Stay on track with community: An open letter to Barrie City Council regarding Allandale Station
Stay on track with community
An open letter to Barrie City Council regarding Allandale StationDear Mayor and Councillors,
In November 2009, the Barrie Arts and Culture Council endorsed the Allandale Village Development Community Consultation Report presented to City Council by SOLUTIONSink. City Council’s motion to divide the Allandale Station lands into multiple parcels, and rezone at least one parcel, places the community-driven vision for a Creative Allandale at risk.
This vision is not the product of one consultant, but the result of public consultation. The level of public input on this project has been exemplary, and is perhaps unprecedented in the City of Barrie. The retention of the original Station, and lands to the north, in City hands for community and cultural use is a direct result of this input.
But greater than that, this process has changed the expectations of residents. What began as a divisive debate was transformed into community building. Along with the Historic Neighbhourhoods Strategy, the Allandale consultations fostered thoughtful discussion, re-imagining, cooperation and consensus. The Report successfully distilled disparate views and ideas into community expression.
This redevelopment should not settle for capturing a snapshot of who we are now, but strive to honour the past, respect the present, and be flexible enough to propel us forward for decades to come. With the redevelopment of Centennial/Bradford connecting the Station to Uptown, Allandale is the southern anchor for the revitalization of our urban core.
Council’s wisdom to proceed with the Station restoration and the pursuit of the Allandale Waterfront GO will aid this historic village, but it appears that many developers are waiting. If the Station lands redevelopment is focused, it will catalyze redevelopment and intensification in the surrounding area.
With ample properties in the area already zoned for taller buildings, there is no need to alter building heights on the railway lands. Such a change would dwarf the original Station, and is not in keeping with the heritage nature of this development.
The Barrie Arts and Culture Council is concerned that the community’s vision for a vibrant, creative, live/work redevelopment will be lost in a mix of multiple developers. Who will oversee the vision, and how would it be realized in a piecemeal and fragmented manner?
Council’s Strategic Plan presents new policies and initiatives to ensure that our City develops a reputation for innovative urban renewal and smart growth planning. But it remains unclear why Council wishes to divide the lands, and perhaps the community’s vision along with it. Compliance with one developer is challenge enough. Allandale Station is too unique to risk.
It is the recommendation of the Barrie Arts and Culture Council that the Allandale Station lands be developed together in a cohesive manner, that the public input in the Allandale Village Development Community Consultation Report play a lead role in the City’s and developer’s plans, and that, as per the Report, no portion of the lands be rezoned to allow buildings above five stories.
On behalf of the Barrie Arts and Culture Council,
damian lopes
