There are invasive plant species along the NST and the city that are choking out native plants. Our native plants are important for pollination and healthy waterways as well as for creating natural habitat for many species of birds and insects. Phragmites, garlic mustard and dog straggling vine are just a few of the invasives we have that are challenging to eradicate. Cities all over the province are dealing with this problem. This problem will get harder to manage the longer it is neglected. Barrie needs solid policy and an action plan to eliminate this threat to our natural environment spaces across the city. We call upon city staff and City Council to make this a priority when budget planning.

Barrie is a beautiful, creative and developing city. The City of Barrie is very family and community oriented. With beautiful scenery, this city is filled with artistic and creative potential. Opening an organization that will further develop the community through helping at risk youth and families by providing a creative platform, will not only have a positive impact on the community but also the future itself!

According to the Barrie Homeless Hub there was estimated 7500+ homeless people in Barrie in 2011. This number has not decreased much over the last 7 years . Youth Haven serves about 200 homeless youth a year, this to me is far too many.

Our organization provides at risk youth free music, fashion, art and dance classes. We also provide opportunities and professional development for youth in the arts. We provide a creative platform for youth who " don't have a chance" a chance. We believe every youth has creative potential, and that ALL youth should be given a chance to showcase this. We believe in helping others and installing inspiration and faith into the community. Currently Barrie is facing a problem (at risk/homeless youth) and I have a solution that not only will decrease the homeless rate, remove youth off the streets but will also provide job opportunities to the community and surrounding areas.

We are a family and school resource, a non-profit organization that has fundraising and charity organization potential, we are a tool for youth who struggle with mental health, behavioral problems or who may be involved in the Youth Criminal Justice Act. We are a safe-haven for families, an outlook for youth and resource for sole-parent families.

There are many run down, forclosed, or for lease spaces downtown that could be renovated into a modern and fresh art studio! Our vision is to have a studio fully equipped with music, fashion, art and dance supplies and equipment. Our mission is to become a professional, diverse organization that is new, refreshing, inspiring and resourceful that provides an outlook and tool for youth and families who may be struggling. We are that placr where the door is always open for anyone, where youth can be creative, innovative, real and unique while providing a safe space to be your creative self!

Vote for a Non-profit Art Centre for At risk youth to follow my dreams of changing the world and making a difference one creative youth at a time!

Let's make Barrie a sustainable city by allowing backyard hens for the purpose of household egg consumption.
Many major North American cities, including Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Victoria, New York, Seattle, Chicago and Los Angeles, together with Ontario communities such as Niagara Falls, Brampton, Newmarket,
and Guelph, allow the small-scale raising of hens. Now it's Barrie's turn to join this positive and growing trend.
Hens have existed in cities since the dawn of time an
d continue to thrive in communities around the world to this day. The benefits of raising them include:

* Fresh, healthy and delicious home-grown eggs, free of pesticides and antibiotics;

* Reduced municipal solid waste as hens consume table scraps and other organic waste;

* Reduced backyard pest populations as hens consume weeds and bugs;

* Opportunities to teach children about food sources and responsible animal care; and

* The addition of great "poultry pets" to families -- hens are people-friendly, nonaggressive and always entertaining to watch.

You’re beautiful, Barrie!
And you’re getting better every year... our beloved little bedroom city is more cultured and diverse- more inclusive and comfortable- than ever! Nowhere is this more evident than in the growing Barrie Pride organization, and the LGBTQ2S+ community around which it is built.

We’ve come a long way! Thank you for growing alongside us, and for helping us develop a meaningful relationship to our city: with more important support and services; a better network of businesses; and a warm community of wonderful, compassionate people.

There is something you can do though. One small gesture that would make a huge impact on the social landscape here in Barrie, and would see us join the ranks of other progressive Canadian cities in this expression of equality, acceptance and unity…

And it is called the Rainbow Crosswalk.

Much like it sounds, crosswalks at popular intersections are replaced with rainbow walkways painted on the street surface. Not only does the rainbow represent the LGBTQ2S+ movement, but it adds a colourful and vibrant touch to the usual city streets.

Rainbow crosswalks can be found in Ottawa and Toronto- here in Ontario- as well as in Montreal, Halifax, Edmonton and Vancouver. Even some communities smaller than Barrie have followed suit, including: Woodstock, New Brunswick; Lethbridge, Alberta; and in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory. They can be found all over the world, in fact.

So please join us in proposing to our mayor, Jeff Lehman, and the Barrie City Council that: we, the people of Barrie and proud supporters of the LGBTQ2S+ community, respectfully and enthusiastically request the installation of painted Rainbow Crosswalks at a few of the most prominent Downtown intersections: at the historic Five Points, of course; also at Bayfield and Simcoe, and at the pedestrian crosswalk in front of Heritage Park.

At an estimated cost of less than three one-hundreths of one percent of this year’s projected infrastructure spending for the city of Barrie- roughly a tenth of the price paid for the “Spirit Catcher” sculpture back in 1986- we hope you agree that the Rainbow Crosswalks, and the show of support for a strong demographic and an increasingly popular city event, is not asking too much. It truly is the thought, in this case, which counts more than the price tag.

Sincerely,
The Barrie Pride Family

Eliminate buttons at traffic lights. Instead, have the 'walk' signal come on each time the light turns green. This would be much safer for pedestrians. So often I get to the light just before it turns green and press the button, but the 'walk' signal doesn't come on. I cross on the green light, but have had drivers yell at me that I should not be crossing. Also, the buttons are in inconvenient locations and I don't want to touch them as they are really dirty. Just have the 'walk' signal come on each time the light turns green. There are many pedestrians in Barrie, and this would improve safety.

Move services these individuals require away from the downtown and to a localized spot in a less congested area. Thus they can still receive the help they need, while making the downtown area less desirable to “hang around” for transients. I Know this will offend some people and I understand that, as poverty and addictions are a hard cycle to break, but we need to revitalize downtown and draw more people to do business here. And to the people whom are angry at my comments, I ask, “are we to wait till it gets so bad that downtown businesses go bankrupt and those workers are also out of work and impoverished ?” As of late, I am minimizing my time downtown with my son as today I had to walk past numerous empty liquor bottles, garbage, to piles of vomit and a pile of human faeces to get a coffee!

Those of us who try to wait before entering an intersection on a green light to avoid causing gridlock are usually frustrated by those who take that opportunity to make a right turn on their red light ultimately causing traffic congestion anyway. I witnessed an officer pull into an intersection when this happened with lights on and ticketed one of the drivers causing the congestion. People in other cars were applauding and giving the thumbs up to the officer. Instead of raising taxes again and looking for expensive options for this area, several 'no right turns on a red' signs and a few officers handing out tickets for every infraction in this area would quickly educate drivers and go a long way to supporting the police budget or city budget in general.