red-light cameras, and then identify the top locations on city streets.

The direction motion approved by council states automated speed enforcement (ASE) cameras would stop on December 31, 2025, unless otherwise directed by the province, and that staff be authorized to negotiate agreements to implement a red-light camera program in the city.

Funding for the red-light camera program would come from the ASE reserve.

The direct motion also says any agreement to implement a red-light camera program in Barrie would be based on evaluation of best value to the city.

Coun. Jim Harris mused about red-light cameras in areas where there are schools.

“Bayview and Little. Wouldn’t that be a good place for a red-light camera, which would actually probably do more good than the ASE camera.”

The location has two schools nearby, Allandale Heights Public School and Innisdale Secondary School.

“It’s a very busy area,” Harris added.

Barrie City Council, at a meeting on June 20, 2022, approved a motion to implement an ASE program. In 2017, Ontario authorized the use of ASE in municipalities to address ongoing issues with speeding in school zones and community safety zones.

ASE cameras went live in Barrie in December 2023 at Big Bay Point Road and at Anne Street North.

Barrie has 27 community safety zones. According to the city’s website, community safety zones were identified for the ASE program based on data collected that shows areas where drivers regularly go over the posted speed limit.

City staff said in a report to council in May that the initial data analysis indicates that ASE cameras are functioning as intended to reduce vehicle speeds through areas where vulnerable road users are present.

Revenue collected from the ASE program since its launch is $1,246,684, according to the city, and operating costs are $711,000, which means a surplus of $535,684.

The city website explains how the funds are used:

The municipality uses the funds from the fine payments to offset the costs of the ASE program (cameras leases, signs, provincial offences officers, office, and miscellaneous expenses)

The victim fine surcharge portion is submitted to the province like any other ticket offence. The municipality retains any net fine revenue, after expenses.

If there is a surplus of revenue over expenses, these funds will be reinvested by the city back into the ASE program, other road safety, or traffic calming initiatives

Since July, ASE cameras in Barrie have been located:

Those cameras, which were to remain in place until January 2026, will be gone by the end of the year.