As the year comes to a close and the holiday season begins, here’s a snapshot of what’s been happening in Ward 10 and across Barrie.
Holiday Highlights
Wishing you a joyful holiday season and a bright start to 2026! As 2025 wraps up, I want to share some key updates from the City Council and our community. This has been a year of strong progress – fiscally, socially, and in planning for Barrie’s future.
Barrie Earns AAA Credit
RatingFor the first time ever, Barrie has received a AAA credit rating, one of only a handful of Canadian municipalities to do so. This reflects our strong financial management and economic outlook, even while making big investments in city infrastructure.
0% Operating Budget Increase for 2026
Council passed the 2026 Budget with a 0% increase to the City’s operating budget – the fourth year in a row we’ve held the line. This ensures stability for residents while still moving forward on critical projects and services.
Bold Investments in Community Infrastructure
- New Performing Arts Centre (Downtown)
Council approved the concept design for the new Performing Arts Centre, a transformative downtown investment to support local talent, tourism, and cultural vitality. Construction is scheduled to begin in Spring 2027, with completion anticipated by late 2029. - New Recreation Centre & Library (South Barrie)
To be located on 100 acres at McKay Road East and Huronia Road, this complex is to include four ice rinks, an eight-lane, 25-metre pool, seven leisure and therapy pools, a triple gymnasium, multi-purpose and community space, room for parking and playing fields for soccer, ball, cricket, and a 30,000 square foot library. Design planning is underway, with strong public engagement to follow in 2026. - New Fire Station 6 (Ward 10)
Fire Station 6 is officially open in Ward 10 at 845 Mapleview Drive East! The new station will help reduce emergency response times in our growing southeast area and support Barrie Fire’s goal of reaching most calls within six minutes, 90% of the time. It’s staffed by 20 firefighters and includes space for two aerial fire trucks.
Mapleview Drive East & Yonge Street Improvements
The contract has been awarded, and construction is now anticipated to begin in early 2026 to widen Mapleview Drive East from Yonge to Prince William Way, with new sidewalks, bike lanes, street lighting, and traffic signals. Learn more: Mapleview Project Page
2026 Traffic Calming Measures – Ward 10
Here’s the list of 2026 traffic calming measures recommended by City staff for Ward 10:
Temporary Speed Cushions:
1. Dock Road – 1 crossing
2. Golden Meadow Road (Taylor to Crimson Ridge) – 2 crossings
3. Sun King Crescent – 1 crossing
4. Coronation Parkway – 2 crossings
5. Sovereign’s Gate – 2 crossings
6. Proclamation Drive (near baseball diamond) – 1 crossing
These are prioritized based on traffic data and past resident requests.
Radar Speed Boards (proposed locations):
– Mapleview Drive East (between Yonge Street & Prince William Way)
– The Queensway (between Big Bay Point Road & Sovereign’s Gate)
Flexible Bollards:
– Birkhall Place – 6 units
– Majesty Boulevard – 6 units
City staff are currently assessing all school zones across Barrie to determine where additional measures are most needed. This assessment will help ensure the $445,000 we secured in new provincial funding is directed where it will have the greatest impact on safety. If you have additional areas of concern or would like to advocate for a traffic calming measure on your street, please send requests to me by January 10, 2026. That way, I can advocate early in the year for any adjustments to our speed calming plan.
❄️ Winter Maintenance: We Hear You
This year’s early snowfalls have been intense, and I heard from many of you about concerns in newer subdivisions and on local roads.
The City’s crews worked hard to keep up, but the sheer volume of snow created major challenges. Some newer neighbourhoods have tighter road widths and fewer snow storage areas, making plowing even more difficult.
To help you plan ahead, don’t forget to use the Barrie Plow Tracker so you can see where your street falls in the plow route rotation and when trucks are expected.
What we’re doing in response:
- We’ve updated our planning process so that future subdivisions are designed with better snow management in mind.
- City staff are exploring “snow pulls” (removal of accumulated snowbanks) in select areas when space becomes too limited.
- Salt and plow strategies are under active review based on what we’ve learned so far this season.
Windrow clearing (the snowbanks left at the end of your driveway) has also been raised by residents. I’ve requested staff to examine this, but I want to be upfront: in major snowbelt cities like Barrie, the cost and equipment requirements to offer this city-wide are extremely high. Please keep sending concerns or suggestions my way, as your input helps us build a better winter response.
Ward 10 Improvements & Community Wins
Thanks to feedback from the Ward 10 Community Council, we’ve used the Ward Community Fund to bring several small but meaningful improvements to our neighbourhoods:
- A new bench has been added to Wilkins Walk for rest and relaxation on our beautiful trail system
- Lighting was installed in Golden Meadow Park to improve visibility and safety
- Additional bike racks were installed at local parks to support active transportation and accessibility
Congrats to Ben Cupello!
Ward 10 resident Ben Cupello was recognized with a Spirit Catcher Award for his exceptional volunteerism. Congratulations, Ben, and thank you for your commitment to our city!
Let’s Stay Connected
As always, I’m here to help. Whether you have a question, a concern, or an idea to improve our community, feel free to reach out at bryn.hamilton@barrie.ca or follow me @CouncillorBryn on Instagram and Facebook.
Wishing you and your family a safe, peaceful holiday season and all the best in the year ahead.