Barrie & Area: 1)Barrie Transit workers vote 96% for strike action amid stalled contract talks; 2)Homelessness: No end in sight for Barrie’s encampment emergency, says Mayor Nuttall; 3)Barrie celebrates 2025 Arts Awards winners; 4)Fire Station 6 opens in southeast Barrie

1)Barrie Transit workers vote 96% for strike action amid stalled contract talks

The strike mandate does not mean an immediate work stoppage, but it does put pressure on upcoming talks scheduled for January.

A transit strike would be the first in Barrie’s history.

Corey Trew, president of the local union representing Barrie Transit employees, says negotiations have hit a wall.

“It boils down to it’s an American company and they have that American swagger,” Trew told Barrie 360. “They’re just not prepared to negotiate in good faith. There’s no reasonable offers being made.”
every day.

The dispute isn’t solely about wages. Benefits, vacation time for long-serving employees, and working conditions have all been sticking points.

“We were looking at getting an improvement on the premium, an extra week vacation for people that have been there 20-plus years,” he explained. “These were all hard no’s.”
One proposal from the company sought to make bathroom breaks unpaid for Transit On Demand drivers—a move Trew says is “not even legal up here.”
For now, transit riders can expect service to continue as normal. More talks are planned for January.

2)Homelessness: No end in sight for Barrie’s encampment emergency, says Mayor Nuttall

Courtesy Barrie360.com

By Julius Hern, November 14, 2025

Two months in and the City of Barrie is progressing with its mission to get rid of encampments and decontaminate those areas, but there’s no light at the end of the tunnel just yet.

At a press conference at City Hall Friday morning, Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall provided an update regarding the city’s collaborative cleanup efforts along with the County of Simcoe, 66 days since he declared a state of emergency to address homeless encampments.

In that time, he says the city successfully cleared 39 such locations, and has addressed 47 encampments in some way, up from 35 on September 9. There are currently eight active encampments on municipally-owned property in Barrie.

Outreach efforts have supported the transition of 68 people into from encampments to safe indoor spaces. However, the City still estimates 45 to 50 individuals are still living in at encampments in Barrie, down from 111 an estimate when the declaration was made.

Also, 200 individuals have connected with the HART of Simcoe County Navigation Team to enter the County’s pathway program to securing permanent housing.

Cleanups at the two largest sites have taken place, one at Dyment’s Creek, and one at Audrey Milligan Park and Pond. While the former effort has been completed, the Milligan’s Pond cleanup is expected to take week. Both remain closed until further notice.

A report from the Dyment’s Creek cleanup, which has incurred $1.2 million in costs and counting, required the removal of 409 tonnes of waste. Nuttall says that tonnage is equivalent to six days of waste collection for all residential properties in the city, or two per cent of the City’s landfill’s annual agglomeration.

At the press conference, Nuttall signed a strong mayor motion that will direct City staff to add Audrey Milligan’s Pond and Park as part of lands to be included in the Conservation Trust when the report is presented to General Committee.

“When the encampment cleanup is complete over in Milligan’s Pond, we will start the process of ensuring what is an environmental beauty and a piece of Barrie’s natural heritage and Lake Simcoe’s natural heritage is preserved for future generations,” Nuttall said.

“We need to restore it to the beauty that it once had and make it available for citizens to be able to access and be living in a beautiful city like Barrie, but still have the opportunity to walk through natural areas.”

The cost of the cleanup at that site is yet to be announced.

The mayor was also non-committal to fencing off the Milligan’s Pond site, as was the case at Dyment’s Creek.

Despite the progress made over the last two months, Nuttall says the City isn’t budging on its idea of success.

“Our position is that when there are no tents and the folks that are in encampments are in housing and all of the wrap-around supports are in place, that’s when we will permanently lift the emergency order,” he says. “Until then, we will continue down the path that we have and certainly work through every single tent with every single individual to get them into those supports.

“This is not the place to have a tent, and if we need to, we’ll use the bylaw resources to remove it.”

Nuttall, who was recently in British Columbia, was reaffirmed by the trip that the issues seen in Barrie are happening across Canada. But, he was also reminded of his feelings that the federal government didn’t step in to address the issue despite pleas when he was the MP for Barrie-Springwater-Oro-Medonte.

“If you had had a government that had actually interceded with providing rehabilitative supports and rehabilitative services and drug prevention plans, we wouldn’t be in this horrible, horrible emergency we’re in today.”

