Free ELEVENTHEdition

Like The Heart of Barrie on Facebook to learn what is going on in Downtown Barrie!

Published by The Waterview Space

Barrie almost never happened.

Since about the time of the War of 1812, the military kept a re-serve of land, some forty-five acres, north of Kempenfelt Bay and bordered by Berczy and Bayfield Streets. A lone storage building stood just east of the present-day Government Dock. That was about all there was to

Barrie in 1830, and little more was planned for its future.

No, our community was just a dot on the map back then, just the place where First Nations people, traders and soldiers be-gan their journey along the Nine Mile Portage en route to Willow Creek and beyond. A fledgling village called Kempenfeldt, to the east, was going to be the big deal.

In 1831, Kempenfeldt was sur-veyed and ready to go. The gov-ernment sold the land, which later became Barrie, to a Captain Oliver, and that was that.

But not so fast—Captain Oliver, for reasons unknown, soon sold his land back to the government and they then decided to survey it. Having no real use for the lots, the government sold them at auction in Toronto in 1833.

Settlers began to appear in Bar-

rie, much to the ire of those who had bought into Kempenfeldt and had expected a rapid rise in commerce and living conditions in that community. Petitions were drawn up, and residents of Kempenfeldt tried to sully the prospects of their upstart neighbours by claiming that “not likely any persons of respectabil-ity would ever make Barrie their choice of residence,” and that be-cause there is a swamp at the west end of the bay, “a noxious vapour will be frequently hovering over Barrie.” Ouch.

Sorry, Kempenfeldt, but it looked like Barrie was here to stay. Barrie had a mini boom in 1840, partly due to an influx of people from Kempenfeldt, iron-ically.

So, what do you do with a vil-lage on the shores of a lake in the middle of nowhere? You fashion it into a market hub so that goods producers in equally

isolated but nearby places can sell their cattle, lum-ber, wheat and furs. With that goal in mind, in 1846, Barrie was awarded a grant of 3.5 acres, at Collier and Mulcaster Streets, from the (then called) Simcoe Dis-trict. It was to be used for market trading, and as is noted on the Barrie Farm-ers’ Market website, for “no other purpose or use what-soever.”

Within ten years, the first buildings used at the mar-ket square were proving inadequate. After an ex-tended battle with F.W.

Cumberland, Chief Engineer of the railway company that owned the line ending at Allandale, Bar-rie succeeded in bringing trains to the north side of the bay. Prosperity quickly followed, and demand for trading space soon surpassed the capabilities of the small market place.

In 1856, a fine brick market building was constructed, with plenty of space inside for vendors and a great deal of land outside to accommodate wagons, carts, cattle and any kind of goods.

This stately new building was the centre of Barrie commerce. It was also the town hall and an early home to the fire brigade. Above the front entrance was an oddly unfinished-looking tower with four parapets. At one time, a bell tower for the fire department was planned, but it was never added.

Joseph Sheard, a Toronto archi-tect, was chosen to de-sign the market building. Many of his works still stand today, including the Todmorden Mill beside the Don Valley Parkway, Bond Street Baptist Church in To-ronto, and Trafalgar Castle in Whitby.

In twenty years’ time, businesses were booming all over Downtown Barrie. Several devastating fires destroyed the majority of the orig-inal shops, however, but most re-tailers believed in Barrie as a des-tination for shoppers, even back

then, and so they quickly rebuilt. Fire damaged the market build-ing in 1875, but even before that, there were rumblings that the structure needed an upgrade.

In 1877, the utilitarian mar-ket building was both enlarged and given a fanciful makeover. The never-built bell tower now sported a mansard style roof, louvered porthole windows and ornate iron railings. High Victo-rian feathery curlicues sprouted elsewhere on the roof.

The age of the ostentatious mar-ket building lasted 70 years. The need for a seven-day market was decreasing, while the municipal government was in need of more space. To that end, the building was stripped down again, and the Town of Barrie applied to the Ontario Government for a clear title to the market lands.

The plucky farmers fought back and won, but only temporarily.

In 1952,

Bill 27 eventually allowed Barrie to have full title, but only if they allotted farmers

a market house no smaller than 2,000 square feet. That tradition remains today with the contin-uation of a thriving and diverse Saturday farmers’ market (held in the present City Hall rotunda in winter and outdoors in sum-mer).

Yes, the Barrie Farmers’ Market trades on, 171 years later. The old market building, however, sadly met the wrecking ball in 1985, when it eventually outlived its usefulness. City government moved next door into a reno-vated business building, where it remains.

The precise location of the grand old market building will never be forgotten. Paving stones at the Collier and Mulcaster Street in-tersection trace the outline of its foundation, while a green arch delineates the silhouette of the structure. Visitors to the Barrie Farmers’ Market can’t miss it.

Stories from the Downtown C ommunity

Sponsored in part by: the Downtown Barrie BIASCHWARTZ & ASSOCIATES

The Market Town that Nearly Wasn’t

A Business Improvement Area (BIA) is an asso-ciation of business people and property owners, within a specified district, who join together for the goal of stimulating local business. They work together to fulfill short-term goals and long-term strategies.

The world’s first BIA was started in Toron-to in 1970, when small business owners in Bloor West Village appealed to the Province of Ontario and the City of Toronto; the business owners wanted legislation that would enable the business community to create a self-governed organization, to aid in the revitalization of their historic shopping district.

Inspired by the success of the Bloor West Village, the Downtown Barrie BIA was founded in 1977. Their range of activities includes mar-keting, streetscape improvement and special events, such as Promenade Days, the Hot Cocoa Trail, May Days, and the Craft Beer and BBQ Festival.

An interview with the Downtown Barrie BIA Chair, Wayne Hay, carried with it positive and creative ideas and goals that are now coming to fruition. We have some exciting de-velopments for our city that he wants to relay about Barrie’s ability to, as he says, “continue to be a great city.”

Wayne Hay has been the BIA Volunteer Chair for 6 years now. He shared, “I love the downtown and just want to be part of it; I have even relocated my office to be down-town. Barrie is my passion.” He meets with Managing Director, Craig Stevens, twice a week to discuss ongoing events and concerns.

The Downtown Barrie BIA holds a larger board meeting once a month. Wayne and I discussed some of the projects currently underway downtown and many exciting plans for the future.

“We are fortunate to have the water and our waterfront development project now underway,” said Wayne. The recent improve-ments to Centennial Beach were completed just in time for Barrie’s annual Kempenfest. Visitors and locals are now able to enjoy a larger greenspace area, boardwalks, a beauti-ful extended beach area and easier access to parking; they all combine to make this city an attraction to the outreaches of Barrie.

Some of the initiatives that Wayne mentioned include the patios along Dunlop Street, and Curb Appeal, an outdoor dinner highlighting

5 local restaurants, which benefits the com-munity. “The BIA also pushed for the Public Market/Farmers’ Market location to be at the Barrie Bus Terminal and look forward to this relocation for a year round market,” said Wayne.

When you come downtown, take a stroll along Dunlop, our main street; you will notice some amazing changes. Wayne states, “We have some new businesses to welcome to our downtown: 147 Italian Cuisine, Fun-doozies (fondue), Osgoode Company, The Paperie, Everleigh Garden and John Linkert Salon.

“Additionally, the BIA supports and helps direct interested property owners to the City of Barrie’s Community Improvement Plan (CIP) that includes a building façade grant- Bill LeBoeuf Jewellers is a great example of this.”

