BARRIE, ONT. Demolition crews are dismantling the former YMCA in Barrie to make room for a proposed development. We ve seen affordability and vacancy at all-time lows across Ontario, and Barrie in particular, is in desperate need of new housing supply, and we re answering that, says Greg Jones, SkyDev president. SkyDev purchased the land on Grove Street in February to construct residential rental units. It will be three buildings. The height limit in the zoning is about 25 storeys with bottom interconnected podiums between the buildings, Jones explains. Jones expects to submit a site plan application by September. He hopes to have shovels in the ground in one year.
ORILLIA, ONT. The Ontario Provincial Police say they have made another arrest linked to Project WEAVER. On March 9, 2021, police conducted a series of raids across the province, which revealed explosives, guns and drugs.One of the homes searched was on Dunsmore Lane in Barrie, near the Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre. In all, 10 people were arrested with 268 charges laid. Today, police have released more information about another search warrant conducted on March 18, 2021 in London in connection to the earlier raids.This time, $1.8-million worth of cannabis and related products was seized. The OPP have laid charges against a 34-year-old Barrie man. Police allege the man had made or possessed explosives, was trafficking weapons, and holding an unauthorized and prohibited firearm. His first appearance in court was on April 22, 2021 in London, Ontario.
BARRIE, ONT. Visitor restrictions are easing at Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre. The Barrie hospital announced it would allow one visitor per patient back into the building once a week for one hour. In a statement Thursday, the hospital s president and CEO Janice Skot said strict measures would remain in place until it was safe to allow more visitors inside. We recognize the important role a loved one plays in a patient s recovery, she added. The phased visitation plan requires visitors to schedule times in advance by calling the inpatient unit on the day of the planned visit. Hospital staff will screen visitors for COVID-19 symptoms, and all visitors must wear a hospital-provided face mask.
BARRIE, ONT. The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit reports 226 new cases and two recent deaths over the last three days. The health unit says a man between the ages of 65 and 79 connected to an out-of-region outbreak died Jan. 6. A woman older than 80 passed away Friday. She had been a patient at Georgian Bay General Hospital and is the seventh death associated with an outbreak declared at the Midland facility in early December. Seventy-three people with the virus have died in Simcoe Muskoka since the pandemic began, and the region has seen a total of 4,309 infections. There are 1,271 active cases. Thirty-five people with the virus are in hospitals across the region, including five in intensive care at the Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre.