How much parking space goes with passive parkland on Barrie’s south shore remains the question.
City council gave final approval to a motion Wednesday to have staff prepare a design concept to locate a passive park east of General John Hayter Southshore Community Centre to include a minimum of two acres of grass cut area, to allow for overflow parking for historical events, such as Kempenfest, that will occur on the property and have accessible walkways through the naturalized area, and report back with the concept and costing.
“We’re not planning to put a parking lot at that location, we are planning to cut the (grass in) the area,” said Coun. Jim Harris, who represents this part of Barrie. “Staff are preparing a design concept. We want to get this right.”
“I understand some people don’t want cars going there,” said Coun. Sergio Morales. “This is not a war on cars.”
While there will be no multi-use sports field there, plans are being made for a passive park east of Southshore Centre to include a minimum two acres of grass-cut area to allow for the overflow parking.
Council was told Wednesday that the planned two acres for parking is too much.
Arnie Ivsins of the Southshore Nature Park task force told council in a deputation that just more than half an acre, an 11-metre cut (0.61 acres) from Lakeshore Drive, which exists now, should suffice, and that a two-acre cut would go well into the existing meadow.
Others making deputations agreed.
Dorothy McKeown of Nature Barrie, formerly the Brereton Field Naturalists Club, said that while her group is pleased the multi-use sports field would be built elsewhere, the two acres of grass-cut area should be a maximum of 0.6 acres instead.
“It is not a good climate change strategy to promote driving while mowing natural areas that cool, and oxygenate the area,” she said. “I’m sure my bright young colleagues on the (city’s) active transportation and sustainability advisory committee would be happy to work with event and parks staff to come up with other strategies such as promoting use of GO trains, Metrolinx and shuttle services that drop off attendees closer to activities than most parking spots.
“Perhaps provide more angled parking on side streets, more shuttle services from other parking lots, and more bike racks,” McKeown said. “All these solutions could also be used for new future events.”
She also asked that wildlife be considered.
“The grasslands you are asking to be mowed are food sources for many other species, of bird, butterfly and other pollinators that need the stored energy reserves the plants provide to be able to survive migrations of thousands of kilometres or six months of Canadian winter, colder temperatures,” McKeown said.
Brian Miller, speaking on behalf of the Friends of Allandale Station Park, said his group was also opposed to the multi-use sports field there but is concerned with this minimum allotment of two acres of cut grass area for overflow parking for historical events.
“We recognize that a passive play area has also been identified in the area, but we feel the minimum acreage (two acres) for parking is excessive,” Miller said.
He said that according to the city website, 1,670 vehicles can be parked at Sadlon Arena which is only a short bus ride away. Allandale Recreation Centre and Barrie Curling Club have been used as alternative shuttle service parking locations, Miller said.
“Council should be promoting parking off-site and taking shuttles as opposed to supporting this excessive allotment for parking,” he said.
Council should be encouraged to reduce the minimum acreage for overflow parking, said Miller.
His group also requests Allandale Station Park be clearly rezoned to a restrictive level of environmental protection (EP) area, or possibly even as a nature conservancy area, to avoid any future controversy, and to ensure Allandale Station Park remains a passive naturalized park that can be enjoyed by residents, visitors and future generations.
Randy Taylor said in his deputation that he didn’t expect the minimum two acres for overflow parking.
“I was very surprised council would put that in, to formalize, legitimize that parking lot,” he said. “Why wasn’t that idea floated (before)? I don’t think we want parking there.”
Taylor also paraphrased Canadian musician Joni Mitchell, and her words about paving paradise, to put up a parking lot.
Deputy Mayor Robert Thomson noted the grass cut space has ranged, during the years, from three to six acres there.
Council’s motion comes from a recommendation in The Southshore, Barrie Sports and a Revitalized Downtown, released Aug. 14 and authored by Marshall Green, a retired lawyer with a specialty in municipal law and land use planning.
Green recommended ‘that the city develop the current wooded area and meadow on the south shore as a passive park that protects existing wildlife and with trail systems that are accessible; that the park also include an educational component; that citizens groups and service clubs in the city be engaged with the city’s parks department to develop the park; and that the lands ultimately designed for this part of the park be zoned environmental protection (EP).’
The passive park motion is part of a larger series of actions given final approval Wednesday.
This motion includes plans for a new multi-use sports field at the old Barrie Central Collegiate site, the former Fisher auditorium property on Dunlop Street West - instead of land close to Lakeshore Drive, on a portion of Allandale Station Park, which attracted such heated opposition.
City staff would hire a consultant to look at this plan, at an estimated cost of $250,000, to ensure the field meets the minimum size requirements to accommodate a sports field of this nature and minimize impacts to the surrounding area, and report back to councillors.
Funding would be 30 per cent from development charges, 20 per cent from the tax capital reserve and the other half from the cash-in-lieu of parkland reserve.
A new performing arts centre (PAC) is proposed at the Sea Cadets site, when the young sailors relocate - to a 6,458 square foot addition to Southshore Centre, a northerly extension to the basement of the existing building, which comes with a $4.55-million cost.
Hariri Pontarini Architects will be retained to complete a schematic design for a new PAC at the current Sea Cadets site, at an estimated $200,000 cost, to be funded from the theatre reserve.
Its design will be for an approximately 45,000 square foot facility that includes both 600-seat and 250-seat performance spaces. The maximum total will be $65 million in hard and soft construction costs for the building itself, including fit-out of all seating and audio, visual components.
Chuck Ruttan, Barrie Arts Alliance administrator, made a deputation to council supporting a performing arts centre (PAC) at the Sea Cadets/Navy League site, once the young sailors have a new home.
“This (PAC) facility will well serve the arts and culture community of Barrie and area,” he said, calling it a “major arts and culture decision.”
City staff will also determine the feasibility of using the current Sea Cadets site, near the Spirit Catcher on Lakeshore Drive, and any required surrounding city lands for a new PAC, with the cost of such investigations to a maximum of $375,000 and to be funded from the city’s theatre reserve.
A full-time capital project manager will be hired by the city to co-ordinate the site investigations and schematic design work, and the position will be funded from the PAC redevelopment capital project theatre reserve.
Also, the Sea Cadets parade ground will be removed as one of the uses for the proposed multi-use sports field and staff would provide a concept plan, including costs for locating a drill square, with a hard surface, to the west of Southshore Centre as an extension to the parking lot, and again report back to councillors.