Notice the larger development, called Me-ridian Place, located in the centre and heart of Barrie. “It will look worse before it gets better,” said Wayne, “but, the better will be wonderful. The outdoor stage will have the ability to have big bands and local concerts. I am excited about the continued green space for events like the Lawn Chair Luminata, car shows, yoga and more local connections.”

“What’s amazing is there will be ‘fire features’ which will make it warm, inviting, and usable during the winter months. We could say a

chair, fireplace and hot chocolate connec-tion.”

Look for the Grand Opening Party on June 1, 2018, and in the meantime there is a first local recognition of Meridian Place on No-vember 11, 2017.

Other BIA initiatives include a brand new Dunlop Street streetscape. This includes soft-ening the sidewalks by sloping them onto the road, installing new lamp posts for hanging flowers and expanding the over-street lighting to make a more pedestrian friendly and fo-cused environment for our main street.

We’re truly living in a historical moment for our city. It is a fabulous place to live and work, and with the initiatives shifting for-ward, the City of Barrie becomes even greater. We really do live in the best city! For more information go to: www.downtownbarrie.ca

An Interview with Wayne Hay of the Barrie BIA

Jacqui DerbeckerFounder of Heart of BarrieIntuitive CounselingAuthor/Speakerjacquiconsults.com

Want to be featured?If you have a business in Downtown Barrie,

we’d love to tell your story.

Contact us at: theheartofbarrie@outlook.com

Barrie Historical Archive Written by Mary Harris Director of History & ResearchBarrie Historical Archive www.barriearchive.caLike us on Facebookbarriehistoricalarchive Follow us on Instagram/Twitter @barriearchive

“What an artist is trying to do for people is bring them closer to something, because of course art is about sharing. You wouldn’t be an artist unless you wanted to share an experience, a thought.” - David Hockney - Artist (born 1937)

United by our love of the creative process, we are artists who share our original works in various venues and who maintain a rotat-ing exhibit at The Edge Gallery in Barrie, owned and curated by one of our members.

As continuing learners, we reg-ularly participate in workshops, seminars and classes to hone our ever-developing artistic skills.

In early 2016, we discussed how we could artistically commem-orate Canada’s upcoming 150th birthday. We decided to create

a montage, a process that pro-duces a new composite whole from image fragments. Our new composite whole? Canada’s flag. Our image fragments? Eighteen canvas panels, sixteen of which are original paintings.

Careful attention was given to our palette, to designate the red and white of our nation’s furled emblem. Our first challenge: how to effectively render our images using only these two co-lours. We decided to use neutral tones to represent the “white” ar-eas of the flag, and Burnt Umber to create depth and perspective in the “red” areas.

Our Canada, measuring an im-pressive 110 inches wide by 54 inches high, created an instal-lation challenge, but we met this one, too. Our montage has

been exhibited at the Holcim Gallery, Milton, the Barrie City Hall Rotunda, the Springwater Township council chambers, in the constituency office of Bar-rie MPP Ann Hoggarth, and at the Simcoe County Museum in Minesing and is presently hang-ing in the Mariposa Gallery of OMAH, Orillia.

“Through these powerful images, this installation highlights some of Canada’s significant histori-cal moments and tells a moving story…the story that has made Canada what it is today,” of-fered MPP Ann Hoggarth at the Open House she sponsored to formally introduce Our Canada

to the city of Barrie.

Mary Lynne Atkinson paint-ed images relating to Franklin’s exploration of the Northwest Passage, while Eileen Sweeney celebrated the success of women such as Roberta Bondar and Nel-lie McClung. David Suzuki and Terry Fox received acclamations in the renderings by Carmen Prieto, and Kate Ramos success-fully created a tactile panel that recognizes the significance of the Canadian Pacific Railroad.

A successful artist herself, Barb Ritchie portrayed another re-nowned female artist, Emily Carr; on a second panel, she rec-

ognized the infamous poem In Flanders Fields, written by Lt. Col. John McRae. Marga-ret Paradis focused on 17th century explorations of our country and the significance of Canada’s natural resources. As an excellent portrait artist, Norma Jacobs effectively por-trayed our first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald.

Ottawa’s Peace Tower is featured on the first panel painted by Jo Appleby; a second pays homage to the well-known aircraft, the de Havilland Beaver. On the fi-nal two panels, Pat Guinn gives credit to Portia White’s musical success and to the nationwide presence of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

To explore other works, and to learn how you can be the proud owner of an original painting created by one of the talented members of this lo-cal group of artists, please visit www.baysideartists.com.

BaySide ArtistsWritten by Pat Guinn, www.baysideartists.com

Our Canada

Sponsored in part bywww.downtownbarrie.ca

Published bywww.thewaterviewspace.com

Founder: Jacqui Derbecker - jacquiconsults.com | Editor: Sarah Jensen - theheartofbarrie@outlook.comCopy Editor: Thomas Olhiser - tolhiser@gmail.com | Design: Amy Woodcock - amben@hotmail.com

Visit us at: www.theheartofbarrie.com

Working downtown at Bohemia, I walk along Dunlop Street daily; I’ve always en-joyed the old brick buildings and the traces of times gone by. Recently, I had the fortune to enjoy a couple of historic walking tours of our downtown, which allowed me to see details I hadn’t noticed before and told me some of the tales behind the places I walk by every day.

The first tour was led by Mary Harris, of the Barrie Historical Archive (find her article about the history of the Barrie Farmers’ Mar-

ket in this issue!). Meeting at the gazebo at Sam Cancilla Park, we walked along Dunlop, stopping to look at landmarks along the way.

Mary took us backward in time. I discovered that The Market on Dunlop Street West, near the Uptown Theatre, also used to be a theatre; patrons of the Capitol Theatre could enjoy a “talking picture” for a dime. The old Bank of Montreal building, near Memorial Square, exposed itself to be a former music hall. And everywhere we went, our guide re-vealed how fire has shaped our city: time and time again we’ve rebuilt and persevered.

The second tour was led by Steve Travers, who’s been our town crier for the past 15 years. We had a rollicking good time, learning about some of the saints and sinners from Barrie’s past and the places they called home.

Steve shared tales of Dunlop Street’s name-sake, William “Tiger” Dunlop, a surgeon and a cunning character. Steve educated us about Barrie’s first businesswoman, who worked in the world’s oldest profession and offered

her services at the Simcoe Hotel with such success that she was able to open her own brothel. And we learned that the carved faces peering down from Bohemia’s building—greeting me each day as I arrive to work—were modelled after Poseidon, in honour of our beautiful waterfront.

Giving such colourful tours is just that—an act of giving. Both tour guides volunteer their time, their only motivation being a love of their community and of sharing stories.

The Heart of Barrie team brings the same spirit to each issue. In our pages, we aim to share our city’s history: stories from the past and present about our downtown communi-ty, and also a vision for its future.

In its infancy as a municipality, Barrie was home to 50 people, with 3 bars between them; it was known as the wickedest town east of Winnipeg. These days, it’s gaining a reputation as a creative community, an entrepreneurial hub and a great place to raise a family. As you walk along the streets down-

town, not only can you catch glimpses of the past, but also of what lies ahead.

Thanks for reading the Heart of Barrie, as we continue to grow alongside this great city.

Tours Through Time

Sarah Jensen, Editor of The Heart of Barrieemail: theheartofbarrie@outlook.comInstagram: @findingmyselfinbarrie

Bohemia is known for a fine cup of coffee, casual lunches and tasty baked treats. It’s also gaining a reputation for its Bohemian Dinners, a monthly occasion to get dressed up a little and enjoy a meal prepared with love and artistry.

