Barrie fire chief heading to East Gwillimbury for new role

Barrie’s fire chief will soon be East Gwillimbury’s fire chief.

Cory Mainprize is leaving Barrie Fire and Emergency Service (BFES) and will take over in East Gwillimbury next month.

“I think it presents some exciting opportunities,” he told BarrieToday of his new position. “It’s one of Canada’s fastest-growing municipalities, which creates all kinds of opportunities for the fire service to meet the growing demands of that municipality.

“Meeting new people, new challenges, exciting projects to work on, are some of the things I am looking forward to the most," Mainprize added.

Asked for the reason why he was leaving BFES, Mainprize declined comment.

Mainprize has been with Barrie Fire for 24 years, the last six and a half years as chief.

A Springwater Township resident, he will become East Gwillimbury’s Fire and Emergency Services department fire chief effective June 3.

This also means Barrie is looking for its next fire chief.

“I believe they will appoint one of the deputies as acting (fire chief) until they complete a recruitment process,” Mainprize said.

Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall released a statement about the change.

“We thank Chief Mainprize for his years of dedicated service in the city of Barrie,” Nuttall said. “East Gwillimbury is a growing municipality, (which) will greatly benefit from Chief Mainprize’s leadership skills. We wish him all the best in his future endeavours.”.

He will also join East Gwillimbury’s senior management team, leading a team of paid-on-call and full-time firefighters who provide emergency services to residents and visitors through the three lines of defence: public education, fire prevention and emergency response.

Mainprize will also lead the development of an updated fire master plan and oversee the department’s operating and capital budgets.

Before his role as Barrie fire chief, he served as deputy chief of operations and training at BFES, managing all emergency response operations and training. During this time, he also oversaw the development of Barrie’s fire master plan and community risk assessment.

Mainprize began his career in 1998 as a volunteer firefighter with Caledon before joining the City of Barrie as a firefighter in 2000. He has completed a fire services executive management certificate with Humber College and holds a masters certificate in public administration from the Schulich School of Business.

“I am confident he will bring a modern, collaborative and progressive approach to our leadership team and will be a great contributor as the town continues to grow,” East Gwillimbury Mayor Virginia Hackson said in a news release. “Having a strong leader in this role is important as we deliver on our strategic plan commitment to delivering quality programs and services.”

Mainprize will succeed interim East Gwillimbury Fire Chief Larry Brassard.