Ontario Construction News staff writer
The City of Barrie’s planning committee approved a zoning bylaw amendment Feb. 23 for an affordable housing/rental building near the downtown core.
Council is expected to rubber-stamp the decision March 1, allowing for construction of an eight-storey rental apartment building on a .37-hectare site. The developer is Coral Sophia Lane Housing.
The project includes an off‐leash dog park, bicycle and scooter parking, third-floor outdoor space with a “green” roof, two lobbies, rooftop terraces and private balconies.
The could have about 65 per cent of its rental units as affordable housing.
About 65 percent of the units will be affordable with units.
The exact number of affordable units will be determined once all approvals have been received and the final construction contracts have been awarded.
The site and building has been designed to activate the primary street frontages of Bayfield Street and Sophia Street East by providing several general access points and lobbies, as well as ground floor residential units with terraces. The primary access is located off of Bayfield Street.
The building has been designed to be oriented towards the street and to provide stepbacks on the third and seventh floors. In addition, the building has been clad with high quality, long‐ lasting, maintenance free, exterior materials, and there has been a general use of glass.
Affordable rental housing in Barrie is defined as a unit for which the rent doesn’t exceed 30 per cent of the gross annual household income for low- to moderate-income households – based upon the most recent Canada Census statistics for Barrie, which are updated every five years.