The menus are created by Cole Churchward, who fell in love with food when he began working at Bohe-mia seven years ago. Cole jumped headfirst into the culinary world, obsessively reading cookbooks cover to cover, practicing each recipe until perfected.

Cole left Bohemia and Bar-rie, to pursue experience in some of Toronto’s top restaurants. At Momofuku Daisho, he worked his way

up through the kitchen, starting as a prep cook and moving on to garde manger, then chef de partie of garde manger, and finally to chef de partie of the hot apps sta-tion.

From there, he worked at Edulis Restaurant, before moving back home to Bar-rie, to be closer to family and enjoy the better quality of life a smaller city affords.

Cole returned to Bohemia and now runs the kitchen. The dinners are a chance for him to be creative: each menu showcases his skills and is designed around beautiful seasonal ingredi-ents. The meals often kick off with his freshly baked sourdough bread, made with flour from K2 Mill-

ing in Beeton and served with house-cultured, hand-churned butter.

July’s dinner featured Gar-ganelli pasta, hand-shaped by Cole using a dowel and a ridged board. The sauce was made from pork shoul-der, pasture-raised by Stone Horse Farms in Innisfil; braised with milk, white wine and aromatics; served with parmigiana, and peas from Hewitts Farm Market, shelled by Bohemia owner, Jill Dyck.

Dessert was a strawberry and wild rose olive oil cake, made with blooms that Cole picked while he was in Al-berta for a cousin’s wedding. The cake was served with lemon verbena-infused pas-try cream and nasturtium

flower petals, grown locally by farmer Graeme Foers.

In August, Bohemia served a more casual dinner, part-nering with their next door neighbours at Art in House for the Give Local Artists Market. The cafe stayed open late to serve warm tor-tilla chips with guacamole; tacos with chorizo and po-tato, or corn with poblano peppers; and watermelon lime popsicles to vendors and visitors alike.

September’s dinner menu highlighted the rich fla-vours that the late sum-mer’s harvest brings. Cole’s sourdough bread started the evening. The second course starred heirloom to-matoes paired with smoked buttermilk and nasturtium

salsa verde. Sweet corn mezzalune pasta followed, served with chorizo sausage, cotija cheese and pickled green tomato. And dinner was rounded off with sun-kissed Niagara peaches with caramelized yogurt and ha-zelnut.

The dinners are accented by fresh floral arrangements made by Cole’s girlfriend, Tara Joline-Chapman, own-er of Forgather Floral Co. and fellow Bohemian.

Illustrations by local artist Blair Poulin grace the menu, for diners to bring home as a keepsake from the event. Blair was one of the orig-inal Bohemians and now works as a teacher, but she still lends a hand from time to time; she and Tara often

team up to serve at the din-ners.

Each person brings their passion to the Bohemian Dinners; they’re a chance to work together to create something special.

As the weather cools, it’s the perfect time of year for an intimate meal at a cozy cafe; find out about Bohemia’s next dinner by following them on Instagram.

Who doesn’t love the Farm-ers’ Market? The smells, the sights, the sounds and the people—it’s the best way to start your weekend, sur-rounded by delicious food and the hum of activity. Every Saturday morning, rain or shine, it’s where the people of Barrie gather to-gether.

It’s also where Homestead Bakery first began. Like many people in Barrie, long-time friends Cait Patrick and Lise Garden frequented the market ev-ery weekend. They loved the feel of community and wanted to be a part of it. “We loved making bread for friends and family and thought why not just try it out and see if we can sell bread at the Farmers’ Mar-ket? So in 2014 we decid-ed to make a go of it,” said

Cait.

Their sourdough breads quickly caught on. The pair had studied the art of bread making with Master Bread Maker Jeffery Hammel-man; Cait and Lise’s skill, combined with quality lo-cal ingredients, were a win-ning combination.

The Barrie Farmers’ Market allowed them to start out small and grow their busi-ness weekend by weekend. Demand grew, and they were able to open a bakery and cafe on Owen Street in May last year.

However, you’ll still find Homestead Bakery at the market every weekend. Their organic country blonde sourdough and six-grain breads are a must-have for market goers, play-ing a perfect complement

to the meats, cheeses, jams and jellies sold at neigh-bouring vendors.

Community is important to Cait and Lise, and they’d rather complement than compete with other local businesses. Around the time Homestead was open-ing, their good friend Rhys was opening Craft Pie Co. on Napier Street: Cait and Lise decided not to make pies a part of Homestead’s offerings and instead send business his way. Cait says, “He is the pie guy and the expert, so why not leave it up to him? I think it’s also important that we respect what other business around us do and try to focus on

what we are really good at (sourdough) and work to promote other local busi-ness.”

Later on, when Home-stead had room open up in their production area they asked Rhys if he wanted to join the crew and produce and sell pies out of their space. Homestead Bakery and Craft Pie Co. joined forces. “It was a match made in heaven and we couldn’t be happier to be partnered up with them,” says Cait. “We’ve grown our offerings, and we get to work with one of our good friends! Winnnn-ning!”

Homestead Artisan Bakery + CafeWritten by Sarah Jensen

43 Owen Street, Downtown Barriewww.homesteadartisanbakery.com

Like us on Facebook! @reallygoodbreadFollow us on Instagram! @homesteadbread

BohemiaWritten by Sarah Jensen125 Dunlop Street East705-734-1683Like us on Facebook & Instagram! @bohemiabarrie

The Northern Appeal Written by Hannah Boyle Follow us on Instagram @thenorthernappealthenorthernappeal.com

The Northern Appeal

The phrase know your farm-er is more than a meme or a bumper sticker: I believe it teaches a valuable life les-son. When we understand the basics of the commod-ity of food production and its impact on our choices to invest in the shop local movement, we can then consciously make wiser choices.

Converts understand this investment in our local e c on omy—p urc ha s ing from local farmers means giving back to our local community. A customer who develops rapport with the individual who grows and produces their food is more likely to understand the impact weather has on available food choices.

As mighty as technology has become, the success of crop growth is still regulat-ed by the weather.

In Downtown Barrie, our Farmers’ Market has tra-ditionally been the place

that starts the weekly rhythm. Folks gather on Saturday mornings to shop and share sto-ries, rain or shine, and this year’s weather is garnering more conver-

sation time than usual.

John Williams of Williams Farm has been a Farmers’ Market vendor since 2001. This organic farmer and maple syrup producer spe-cializes in coloured carrots, beets, garlic and maple syr-up. His father first engaged his interest in maple syrup production as a teenager.

Williams Farm is a mul-tigenerational operation; John and his wife Suzanne purchased the Wyebridge family property in 1999, and then moved to the present property in 2008. Assisting John in opera-tions are his sons (season-ally), local staff and Kim Kerr, who bakes beautiful butter tarts. The farm sells 1000 maple syrup tarts at the annual Butter Tart Fes-tival in neighbouring Mid-land each June.

An adherent to organic farming principles, John shared that while many

people prefer a short winter, farm-ers need a good, long snowy season for “a successful summer.”

The last two spring seasons provided ideal conditions for maple syrup production. Nature turned on the tap, and the sap flowed; after being boiled and bottled, about 1000 gallons of the golden goodness made it to market for the 2017 year!

Williams Farm also pro-duces a full line of maple products, including gran-ulated maple sugar, maple butter, maple sugar candy, lollipops and pasteurized maple sap—a refreshing and hydrating beverage full of amino acids and electro-lytes.

