Local News: 1) County of Simcoe to open 40-bed modular facility in Barrie after homeless encampment cleared; 2)Affordable housing part of new development in south Barrie; 3) County of Simcoe launches resident ambassador program with Ontario government funding;4) Canada’s top court won’t hear appeal in land dispute at Ontario’s Sauble Beach
1) County of Simcoe to open 40-bed modular facility in Barrie after homeless encampment cleared
Courtesy Barrie360.com
By Ian MacLennan, August 27, 2025
Modular housing units on Rose Street in Barrie, which provided temporary shelter over several winters, and were then relocated to Blake Street. (Image – Barrie 360 – May 2023)
The County of Simcoe hopes to have a 40-bed modular facility open in Barrie by September, following the removal of people from a homeless encampment on Anne Street that was cleared because of a police homicide investigation and environmental clean-up.
In a report to county councillors, Andrew Scarvarelli, Director of Housing and Homelessness Services, says the acquisition of the modular facility will cost up to $1.2 million and will be paid from underutilized funds from a federal program and savings from the operating offsets of a provincial one-time funding program.
The county currently operates a similar facility for Youth Haven on Blake Street near Penetanguishene Road while construction continues on a new shelter for the organization. As a result, the county announced in April it was going to pause its previously planned Supportive Rapid Rehousing Program (SRRP) for seniors.
“The county’s SRRP is a temporary program designed to help people who are facing homelessness transition into permanent housing within a short period of time,” according to Scarvarelli’s report.
Similar programs are operating in Orillia for youth and in Collingwood for seniors.
When residents of the Anne Street homeless encampment were removed, the county opened an emergency shelter at a former paramedic station on Tiffin Street and at the former Barrie police headquarters on Sperling Drive, though neither location offered beds for people to sleep on.
The county said in a statement on August 11 that support services at the temporary sites included: ‘
• homelessness outreach services
• wellness checks
• connection to services including the HART of Simcoe County navigators
• temporary storage of personal belongings
• transportation between the sites from the City of Barrie
• food
• cooling options
• temporary 24-hour access to the indoor evacuation site
• access to shower facilities at the Tiffin location
At the time, the county said it was abiding by City of Barrie fire code regulations at both Tiffin and Sperling locations, and beds were not available.
2)Affordable housing part of new development in south Barrie
Courtesy Barrie360.com
By Ian MacLennan, August 27, 2025
Site of the Library Residences, a 122-unit, seven-story building with 122 units, including 24 affordable housing units to be built at 60 Dean Avenue in Barrie. Image-Barrie 360-Aug. 27, 2025.
A new seven-storey rental building with 24 affordable housing units has been booked for development, next door to the Painswick Library, at 60 Dean Avenue, off of Big Bay Point Road.
The City of Barrie in partnership with Pratt Homes unveiled the project on Wednesday.
The Library Residences will offer 122 rental units, including 24 affordable homes. The project is one of three surplus city-owned sites sold to create more housing.
“We know affordability continues to be the main driver in the issues affecting both those trying to get into the housing market and those who are trying to downsize as seniors,” said Mayor Alex Nuttall.
Nuttall hopes council’s decision earlier this month to remove development charges on any development that has 20 per cent affordable housing inside of it will spur more projects like the Library Residences.
“It’s actually the remaining units that we are waiving the development charges on,” explained the mayor. “In a case of an 80-20 split, when you are hitting the 20 per cent threshold of affordable housing, the city is waiving the 80 per cent development charges that allow for that development to take place.”
Karen Hansen of Pratt Homes says the 24 suites will remain aligned with municipally defined affordable housing rates, which follow the framework set in provincial definitions for a full 25 years. She noted that while the remaining 98 suites, while not subject to the municipal affordability requirements, have also been carefully designed with cost-effective pricing in mind.
“Our goal is to bring more attainable housing options across the entire 122 suites, not just the 24 that meet the formal affordability definition.”
The Library Residences will also feature Barrie’s first privately owned public space (POPS), designed for the residents and the neighbourhood. Hansen said the POPS will feature outdoor fire pits, a reading and sitting area, a book exchange, and a cellphone charging stations for the community.
Construction is expected to begin next spring, with the first residents to move in by April 2027.
3) County of Simcoe launches resident ambassador program with Ontario
Courtesy Barrie360.com
By Julius Hern, August 27, 2025
One-time funding from the Ontario government is making the new Resident Ambassador Program possible, as introduced by the County of Simcoe Wednesday.
