Orillia OPP: do you know this shoplifter?

The Orillia OPP have released a surveillance image in the hopes the public will recognize a shoplifter.

On July 25, a woman entered a Colborne Street business and left without paying for items.

The Orillia OPP is seeking anyone who may be able to identify the woman in the picture. If anyone knows who the woman is, they are encouraged to contact the Orillia OPP at 1-888-310-1122 or 705-326-3536.

Simcoe County approves Friday Harbour addition in Innisfil

Simcoe County council has now signed off on adding 1,000 extra homes at in Innisfil.

The developer applied for an amendment to both the town and the county’s Official Plans in order to add 1,000 units to its site. The .

“(The additional resort units) will help further the County’s objectives to promote economic development, enhance employment and business opportunities, promote the development of communities with diversified economic functions, a diverse range of housing options, offering quality lifestyles, and efficient and cost-effective development”, Friday Harbour spokesperson Cheryl Shindruk said.

She explained the addition won’t change the current layout of the Big Bay Point area resort.

“All additional units will be incorporated into the existing approved development footprint,” she said.”

Constructed to date are the golf course, trail system, marina, harbourmaster building, Beach Club, 700 resort units, 800-space underground parking facility, boardwalk, pier and 40,000 square feet of retail space.

Simcoe County’s director of planning, development and tourism David Parks said the lands are currently designated for the proposed uses, which is one of the reasons council approved the amendment June 27.

“There is sufficient sewer and water capacity to service the proposed additional units,” he said. “The traffic studies indicate the road network has sufficient capacity to handle the additional traffic with minor phased road improvements. There are no environmental constraints with the additional development.”

This summer Fishbone Restaurant, FH Fine Food, and an apparel shop will be opening at the resort, which are all open to the public. The Avenue restaurant is also in the planning stages.

Friday Harbour is a seasonal resort community which will “further enhance the county as world-class tourism destination,” Parks said.

Friday Harbour now awaits a provincial decision on the unit increase, before it can go ahead with the expansion.

“(The Official Plan amendment) will be submitted to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs for approval,” Parks said, adding it has 210 days to respond.


Red tape ahead for Tollendale seniors housing in Innisfil

With eyes on a new seniors home for Innisfil, Tollendale Village representative Clare Riepma had hoped it wouldn’t have to jump through hoops to get the project started.

Riepma spoke to Innisfil council Aug. 8, asking for assistance with the town’s Our Place official plan.

“Tollendale owns and operates a significant seniors complex in Barrie on Hurst Drive, just down the road,” he said. “I’m a planner for the project, and we’ve submitted our plans to you.”

Tollendale Village owns 1870 and 1902 Big Bay Point Rd., with plans to build another long-term care seniors living complex. Council has already approved a cross-municipal servicing agreement to the site east of Strathallan Woods Lane South.

Riepma said their proposal meets the requirements of the town’s official plan under a public service facility.

But if they build in a rural or agricultural area, an official plan amendment would be required.

“This is a much-needed project, as you know.”

Tollendale Village is a not-for-profit company offering life lease apartments, with affordable unit costs, Riepma said.

Currently, the waiting list for Tollendale’s Barrie facility is 900 people, with approximately 20 units becoming available every year.

The Innisfil proposal is a continuum-of-care facility with a 160-bed nursing home and 464 one- and two-bedroom apartments.

 “Within those apartments, you can obtain the services you need as you get older,” Riepma said. “A lot of people don’t need it when they move in, but their needs increase, and support is available.”

The town’s official plan was adopted by council in January 2018, but the County of Simcoe has proposed some changes.

One of the changes requires an official plan amendment for any legal nonconforming site plans.

Town manager of land-use planning Tim Cane said the county is trying to find synergies between its official plan and that of the town, and if the town modifies the agreement, it could delay approval of Our Place, which is expected to happen in September.

He noted that, regardless of the wording, the land already requires an official plan amendment anyway.

Council agreed to accept the county’s changes, meaning Tollendale Village would have to appeal the town’s official plan.

What’s Going on Here: Owen Street, near the downtown Barrie Public Library branch

The view from the downtown branch of the Barrie Public Library could be changing soon.

There’s a large development proposed on the other side of Owen Street. Officially known as 53 to 59, 61 to 67 Owen St., 70 to 78 Worsley St. and 55 to 57 McDonald St., the applicant, Barrie Owen Service, has applied for a zoning bylaw amendment to permit a large residential development .

Here’s the latest on this project:

• A proposed 307-unit mixed-use development is scheduled to front Owen, Worsley and McDonald streets. The project has a total area of 0.4 hectares. If developed as planned, the property would include a 20-storey tower, with 413 square metres of ground floor commercial space, on the southern section of the site.