The rain this year is causing angst for many farmers in Simcoe County. I spoke to John about the impact on his crops. “Flooding has de-

layed all our planting, so we will have our vegetables in later—I’m guessing by up to a month,” he said.

“With delay, you risk a later yield. It’s the same amount of work, but you get less for it. A good year with syrup will help make up for last year’s drought, but we’re still waiting for the ‘Goldilocks moment’; maybe next year it will be just right.”

Williams Farm products are available at Homestead Artisan Bakery on Owen Street and numerous loca-tions throughout Simcoe County, and visitors are welcome at their farm store (call first, please).

Written by Penelope Morrowwww.penelopejmorrow.com

Williams Farm2193 Wood Road RR1 Wyebridge, ON L0K 2E0

Follow us on Instagram @farmwilliamswww.williamsfarm.ca

Sweet Simplicity Paper Co. started in the summer of 2016, after creator Sarah Malmsten designed all the stationery for her wedding and fell in love with the ex-perience.

A local high school teacher, Sarah has a degree in arts and design, but unfortu-nately hasn’t had the op-

portunity to teach those subjects. Yearning for a creative outlet, Sarah got to work, and Sweet Simplicity emerged.

Long drawn to lettering, Sarah loves the aesthetics of typographic art. Her de-signs utilize the simplicity

of words and simple fonts. “I think typography is time-less, and I love how different font styles express their own moods,” she says. Through Sweet Simplicity, she aims to deliver sweet, thoughtful sentiments, using classic de-signs.

Sarah’s stationery is de-signed, printed and pack-aged locally in Barrie. A se-lection of Sweet Simplicity’s cards can be found down-

town, at The Paperie and J’adore Fine Cheese and Chocolate.

Follow Sweet Simplicity Paper Co. on Instagram to find out about upcoming pop-up shops, artisan fairs and other events.

Sweet SimplicityWritten by Sarah JensenFollow us on Instagram @SweetSimplicityPaperCo.www.sweetsimplicitypaperco.com

Deep in the wonders of Simcoe County, I first rested my feet on Cana-dian ground. I came to know the integral pieces of the land through the art born in this city. There is a sense of community—that thrives in the quotidian (the norm, the everyday life)—and a surging sense of identity; our culture ex-ists in every action we take and is only further estab-lished through the words we write and the art we create.

Yet there was a lack—a lack of a resting place, no blank pages for these words to re-main in their shimmering

grandeur.

This is the void that Vic-toria Butler and William Crosson, both citizens of Barrie, set out to fill in 2016, with the founding of The Northern Appeal. The pair, both writers, created a biannual, non-profit liter-ary journal native to Sim-coe County and Muskoka.

Their aim was to establish a platform that showcases poetry, short stories, pho-tography and artwork from northern Ontarian artists and writers.

Victoria writes: “A short stroll through the Toron-to Public Library reveals

posters among posters asking for writers and art-ists to submit their work to various journals and magazines. However, you drive an hour up north and the posters disappear. The quaint cafes and quiet bars still exist, but the poetry vanishes.”

Victoria and Will share the belief that the physicality of books contains a sense of intimacy that digital and online literature lacks. To hold a book in your hands is to feel the impact it has. “The written word is ancient. It is a tradition almost everyone experienc-es,” says Victoria.

And so, this is what they have created. The second edition of the journal was published in August, with an ever-growing list of sub-missions that embody On-tarian artists of all age.

Like The Heart of Barrie on Facebook to learn what is going on in Downtown Barrie!

In this digital age, opening a paper shop may seem like a risky venture. But to Katie Williams and Michelle Hannon, paper is enduring. The pair met 13 years ago, while in design school, and became fast friends. Katie went on to start Katie Williams De-sign Co., a full-service design firm special-izing in graphic design, branding, market-ing, and stationery arts. Michelle joined her team two years ago as a designer.

Finding themselves driving out of the city to buy the products they love, Katie and Michelle realized there was a void

in Barrie that needed filling. Their shop, The Paperie, was formed by passion for everything cre-ative and a love of paper. It’s an artistic hub where people can work, learn, shop and be inspired.

A visit to the bright and spacious shop reveals wonders from near and far: you’ll find hand-screened Japanese chiyogami paper, beautiful journals and notebooks, Italian crepe paper, wrapping paper, statio-nery, and pens and pencils. As many prod-ucts as possible are sourced from Canada, including an entirely Canadian greeting card section.

The shop is a stationery mecca for newly betrothed couples. Whether you want to do it yourself and shop for supplies, or employ the experts at Katie Williams De-sign Co., you’ll find everything you need at The Paperie. Set the tone for your wed-ding with save-the-date cards, invitations,

ceremony programs, maps, menus, table numbers, thank-you cards and more.

Creativity is contagious, and profession-als can experience a boost in productiv-ity by taking advantage of The Paperie’s co-working space, adjacent to the shop. Membership packages include coffee, tea, complimentary Wi-Fi and a breathtaking view. Meeting and event spaces are also available.

The Paperie is also home to creative work-shops and seminars. Past topics have in-cluded brush lettering, crepe paper flow-ers, floral arrangements, paper quilling, calligraphy, terrarium building, paper marbling, watercolour florals and print-making, as well as business workshops on branding and sales. New workshops are added often, so follow The Paperie on Ins-

tagram to find out what’s new.

Many of the important moments in our lives are marked on paper, from birth cer-tificates, to report cards, wedding invita-tions and college diplomas. Paper offers a permanence to each occasion, something that can be held in your hands; it is both a home and a reflection for our words. The Paperie is a celebration of paper, the impressions it leaves on us and the impres-sions we leave on it.

Visit us at: www.theheartofbarrie.com

The PaperieWritten by Sarah Jensen89 Dunlop Street Eastwww.thepaperiebarrie.comFollow us on instagram@thepaperiebarrie

RIPE Juicery Written by Jenni Dunning118 Dunlop Street Eastwww.ripejuicery.caFollow us on Instagram @ripejuicery

Just in time for fall, RIPE Juicery is bring-ing pumpkin spice smoothies back to Bar-rie.

With a new season comes new menu items and many new adventures for the store known for its fresh selection of juice, smoothies and salads.

“We will be launching a new raw food menu, including desserts, breakfast items and some healthy lunches. We feel that raw food is a perfect addition to our al-ready plant-based menu,” says Meghan Attwater, who co-owns RIPE with her long-time friend Lindsay Haley. “We will be bringing back our 100% made-in-house, plant-based soups, and some juices featuring local apples.”

RIPE is also celebrating its successful first summer at the Barrie Farmers’ Market and its expansion to a new south-end location.

“We loved being alongside many of our suppliers at the downtown Barrie Farmers’ Market, and we hope to be a permanent summer fixture for many years to come,” Meghan says.

“We use local farms. Everything we do is local. We’re both farm town people. Growing up, all our produce came from local farms. It’s just who we are.”

RIPE also reopened its Muskoka location at Lake Rosseau this summer, serving up juice, smoothies and acai bowls.

But the best part of the summer was gear-ing up for RIPE’s new location at 371 King St., near Mapleview Drive West and Veterans Drive, says Meghan.

Surrounded by more commercial, big-box stores in that area, RIPE will offer an alter-native with a uniquely local flavour.

“We are over-the-moon excited to share with everyone our new cozy spot, with many new items and programs launch-ing,” Meghan says.

The new store will have a welcoming at-mosphere that perfectly coincides with the fall season.

As many people gather around tables this time of year to share home-cooked holi-day meals, RIPE’s south-end spot will have a beautiful harvest table, more seat-

ing, and a cozy space where people can eat their lunch with friends or even host a work meeting.

