Waterfront parking should not cost $10/hour for non-residents
The parking downtown waterfront should not go up to $10. They say that non-residents are coming to access water but not contributing to the local economy. There are many, including myself, that live in Springwater and contribute to shops, go to school in Barrie and also work in this city.
Not only would this transition deter many but it would also give off the impression that we are not welcome in Barrie. Mayor Barry Ward was concerned about driving tourism away. Not only will tourism relocate elsewhere but it will also be a poor decision for local shops and businesses downtown and within the rest of Barrie.
In the council meeting it was made clear that Barrie did not want to be at the higher end of waterfront fees when compared to surrounding areas. Well, as a Springwater resident I would much rather spend $15 for a day pass in Wasaga Beach.
As a final reason as to why this is a bad decision, many residents, even in Barrie come from a single income household. Some even only bringing in minimum wage. If this decision was to come into place, some residents in Barrie may even feel as though it is unaffordable to enjoy the water because of the higher costs in necessities such as gas and food.
In conclusion, everyone is struggling from this increase in parking. To put this into place would decline people from Barrie area and may even be worse on local shops and restaurants. Even a small increase would suffice for both parties. It may be more affordable for single income households. As well as increasing the revenue being made by the City of Barrie without many feeling as though they are not welcome. Please think about all repercussions from this decision.
Thank you
Alysah Stratton
shared this idea
As per a recent decision of Barrie City Council, non-residents are charged $10/hour to park in specific waterfront areas, with a daily max of $50.
A non-resident waterfront seasonal pass costs $90 for residents of Oro, Innisfil, Essa and Springwater. All other non-residents are charged $130 for the non-resident seasonal pass.
For full information please visit www.barrie.ca/WaterfrontParking
16 comments
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Tyler Gerrard
commented
If you don't live in Barrie then don't come to our beaches! If you want to use the beach move to Barrie and pay the property taxes people!
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Anonymous commented
I agree with Alysah Stratton - The City of Barrie should allow residents of Midhurst, Springwater etc to pay the same rate as Barrie residents with proof of work in Barrie. I feel that it's unfair if the residents of Springwater, Midhurst etc have to pay non-resident fees. Most of these residents work and shop in Barrie.
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I feel that the permit parking only signs on the streets surrounding Johnson's beach to be unfairly targeting visitors, to apartments and residences near Johnson's Beach, who do not live in Barrie. Many residents of Springwater, Midhurst for instance work and shop in Barrie and shouldn't have to pay $90 for non-resident parking pass just to visit relatives.
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Anonymous
commented
Jeff Morin. You neo nazi racists are the problem. Trying to call people “out of towners” while ironically you live in the city. Meanwhile you want others to pay for a beach you don’t even own.
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JF
commented
Understand the rationale behind the knee-jerk decision, but agreed that this should be a 'County of Simcoe' parking pass. All outside of that should be considered out of town. Many areas within Simcoe County support Barrie's local economy and should not be penalized.
Yes it will take a bit more work to implement but not a short-sighted decision. -
FP
commented
Agreed. If anyone contributes tax wise to Barrie they should be exempt from the increase. I feel the idea is to keep “distant” non residents from clogging up our beaches and not contributing to our local economy so to speak.
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Anonymous
commented
As a resident in Springwater I work in Barrie and do all of our shopping and sports in Barrie. I think exceptions should be made for surrounding parts of Simcoe County. They look at COVID-19 cases by region, our residents should be treated as a region and not charged to use the waterfront as if we have come up from another region. I can easily drive to Orillia which is almost the same distance for many of the stores I frequent. The fees and fines for outside residents within the county are very discouraging and make us fee unwelcomed
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Anonymous
commented
I live in Springwater township and do all of my shopping, kids sports etc in Barrie. It would be nice if Barrie included Simcoe and sent Springwater township residents (and other nearby areas) a parking pass, then increase parking for those well outside the area.
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Anonymous
commented
What was the suggestion or solution?
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Anonymous
commented
I am a springwater resident and contribute to the economy in Barrie in almost all ways since we do not have access in minesing. Thus, I agree with the suggestion of a seasonal parking pass for such residents.
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Anonymous
commented
I live in Minesing and shop in Barrie almost daily and support the economy. As residents of Simcoe County we should have the option to buy an annual or seasonal parking pass with proof of residency.
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Barb Ginn
commented
We fully support this and spend most of our disposable income in Barrie...from grocery’s shopping to movie theatres to restaurants and pharmacies. Living in Anten Mills and being only 10 minutes from Barrie it only makes sense to go there for all our needs. Would you rather we spend our money elsewhere?
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Anonymous
commented
As residents of Springwater we contribute in many ways to the economy of Barrie. Even though we don't live in the city itself we only live 20 minutes away. We buy groceries, clothes, shoes, appliances, go to hardware stores, drug stores, doctors, dentists etc, etc all in Barrie. It seems unfair to say that all non-residents don't contribute to the economy of Barrie because that is simply not true. I suggest that a yearly parking pass for Springwater residents be available for purchase at a reasonable price. We could still be contributing but not to the extent of $10.00 per hour.
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Anonymous
commented
1) it doesn’t matter if us Barrie residents have a parking pass. We need the tourists to come here to spend money so we can have lower property taxes
2) which means they will go somewhere else and that means the rest of us locals will again have to pay even higher property taxes for this stupidity.
3) the language itself is hateful and represents us as officially a town and not a city. We cannot and have no right to call ourselves a “city” when we become prejudiced and call people who are not white enough “out of towners”
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Alison
commented
I was initially against this, but if you listen to the arguments at council some very interesting points were made.
Most importantly:
1. Barrie Residents have parking passes, costs would not impact them.
2. This is just waterfront parking. People who want to come from out of town have many additional options in the downtown for parking. They would just need to walk a bit farther for cheaper parking, which I am sure many people would be willing to do. It actually just saves parking around the lakeshore for people who need it more, and are therefore willing to pay the higher price.
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Anonymous
commented
As a barrie resident I 100% agree with you