• The proposal also includes a five-storey podium structure, eight-storey building, seven townhouse units and 326 underground parking spaces. There will also be 101 underground bicycle parking spaces built. 

• A sixth floor amenity level is proposed to connect the two towers.

• The rezoning application was completed in January but it is still under review by city staff.

• This site currently includes a parking lot, single detached homes and mixed-use commercial and residential buildings.

Additional information on this project can be obtained by contacting city senior urban design planner Jordan Lambie at , ext. 4324, or .

Orillia councillors call for vulnerable-sector checks for Uber drivers

Drivers for ride-sharing services like Uber should undergo in-depth screening to protect Orillia’s vulnerable residents, such as children and the elderly, councillors say.

As the city eyes a proposal that would pave the way for Uber to operate here, a majority agreed drivers should be subject to the expanded background checks that are required of local cabbies.

“If my daughter went to the bar and got slightly tiddly and wanted to take a taxi home, I want to know she is safe,” Coun. Pat Hehn said.

Others disagreed on the need for vulnerable-sector checks, noting Uber has said it may steer clear of Orillia if drivers are subject to screening beyond the criminal-background checks it requires.

Manager of legislative services Shawn Crawford countered that equating the two screening checks was not “an apples-to-apples comparison,” as the vulnerable sector “identifies additional things that the criminal record doesn’t.”

These include pardons for sexual offences.

Currently, Orillia taxi drivers must undergo a vulnerable-sector check before they begin working, followed by annual criminal-background checks.

“At the core of licensing is public safety,” Crawford said.

Just one of 444 Ontario municipalities — Ottawa — requires Uber drivers to undergo vulnerable-sector screening, noted Coun. Mason Ainsworth.

Opening the market to Uber is about offering expanded choices, he added.

Derick Lehmann provided Uber services in Orillia before receiving a cease-and-desist order from the city.

Lehmann welcomed changes that would allow the company to operate locally, but disagreed with the requirement for vulnerable-sector checks, calling it “redundant.”

“Kids under 18 aren’t supposed to be in an Uber without their parent or guardian,” he said, adding seniors typically “aren’t using Uber.”

Completing a vulnerable-sector check can be a lengthy process and the requirement would discourage Uber from operating here, Lehmann said.

The proposed measure is part of a draft bylaw to regulate ride-sharing services, taxi companies and companies that provide rides in conjunction with other services.

It also recommends eliminating or reducing some requirements related to the taxi industry to provide it with greater flexibility to compete, Crawford said.

Council will consider a final bylaw in August.


How much is that? Wasaga Beach wants to know

Wasaga Beach is hiring an appraiser to determine the value of land identified as the site of the municipality’s proposed community hub.

In a special committee of the whole meeting, July 6, councillors accepted a recommendation to advertise for an appraiser, after concerns were raised about sole-sourcing the appraisal service to a Barrie firm proposed by the town’s chief administrative officer.

George Vadeboncoeur said seven Main Street landowners have been informed the town is interested in buying the properties for a facility that could include a double rink, library, and cultural space.

The appraisals, he said, would form the basis for a negotiation of a purchase and sale agreement.

He said the appraisals of the properties would be a “complex process” as they involved businesses — notably two campgrounds, a motel, and one other mixed-use property.

Have a sweet summer with Serve a Sweet Slice baking camp in Innisfil

baker Angelique Hardy is back in the kitchen this summer for another kids’ cooking camp.

“The was such a hit. I had so much wonderful feedback from it,” Hardy said.

This time, she’s extending the age group to 12.

“I will be showing the children how to grow your own food and how that connection can influence your choices,” she said. “It’s amazing when you see their eyes light up when they pluck their own lettuce and tomatoes. They want to create something awesome with it.”

The camps run July 2 through to the week of Aug. 6 from 9 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.

Cost is $39 a day, which includes two snacks, lunch and all materials.

For more details, call Hardy at or email .

Flush crunch coming in Innisfil

A building boom is leaving the town a little flushed out.

According to staff, the town’s sewer treatment capacity is going to be full by 2023 if changes aren’t made.

And although upgrades have been on the books for a while, the town’s growth is creating a sewer shortfall as well as a cash crunch.

“Since the 2012 master plan, we have known there should be a waste water expansion plan in the future,” town CAO Jason Reynar said.

A staff report shows the estimated cost for expansions to the waste water treatment plant on St. Johns Road is $87 million.

The bad news: to date, only $13.5 million has been collected from development charges.

The current waste water treatment plant opened in 1987 with four holding tanks, with four more tanks added in 1996.

There are 100 kilometres of gravity-fed sewer pipes buried beneath the roads, which all lead to the plant.

Septic trucks also drop off their haul.