The program is meant to enhance the wellbeing and build stronger connections for residents at the County’s senior services locations. Those include Simcoe Village, Georgian Village, and Sunset Village.
Simcoe County received $24,410 from the Ontario government’s Ministry for Seniors and Accessibility. It comes through the Seniors Community Grant, which aims to help local non-profit community groups and organizations make projects possible to help adults aged 55 and up.
“The Seniors Community Grant Program is helping protect the well-being of seniors by providing opportunities to stay active, connected and engaged, said Minister for Seniors and Accessibility Raymond Cho in a news release. “We are honoured to support the County of Simcoe’s Resident Ambassador Program which will engage residents and ambassadors alike and have a positive impact on the atmosphere of the homes.”
This program provides a formal way for seniors to welcome new residents by sharing their experience and support activities. The County says residents play a key role in shaping the program and touching on their peers’ wellbeing.
“Connection is an important part of our lives, even more so as we age. The Resident Ambassador Program is a great example of how community can be fostered and grown within these Villages, and provides a meaningful impact on the lives of all who live there,” said MPP for Barrie-Springwater-Oro-Medonte Doug Downey in a news release. “Ensuring seniors have the tools they need to shape this program is key to its success, and I am thrilled the government is able to provide the necessary funding. I look forward to seeing the impacts of this program on both the Villages and the broader senior’s community.”
Ambassadors in this program will help organize events, greet visitors, start clubs, host art and woodworking sessions, and build phone networks. It’s all in an effort to connect their fellow residents to their interests and sharing their experience and talents with their neighbours.
“Empowering residents to take on leadership roles within their Villages will help to foster a strong sense of belonging, purpose, and pride, benefiting both Ambassadors and the wider resident community. We’re grateful to the province for supporting our efforts to create meaningful opportunities that empower residents to stay active, engaged, and connected.” – Warden Basil Clarke
4) Canada’s top court won’t hear appeal in land dispute at Ontario’s Sauble Beach
Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press
By Vanessa Tiberio, Aug. 28, 2025
Canada’s top court won’t hear appeal in land dispute at Ontario’s Sauble Beach
The Supreme Court of Canada has declined to hear an appeal of a lower-court ruling that upheld a First Nation’s ownership of a stretch of land at a popular Ontario beach after a lengthy dispute.
Canada’s top court has dismissed the appeal request from several landowners, the Town of South Bruce Peninsula and the province after a stretch of land along Sauble Beach was returned to Saugeen First Nation in 2023.
The Supreme Court did not provide a reason for its decision, which is customary.
Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and wherever you get your podcasts to get notified of new episodes every day.
Saugeen First Nation said in a statement that it is “both proud and grateful” to celebrate the “historic vindication” of its treaty rights.
“Generations of Saugeen people have fought tirelessly against all odds to protect and preserve this deeply important area at the heart of our traditional territory,” Saugeen Chief Conrad Ritchie said.
Ritchie added that the First Nation is “disappointed” the case had to go this far, and they are hoping it sets a precedent for better relations between Indigenous groups and the Crown in the future.
The top court’s appeal request dismissal comes nearly two months after members of Saugeen First Nation changed the iconic “Welcome to Sauble Beach” sign that greeted beach visitors.
The temporary “Welcome to Saugeen Beach” sign was erected in the early morning hours of Canada Day to reflect the First Nation’s ownership of the land, a move Saugeen First Nation councillors had been planning for a couple of months.
In the days following the sign change, some beachgoers expressed surprise and dismay, and the town’s mayor said he was disappointed that he wasn’t alerted of the change.
South Bruce Peninsula Mayor Jay Kirkland declined to comment Thursday on the Supreme Court’s dismissal of the appeal request.
The Ontario Court of Appeal upheld last December the decision that 2.2 kilometres of the coastline in South Bruce Peninsula was incorrectly surveyed 170 years ago and formed part of Saugeen First Nation’s reserve.
When the provincial land surveyor was going over boundaries of the reserve in 1855, he encountered an inward curve of Lake Huron’s coastline that he could not run a straight line through on dry land, resulting in a reduction of land that has been long disputed, according to documents filed in Ontario Superior Court in 2023.
The portion of the land is valuable fishing ground for the First Nation community and was surrendered in 1854 in an agreement with the Crown known as Treaty 72 to give up portions of Bruce Peninsula.
Saugeen First Nation said the legal proceedings in the case have so far “only dealt with the ownership of the land, and not any issues relating to compensation for any parties.”
“A second trial may be scheduled to address compensation issues if those issues are not first resolved out of court,” it said.