“We cannot wait to share this space with everyone,” Meghan says.

A Conversation in Chocolate with

Everleigh GardenWritten by Jenni Dunnings104 Dunlop Street EastFollow us on Instagram @everleigh.garden

We recently had a delicious discussion about choc-olate with Kathrine Killam, creator of Georgian Chocolate Co.

When did you start Georgian Chocolate Co., and what inspired you?

I started Georgian Chocolate Co. in August 2013, just shy of my youngest son’s first birthday. My ma-ternity leave was nearly finished, and I needed to decide whether to return to the field I had been in (academia, in the medical humanities) or try for something new and exciting.

For me, it was really important to be available for my family, while at the same time I knew I needed a challenge: something where I could be in control, do conscientious work and create something beautiful and satisfying. So hey, why not start my own compa-ny, where I could do all of those things?

What do you love about chocolate?

The complexities! Really good chocolate has subtle and unique flavour profiles that vary by region and

even by harvest within a region. There are definitely flavours I prefer, like the fruity undertones of South American chocolate, but I try really hard to ethical-ly source chocolate that represents a wide range of flavours.

How long have you been at the Barrie Farmers’ Mar-ket, and why do you sell your chocolates there?

I’ve been at the Barrie Farmers’ Market for just over two years now. It gives me a space to connect with my customers, try out new recipes and get a broad-er sense of the wants and needs of our community. Like us, a lot of customers and vendors at the market are heavily invested in our local economy—shopping local, living local, promoting local—so it just feels right to be a part of this vibrant market community.

Which of your products is your favourite?

I worked really hard to perfect the recipe for my Mexican-origin Spicy Chili dark chocolate bar. It is chocolate forward, followed by notes of cinna-mon, and finishes with a subtle lingering heat. It’s fun to watch people eat it because they’ll stare at me through the initial chocolate and cinnamon flavours, not believing that there’s any heat, but then their fac-es change—in a good, “aha!” way—once the heat hits them. Priceless.

Will you tell us a bit about your packaging?

It is gorgeous! Okay, obviously I am biased, but I am

so happy with how the packaging has turned out. Each of my chocolate bars has cover artwork created by a local artist. There are paintings, comics, illustra-tions, and really beautiful pieces of art that I wish I could take credit for, but although I am creative with chocolate, my fine art skills are lacklustre to say the least. The artists have created incredible works of art that pair so perfectly with my chocolate. Great choc-olate really is an art!

Georgian Chocolate Co.Written by: Sarah Jensenwww.georgianchocolate.comFollow us on Instagram @georgian_chocolate_coLike us on Facebook @GeorgianChocolateCo

Even on a dreary day, Sunny Jung’s downtown store is bursting with colour and quirkiness.

The owner of Everleigh Garden, a new high-end gift shop on Dunlop Street, has made it her mission to fill the store with unique products, many of which are made by local artisans.

“The store highly reflects my personality and décor tastes. Under one roof, I really am trying to combine all my fa-vourite things,” she says.

At Everleigh Garden, which opened April 3rd, customers can find everything from delicately scented candles, and pillows featuring tattooed Disney princesses, to funky purses, handmade chandeliers, beautiful quilts, and kitchenware in every colour of the rainbow.

The shop is also the exclusive reseller of Le Creuset cook-ware for the Barrie area, and Jung specializes in creating pretty greeting cards she can customize with specific names or themes.

“I really enjoy finding nice and unique items, either for myself or as a gift, and am hoping to offer that experience back to our customers,” she says, adding she loves inter-acting with and getting to know the people who stop by every day.

At Everleigh Garden, business is a family affair, and Jung’s two daughters help keep the store stocked with cool new items.

“Family is always involved in a small business. More often than not, the work continues long after we lock the doors. We are all involved in assessing experiences and looking

forward to ensuring that we keep finding new and unique items to keep the store looking fresh.”

Jung’s family moved to Barrie from Newmarket last sum-mer and were drawn to the downtown because of its “out-door and waterfront culture,” she said.

“The support from the local community has been over-whelmingly positive. Within the first week we already felt a part of the downtown community and feel as though we fill a niche within the area.”

Bohemia is known for a fine cup of coffee, casual lunches and tasty baked treats. It’s also gaining a reputation for its Bohemian Dinners, a monthly occasion to get dressed up a little and enjoy a meal prepared with love and artistry.

The menus are created by Cole Churchward, who fell in love with food when he began working at Bohe-mia seven years ago. Cole jumped headfirst into the culinary world, obsessively reading cookbooks cover to cover, practicing each recipe until perfected.

Cole left Bohemia and Bar-rie, to pursue experience in some of Toronto’s top restaurants. At Momofuku Daisho, he worked his way

up through the kitchen, starting as a prep cook and moving on to garde manger, then chef de partie of garde manger, and finally to chef de partie of the hot apps sta-tion.

From there, he worked at Edulis Restaurant, before moving back home to Bar-rie, to be closer to family and enjoy the better quality of life a smaller city affords.

Cole returned to Bohemia and now runs the kitchen. The dinners are a chance for him to be creative: each menu showcases his skills and is designed around beautiful seasonal ingredi-ents. The meals often kick off with his freshly baked sourdough bread, made with flour from K2 Mill-

ing in Beeton and served with house-cultured, hand-churned butter.

July’s dinner featured Gar-ganelli pasta, hand-shaped by Cole using a dowel and a ridged board. The sauce was made from pork shoul-der, pasture-raised by Stone Horse Farms in Innisfil; braised with milk, white wine and aromatics; served with parmigiana, and peas from Hewitts Farm Market, shelled by Bohemia owner, Jill Dyck.

Dessert was a strawberry and wild rose olive oil cake, made with blooms that Cole picked while he was in Al-berta for a cousin’s wedding. The cake was served with lemon verbena-infused pas-try cream and nasturtium

flower petals, grown locally by farmer Graeme Foers.

In August, Bohemia served a more casual dinner, part-nering with their next door neighbours at Art in House for the Give Local Artists Market. The cafe stayed open late to serve warm tor-tilla chips with guacamole; tacos with chorizo and po-tato, or corn with poblano peppers; and watermelon lime popsicles to vendors and visitors alike.

September’s dinner menu highlighted the rich fla-vours that the late sum-mer’s harvest brings. Cole’s sourdough bread started the evening. The second course starred heirloom to-matoes paired with smoked buttermilk and nasturtium

salsa verde. Sweet corn mezzalune pasta followed, served with chorizo sausage, cotija cheese and pickled green tomato. And dinner was rounded off with sun-kissed Niagara peaches with caramelized yogurt and ha-zelnut.

The dinners are accented by fresh floral arrangements made by Cole’s girlfriend, Tara Joline-Chapman, own-er of Forgather Floral Co. and fellow Bohemian.

Illustrations by local artist Blair Poulin grace the menu, for diners to bring home as a keepsake from the event. Blair was one of the orig-inal Bohemians and now works as a teacher, but she still lends a hand from time to time; she and Tara often

team up to serve at the din-ners.

Each person brings their passion to the Bohemian Dinners; they’re a chance to work together to create something special.

As the weather cools, it’s the perfect time of year for an intimate meal at a cozy cafe; find out about Bohemia’s next dinner by following them on Instagram.

Who doesn’t love the Farm-ers’ Market? The smells, the sights, the sounds and the people—it’s the best way to start your weekend, sur-rounded by delicious food and the hum of activity. Every Saturday morning, rain or shine, it’s where the people of Barrie gather to-gether.