Once taking in the sewage, aluminum sulphate, or alum, is added to the liquid, which helps suspended particles bind together so they can settle to the bottom.

The liquid flows through a screen to remove grit, getting rid of anything that sinks or floats.

After that, the liquid is put into bubbling aeration tanks, where micro-organisms go to work eating the biodegradable matter.

“It’s all biological, basically this is a biological zoo,” waste water operations team lead Dave Sparrow said.

Some of the older sludge, rich with micro-organisms, is added to the mixture to enhance the treatment.

Next, the fluid goes to a clarifying tank, where the sludge settles to the bottom and a large stirring arm collects the sludge into a central hopper.

After that, the mostly clean water is sent through a filter, which includes an ultraviolet disinfection system.

It is then poured back into Lake Simcoe, and the process repeats itself.

Some of the remaining sludge is also sent away to be used on secondary crops like sod or soy.

While council is ready to debate the expansion plan on Sept, 5, interim plans are in the works.

One of the solutions to help with capacity has been adding a $5 million Lystek membrane system, which takes up less space than the old sand filter system. Those membranes can filter water faster than the older system.

Another piece of that puzzle is upgrading the water treatment plant so it doesn’t have to backwash every few hours, saving what amounts to about a thousand homes worth of wastewater.

And finally, there is submitting a new application to the Ministry of Environment and Conservation and Parks to adjust the plant’s capacity to 17,000 cubic metres a day.

However, if that is approved, the town would still reach its sewage capacity by 2023.

“There’s no doubt in the last two years, we’ve seen a spike in the number of housing permits,” Reynar said.

He was clear in saying the town isn’t behind where it should be.

“We’ve got the money to do a design, so we’ve got some time, but we’re talking about $60 million to $80 million to be front-end financed,” Reynar said. “We need the money up front to build it so the capacity is available when they want to turn the water on for that new house.”

However, he added, it’s not like the town could collect the $73.5 million in development charges and start building the expansion tomorrow.

“It’s challenging to ask for this at a time when we’re asking for development charge increases,” he said. “We were nervous about this with respect to how Innisfil Heights was going to be funded, because there isn’t the same guarantee if we bring the services, there will be development charges to offset the costs.”

Residential developers are prepared to pay up-front costs because they know the housing market is hot, Reynar said.

The town has already been working on an environmental assessment for the expansion, along with a new Master Servicing Plan.

“We are looking at extending servicing to areas that are underserviced, look at Innisfil’s growth areas and reduce impacts to Lake Simcoe,” InnServices CEO Wally Malcolm said during a council presentation Aug. 8.

Malcolm is updating the Master Servicing Plan to accommodate growth to 2031 and beyond.

Residents can comment on the Master Servicing Plan until Aug. 24, and Malcolm knows there’s a lot to take in.

“The short-term projects from 2019 to 2023, (including) the expansion of the Lakeshore Water Pollution Control Plant, amount to over $146 million,” Malcolm said.

And projects slated for 2024 to 2031 total another $85 million.

For now, staff is suggesting council delay adding any more housing or business wastewater commitments until a proper strategy is in place.

Staff is also hoping to work with the development community to get the front-end financing.

Angel ‘gateway’ into Penetanguishene could change

Penetanguishene is considering making enhancements to the angel gateway into town.

Two trumpet-playing angels fixed on concrete blocks currently sit on either side of Main Street at Thompsons Road. The town hired WSP to study the existing location of these angels and what could possibly be done with them.

“We did an assessment of where they are and any potential impacts that may (occur) through the Main Street reconstruction project,” said Greg Bender of WSP Canada.

The report concluded that the angels should remain together, be kept opposite each other on either side of the road and should be relocated south.

“Where the angels are right now used to be the informal gateway to the town … and development is encroaching on that gateway,” said Bender.

“We heard from the heritage committee that it would make sense to relocate the angels to the municipal boundary to really ensure people know they are entering Penetanguishene at the municipal boundary and not at Thompsons Road.”

Bender proposed a series of redesigns, which included angels on pedestals ranging three to eight metres in height with walls, signage, banners or a connecting archway. Eight proposed designs had estimated costs as low as $331,000 and as high as $1.2 million.

Council has yet to debate the options.

Midway returns to Wasaga Beach

The main beach area is always a fun spot to be, but now there is even more to do with the arrival of the midway.

Albion Amusements Ltd. has its midway set up at , 40 Mosley St., near Beach Area One, from Friday, July 6, until Sunday, July 15.

Hours of operation are 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., subject to weather and customer demand.

Enjoy fun rides, games, and carnival food at the longest freshwater beach in the world.

Please note that due to the midway, parking will not be available to the public at Playland Park Square parking lot from July 4 to July 17. For a list of parking lots nearby please visit