That riding’s current MP, Doug Shipley, who served on Barrie City Council when Nuttall had his seat in Ottawa, also reiterated his view that encampments and addictions are coast-to-coast issues after a summer trip to the Prairies. It was when he returned that Shipley says he had discussions with Nuttall on the issue.

Nuttall says that compared to other provinces, Ontario has the “most onerous standards” to remove an encampment in the country, which are allowing their efforts to take place.

Among other efforts since September 2023 noted by the mayor included an investment of $10,000 of funding for Family Reunification Services to help those who are looking to get home to their families, and the City’s prevention of over 700 ex-inmates being dropped off in downtown Barrie after being released from the Central North Correctional Centre.

3)Barrie celebrates 2025 Arts Awards winners

Courtesy Barrie360.com and News Release

By City of Barrie, November 19, 2025

Last evening, the City of Barrie recognized this year’s Arts Awards winners during a gala event at the MacLaren Art Centre. These awards honour individuals and organizations for excellence in the arts and contributions to the local arts community.

“The city’s arts and culture sector has much to celebrate this year. From plans for an innovative performing arts centre on the waterfront now underway, to the installation of the new public art at the Barrie Allandale Transit Terminal, and Council’s endorsement of the Public Art Strategy—our creative future is taking shape in inspiring ways,” said Mayor Alex Nuttall. “Barrie’s arts community continues to deliver engaging, fun, and inclusive programming. Congratulations to all artists, creative groups, organizations, and businesses recognized at this year’s Arts Awards.”

This year, the city received 39 nominations across six categories. Nominations were reviewed and scored by a third-party panel of adjudicators who selected the following winners:

Each year, a new sculptor is selected to create the Barrie Arts Awards statuettes, which are unique works that reflect the importance of celebrating the contribution of artists and the arts on the community. This year’s award statuette design was created by artist Max Lupo.

The gala event featured performances by Barrie’s Poet Laureate Tyneisha Thomas, Alan Mallory, Aanchal Nanavati, Rogan Mei, and members of the UPlift Black Artist Collective, emmm, Bianca Bridge, Ali Star, Jon Spirit and Cesario Dope Only.

The Barrie Arts Awards are generously supported by the MacLaren Art Centre, Rhubarb Media, Multi Tech Audio Visual, Rock 95, 107.5 KOOL FM, Barrie 360, Georgian College Design and Visual Arts, City of Barrie Seniors and Accessibility Advisory Committee, Larissa Mair Casting & Associates, Allegra Barrie, Ted Handy and Associates, and Stephen Elliott Photography.

Learn more about this year’s winners at investbarrie.ca/ArtsAwards.

4)Fire Station 6 opens in southeast Barrie

Courtesy Barrie360.com and News Release

By City of Barrie, November 17, 2025

Today, Mayor Alex Nuttall and Fire Chief Kevin White helped to officially open Barrie Fire and Emergency Service (BFES) Station 6 in southeast Barrie. Located at the corner of Mapleview Drive East and Prince William Way, the new fire station will meet the emergency services needs of the growing population in Barrie’s southeast area.

“The opening of Station 6 is a significant milestone in our ongoing efforts to enhance public safety,” said Mayor Alex Nuttall. “Strategically located to serve the southeast area of Barrie, Station 6 will reduce response times, providing better protection for residents and businesses in the area. Thank you to everyone involved in bringing this project to fruition, from our city staff to the design and construction teams and our dedicated firefighters.”

The state-of-the-art facility is equipped with modern firefighting equipment and technology, improving the efficiency and effectiveness of emergency services. The construction incorporated sustainable design elements, including energy-efficient systems. The building is electrically powered and solar energy-ready, which will reduce operational costs and minimize the carbon emissions of the new facility. The station incorporates individual pod rooms with lockers and washrooms.

“This station is a critical addition to our emergency infrastructure and will help Barrie Fire and Emergency Service meet the city council-mandated six-minute road travel time, 90 per cent of the time, on emergency calls,” said Chief Kevin White. “Twenty firefighters have been hired to staff the new station which includes a garage bay with space for two aerial fire trucks.”

Barrie Fire will host a public Open House at Fire Station 6 on Friday, November 28, from 6 to 8 p.m. This free, family-friendly event will include station tours, opportunities to meet the firefighters, safety tips for holiday decorating and cooking, and a chance to check out the fire trucks and equipment up close.

Barrie Fire Station 6 is located at 845 Mapleview Drive East.