It’s also where Homestead Bakery first began. Like many people in Barrie, long-time friends Cait Patrick and Lise Garden frequented the market ev-ery weekend. They loved the feel of community and wanted to be a part of it. “We loved making bread for friends and family and thought why not just try it out and see if we can sell bread at the Farmers’ Mar-ket? So in 2014 we decid-ed to make a go of it,” said

Cait.

Their sourdough breads quickly caught on. The pair had studied the art of bread making with Master Bread Maker Jeffery Hammel-man; Cait and Lise’s skill, combined with quality lo-cal ingredients, were a win-ning combination.

The Barrie Farmers’ Market allowed them to start out small and grow their busi-ness weekend by weekend. Demand grew, and they were able to open a bakery and cafe on Owen Street in May last year.

However, you’ll still find Homestead Bakery at the market every weekend. Their organic country blonde sourdough and six-grain breads are a must-have for market goers, play-ing a perfect complement

to the meats, cheeses, jams and jellies sold at neigh-bouring vendors.

Community is important to Cait and Lise, and they’d rather complement than compete with other local businesses. Around the time Homestead was open-ing, their good friend Rhys was opening Craft Pie Co. on Napier Street: Cait and Lise decided not to make pies a part of Homestead’s offerings and instead send business his way. Cait says, “He is the pie guy and the expert, so why not leave it up to him? I think it’s also important that we respect what other business around us do and try to focus on

what we are really good at (sourdough) and work to promote other local busi-ness.”

Later on, when Home-stead had room open up in their production area they asked Rhys if he wanted to join the crew and produce and sell pies out of their space. Homestead Bakery and Craft Pie Co. joined forces. “It was a match made in heaven and we couldn’t be happier to be partnered up with them,” says Cait. “We’ve grown our offerings, and we get to work with one of our good friends! Winnnn-ning!”

Homestead Artisan Bakery + CafeWritten by Sarah Jensen

43 Owen Street, Downtown Barriewww.homesteadartisanbakery.com

Like us on Facebook! @reallygoodbreadFollow us on Instagram! @homesteadbread

BohemiaWritten by Sarah Jensen125 Dunlop Street East705-734-1683Like us on Facebook & Instagram! @bohemiabarrie

The Northern Appeal Written by Hannah Boyle Follow us on Instagram @thenorthernappealthenorthernappeal.com

The Northern Appeal

The phrase know your farm-er is more than a meme or a bumper sticker: I believe it teaches a valuable life les-son. When we understand the basics of the commod-ity of food production and its impact on our choices to invest in the shop local movement, we can then consciously make wiser choices.

Converts understand this investment in our local e c on omy—p urc ha s ing from local farmers means giving back to our local community. A customer who develops rapport with the individual who grows and produces their food is more likely to understand the impact weather has on available food choices.

As mighty as technology has become, the success of crop growth is still regulat-ed by the weather.

In Downtown Barrie, our Farmers’ Market has tra-ditionally been the place

that starts the weekly rhythm. Folks gather on Saturday mornings to shop and share sto-ries, rain or shine, and this year’s weather is garnering more conver-

sation time than usual.

John Williams of Williams Farm has been a Farmers’ Market vendor since 2001. This organic farmer and maple syrup producer spe-cializes in coloured carrots, beets, garlic and maple syr-up. His father first engaged his interest in maple syrup production as a teenager.

Williams Farm is a mul-tigenerational operation; John and his wife Suzanne purchased the Wyebridge family property in 1999, and then moved to the present property in 2008. Assisting John in opera-tions are his sons (season-ally), local staff and Kim Kerr, who bakes beautiful butter tarts. The farm sells 1000 maple syrup tarts at the annual Butter Tart Fes-tival in neighbouring Mid-land each June.

An adherent to organic farming principles, John shared that while many

people prefer a short winter, farm-ers need a good, long snowy season for “a successful summer.”

The last two spring seasons provided ideal conditions for maple syrup production. Nature turned on the tap, and the sap flowed; after being boiled and bottled, about 1000 gallons of the golden goodness made it to market for the 2017 year!

Williams Farm also pro-duces a full line of maple products, including gran-ulated maple sugar, maple butter, maple sugar candy, lollipops and pasteurized maple sap—a refreshing and hydrating beverage full of amino acids and electro-lytes.

The rain this year is causing angst for many farmers in Simcoe County. I spoke to John about the impact on his crops. “Flooding has de-

layed all our planting, so we will have our vegetables in later—I’m guessing by up to a month,” he said.

“With delay, you risk a later yield. It’s the same amount of work, but you get less for it. A good year with syrup will help make up for last year’s drought, but we’re still waiting for the ‘Goldilocks moment’; maybe next year it will be just right.”

Williams Farm products are available at Homestead Artisan Bakery on Owen Street and numerous loca-tions throughout Simcoe County, and visitors are welcome at their farm store (call first, please).

Written by Penelope Morrowwww.penelopejmorrow.com

Williams Farm2193 Wood Road RR1 Wyebridge, ON L0K 2E0

Follow us on Instagram @farmwilliamswww.williamsfarm.ca

Sweet Simplicity Paper Co. started in the summer of 2016, after creator Sarah Malmsten designed all the stationery for her wedding and fell in love with the ex-perience.

A local high school teacher, Sarah has a degree in arts and design, but unfortu-nately hasn’t had the op-

portunity to teach those subjects. Yearning for a creative outlet, Sarah got to work, and Sweet Simplicity emerged.

Long drawn to lettering, Sarah loves the aesthetics of typographic art. Her de-signs utilize the simplicity

of words and simple fonts. “I think typography is time-less, and I love how different font styles express their own moods,” she says. Through Sweet Simplicity, she aims to deliver sweet, thoughtful sentiments, using classic de-signs.

Sarah’s stationery is de-signed, printed and pack-aged locally in Barrie. A se-lection of Sweet Simplicity’s cards can be found down-

town, at The Paperie and J’adore Fine Cheese and Chocolate.

Follow Sweet Simplicity Paper Co. on Instagram to find out about upcoming pop-up shops, artisan fairs and other events.

Sweet SimplicityWritten by Sarah JensenFollow us on Instagram @SweetSimplicityPaperCo.www.sweetsimplicitypaperco.com

Deep in the wonders of Simcoe County, I first rested my feet on Cana-dian ground. I came to know the integral pieces of the land through the art born in this city. There is a sense of community—that thrives in the quotidian (the norm, the everyday life)—and a surging sense of identity; our culture ex-ists in every action we take and is only further estab-lished through the words we write and the art we create.

Yet there was a lack—a lack of a resting place, no blank pages for these words to re-main in their shimmering

grandeur.

This is the void that Vic-toria Butler and William Crosson, both citizens of Barrie, set out to fill in 2016, with the founding of The Northern Appeal. The pair, both writers, created a biannual, non-profit liter-ary journal native to Sim-coe County and Muskoka.

Their aim was to establish a platform that showcases poetry, short stories, pho-tography and artwork from northern Ontarian artists and writers.

Victoria writes: “A short stroll through the Toron-to Public Library reveals

posters among posters asking for writers and art-ists to submit their work to various journals and magazines. However, you drive an hour up north and the posters disappear. The quaint cafes and quiet bars still exist, but the poetry vanishes.”

Victoria and Will share the belief that the physicality of books contains a sense of intimacy that digital and online literature lacks. To hold a book in your hands is to feel the impact it has. “The written word is ancient. It is a tradition almost everyone experienc-es,” says Victoria.

And so, this is what they have created. The second edition of the journal was published in August, with an ever-growing list of sub-missions that embody On-tarian artists of all age.

Free ELEVENTHEdition

Like The Heart of Barrie on Facebook to learn what is going on in Downtown Barrie!

Published by The Waterview Space

Barrie almost never happened.

Since about the time of the War of 1812, the military kept a re-serve of land, some forty-five acres, north of Kempenfelt Bay and bordered by Berczy and Bayfield Streets. A lone storage building stood just east of the present-day Government Dock. That was about all there was to

Barrie in 1830, and little more was planned for its future.

No, our community was just a dot on the map back then, just the place where First Nations people, traders and soldiers be-gan their journey along the Nine Mile Portage en route to Willow Creek and beyond. A fledgling village called Kempenfeldt, to the east, was going to be the big deal.

In 1831, Kempenfeldt was sur-veyed and ready to go. The gov-ernment sold the land, which later became Barrie, to a Captain Oliver, and that was that.

But not so fast—Captain Oliver, for reasons unknown, soon sold his land back to the government and they then decided to survey it. Having no real use for the lots, the government sold them at auction in Toronto in 1833.

Settlers began to appear in Bar-

rie, much to the ire of those who had bought into Kempenfeldt and had expected a rapid rise in commerce and living conditions in that community. Petitions were drawn up, and residents of Kempenfeldt tried to sully the prospects of their upstart neighbours by claiming that “not likely any persons of respectabil-ity would ever make Barrie their choice of residence,” and that be-cause there is a swamp at the west end of the bay, “a noxious vapour will be frequently hovering over Barrie.” Ouch.

Sorry, Kempenfeldt, but it looked like Barrie was here to stay. Barrie had a mini boom in 1840, partly due to an influx of people from Kempenfeldt, iron-ically.

So, what do you do with a vil-lage on the shores of a lake in the middle of nowhere? You fashion it into a market hub so that goods producers in equally

isolated but nearby places can sell their cattle, lum-ber, wheat and furs. With that goal in mind, in 1846, Barrie was awarded a grant of 3.5 acres, at Collier and Mulcaster Streets, from the (then called) Simcoe Dis-trict. It was to be used for market trading, and as is noted on the Barrie Farm-ers’ Market website, for “no other purpose or use what-soever.”

Within ten years, the first buildings used at the mar-ket square were proving inadequate. After an ex-tended battle with F.W.

Cumberland, Chief Engineer of the railway company that owned the line ending at Allandale, Bar-rie succeeded in bringing trains to the north side of the bay. Prosperity quickly followed, and demand for trading space soon surpassed the capabilities of the small market place.

In 1856, a fine brick market building was constructed, with plenty of space inside for vendors and a great deal of land outside to accommodate wagons, carts, cattle and any kind of goods.

This stately new building was the centre of Barrie commerce. It was also the town hall and an early home to the fire brigade. Above the front entrance was an oddly unfinished-looking tower with four parapets. At one time, a bell tower for the fire department was planned, but it was never added.

Joseph Sheard, a Toronto archi-tect, was chosen to de-sign the market building. Many of his works still stand today, including the Todmorden Mill beside the Don Valley Parkway, Bond Street Baptist Church in To-ronto, and Trafalgar Castle in Whitby.

In twenty years’ time, businesses were booming all over Downtown Barrie. Several devastating fires destroyed the majority of the orig-inal shops, however, but most re-tailers believed in Barrie as a des-tination for shoppers, even back

then, and so they quickly rebuilt. Fire damaged the market build-ing in 1875, but even before that, there were rumblings that the structure needed an upgrade.

In 1877, the utilitarian mar-ket building was both enlarged and given a fanciful makeover. The never-built bell tower now sported a mansard style roof, louvered porthole windows and ornate iron railings. High Victo-rian feathery curlicues sprouted elsewhere on the roof.

The age of the ostentatious mar-ket building lasted 70 years. The need for a seven-day market was decreasing, while the municipal government was in need of more space. To that end, the building was stripped down again, and the Town of Barrie applied to the Ontario Government for a clear title to the market lands.

The plucky farmers fought back and won, but only temporarily.

In 1952,

Bill 27 eventually allowed Barrie to have full title, but only if they allotted farmers

a market house no smaller than 2,000 square feet. That tradition remains today with the contin-uation of a thriving and diverse Saturday farmers’ market (held in the present City Hall rotunda in winter and outdoors in sum-mer).

Yes, the Barrie Farmers’ Market trades on, 171 years later. The old market building, however, sadly met the wrecking ball in 1985, when it eventually outlived its usefulness. City government moved next door into a reno-vated business building, where it remains.

The precise location of the grand old market building will never be forgotten. Paving stones at the Collier and Mulcaster Street in-tersection trace the outline of its foundation, while a green arch delineates the silhouette of the structure. Visitors to the Barrie Farmers’ Market can’t miss it.

Stories from the Downtown C ommunity

Sponsored in part by: the Downtown Barrie BIASCHWARTZ & ASSOCIATES

The Market Town that Nearly Wasn’t

A Business Improvement Area (BIA) is an asso-ciation of business people and property owners, within a specified district, who join together for the goal of stimulating local business. They work together to fulfill short-term goals and long-term strategies.

The world’s first BIA was started in Toron-to in 1970, when small business owners in Bloor West Village appealed to the Province of Ontario and the City of Toronto; the business owners wanted legislation that would enable the business community to create a self-governed organization, to aid in the revitalization of their historic shopping district.

Inspired by the success of the Bloor West Village, the Downtown Barrie BIA was founded in 1977. Their range of activities includes mar-keting, streetscape improvement and special events, such as Promenade Days, the Hot Cocoa Trail, May Days, and the Craft Beer and BBQ Festival.

An interview with the Downtown Barrie BIA Chair, Wayne Hay, carried with it positive and creative ideas and goals that are now coming to fruition. We have some exciting de-velopments for our city that he wants to relay about Barrie’s ability to, as he says, “continue to be a great city.”

Wayne Hay has been the BIA Volunteer Chair for 6 years now. He shared, “I love the downtown and just want to be part of it; I have even relocated my office to be down-town. Barrie is my passion.” He meets with Managing Director, Craig Stevens, twice a week to discuss ongoing events and concerns.

The Downtown Barrie BIA holds a larger board meeting once a month. Wayne and I discussed some of the projects currently underway downtown and many exciting plans for the future.

“We are fortunate to have the water and our waterfront development project now underway,” said Wayne. The recent improve-ments to Centennial Beach were completed just in time for Barrie’s annual Kempenfest. Visitors and locals are now able to enjoy a larger greenspace area, boardwalks, a beauti-ful extended beach area and easier access to parking; they all combine to make this city an attraction to the outreaches of Barrie.

Some of the initiatives that Wayne mentioned include the patios along Dunlop Street, and Curb Appeal, an outdoor dinner highlighting

5 local restaurants, which benefits the com-munity. “The BIA also pushed for the Public Market/Farmers’ Market location to be at the Barrie Bus Terminal and look forward to this relocation for a year round market,” said Wayne.

When you come downtown, take a stroll along Dunlop, our main street; you will notice some amazing changes. Wayne states, “We have some new businesses to welcome to our downtown: 147 Italian Cuisine, Fun-doozies (fondue), Osgoode Company, The Paperie, Everleigh Garden and John Linkert Salon.

“Additionally, the BIA supports and helps direct interested property owners to the City of Barrie’s Community Improvement Plan (CIP) that includes a building façade grant- Bill LeBoeuf Jewellers is a great example of this.”

Notice the larger development, called Me-ridian Place, located in the centre and heart of Barrie. “It will look worse before it gets better,” said Wayne, “but, the better will be wonderful. The outdoor stage will have the ability to have big bands and local concerts. I am excited about the continued green space for events like the Lawn Chair Luminata, car shows, yoga and more local connections.”

“What’s amazing is there will be ‘fire features’ which will make it warm, inviting, and usable during the winter months. We could say a

chair, fireplace and hot chocolate connec-tion.”

Look for the Grand Opening Party on June 1, 2018, and in the meantime there is a first local recognition of Meridian Place on No-vember 11, 2017.

Other BIA initiatives include a brand new Dunlop Street streetscape. This includes soft-ening the sidewalks by sloping them onto the road, installing new lamp posts for hanging flowers and expanding the over-street lighting to make a more pedestrian friendly and fo-cused environment for our main street.

We’re truly living in a historical moment for our city. It is a fabulous place to live and work, and with the initiatives shifting for-ward, the City of Barrie becomes even greater. We really do live in the best city! For more information go to: www.downtownbarrie.ca

An Interview with Wayne Hay of the Barrie BIA

Jacqui DerbeckerFounder of Heart of BarrieIntuitive CounselingAuthor/Speakerjacquiconsults.com

Want to be featured?If you have a business in Downtown Barrie,

we’d love to tell your story.

Contact us at: theheartofbarrie@outlook.com

Barrie Historical Archive Written by Mary Harris Director of History & ResearchBarrie Historical Archive www.barriearchive.caLike us on Facebookbarriehistoricalarchive Follow us on Instagram/Twitter @barriearchive

“What an artist is trying to do for people is bring them closer to something, because of course art is about sharing. You wouldn’t be an artist unless you wanted to share an experience, a thought.” - David Hockney - Artist (born 1937)

United by our love of the creative process, we are artists who share our original works in various venues and who maintain a rotat-ing exhibit at The Edge Gallery in Barrie, owned and curated by one of our members.

As continuing learners, we reg-ularly participate in workshops, seminars and classes to hone our ever-developing artistic skills.

In early 2016, we discussed how we could artistically commem-orate Canada’s upcoming 150th birthday. We decided to create

a montage, a process that pro-duces a new composite whole from image fragments. Our new composite whole? Canada’s flag. Our image fragments? Eighteen canvas panels, sixteen of which are original paintings.

Careful attention was given to our palette, to designate the red and white of our nation’s furled emblem. Our first challenge: how to effectively render our images using only these two co-lours. We decided to use neutral tones to represent the “white” ar-eas of the flag, and Burnt Umber to create depth and perspective in the “red” areas.

Our Canada, measuring an im-pressive 110 inches wide by 54 inches high, created an instal-lation challenge, but we met this one, too. Our montage has

been exhibited at the Holcim Gallery, Milton, the Barrie City Hall Rotunda, the Springwater Township council chambers, in the constituency office of Bar-rie MPP Ann Hoggarth, and at the Simcoe County Museum in Minesing and is presently hang-ing in the Mariposa Gallery of OMAH, Orillia.

“Through these powerful images, this installation highlights some of Canada’s significant histori-cal moments and tells a moving story…the story that has made Canada what it is today,” of-fered MPP Ann Hoggarth at the Open House she sponsored to formally introduce Our Canada

to the city of Barrie.

Mary Lynne Atkinson paint-ed images relating to Franklin’s exploration of the Northwest Passage, while Eileen Sweeney celebrated the success of women such as Roberta Bondar and Nel-lie McClung. David Suzuki and Terry Fox received acclamations in the renderings by Carmen Prieto, and Kate Ramos success-fully created a tactile panel that recognizes the significance of the Canadian Pacific Railroad.

A successful artist herself, Barb Ritchie portrayed another re-nowned female artist, Emily Carr; on a second panel, she rec-

ognized the infamous poem In Flanders Fields, written by Lt. Col. John McRae. Marga-ret Paradis focused on 17th century explorations of our country and the significance of Canada’s natural resources. As an excellent portrait artist, Norma Jacobs effectively por-trayed our first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald.

Ottawa’s Peace Tower is featured on the first panel painted by Jo Appleby; a second pays homage to the well-known aircraft, the de Havilland Beaver. On the fi-nal two panels, Pat Guinn gives credit to Portia White’s musical success and to the nationwide presence of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

To explore other works, and to learn how you can be the proud owner of an original painting created by one of the talented members of this lo-cal group of artists, please visit www.baysideartists.com.

BaySide ArtistsWritten by Pat Guinn, www.baysideartists.com

Our Canada

Sponsored in part bywww.downtownbarrie.ca

Published bywww.thewaterviewspace.com

Founder: Jacqui Derbecker - jacquiconsults.com | Editor: Sarah Jensen - theheartofbarrie@outlook.comCopy Editor: Thomas Olhiser - tolhiser@gmail.com | Design: Amy Woodcock - amben@hotmail.com

Visit us at: www.theheartofbarrie.com

Working downtown at Bohemia, I walk along Dunlop Street daily; I’ve always en-joyed the old brick buildings and the traces of times gone by. Recently, I had the fortune to enjoy a couple of historic walking tours of our downtown, which allowed me to see details I hadn’t noticed before and told me some of the tales behind the places I walk by every day.

The first tour was led by Mary Harris, of the Barrie Historical Archive (find her article about the history of the Barrie Farmers’ Mar-

ket in this issue!). Meeting at the gazebo at Sam Cancilla Park, we walked along Dunlop, stopping to look at landmarks along the way.

Mary took us backward in time. I discovered that The Market on Dunlop Street West, near the Uptown Theatre, also used to be a theatre; patrons of the Capitol Theatre could enjoy a “talking picture” for a dime. The old Bank of Montreal building, near Memorial Square, exposed itself to be a former music hall. And everywhere we went, our guide re-vealed how fire has shaped our city: time and time again we’ve rebuilt and persevered.

The second tour was led by Steve Travers, who’s been our town crier for the past 15 years. We had a rollicking good time, learning about some of the saints and sinners from Barrie’s past and the places they called home.

Steve shared tales of Dunlop Street’s name-sake, William “Tiger” Dunlop, a surgeon and a cunning character. Steve educated us about Barrie’s first businesswoman, who worked in the world’s oldest profession and offered

her services at the Simcoe Hotel with such success that she was able to open her own brothel. And we learned that the carved faces peering down from Bohemia’s building—greeting me each day as I arrive to work—were modelled after Poseidon, in honour of our beautiful waterfront.

Giving such colourful tours is just that—an act of giving. Both tour guides volunteer their time, their only motivation being a love of their community and of sharing stories.

The Heart of Barrie team brings the same spirit to each issue. In our pages, we aim to share our city’s history: stories from the past and present about our downtown communi-ty, and also a vision for its future.

In its infancy as a municipality, Barrie was home to 50 people, with 3 bars between them; it was known as the wickedest town east of Winnipeg. These days, it’s gaining a reputation as a creative community, an entrepreneurial hub and a great place to raise a family. As you walk along the streets down-

town, not only can you catch glimpses of the past, but also of what lies ahead.

Thanks for reading the Heart of Barrie, as we continue to grow alongside this great city.

Tours Through Time

Sarah Jensen, Editor of The Heart of Barrieemail: theheartofbarrie@outlook.comInstagram: @findingmyselfinbarrie