InnisfilToday received a copy of the following letter to town officials from reader Julia Baker.
Dear Innisfil Clerk's Office and to whom this may concern,
This email is in regard to the recent town meeting held at the town council hall discussing the building development plan between Youge Street and Victoria Street in Stroud.
To begin, as a 25-plus year resident of this small town, I can start by saying this is a quiet, friendly, and peaceful place to live. That being said, building these city-model townhouses crammed one next to another will not only affect those in the area, but also change the trajectory of what makes this town thrive.
We have seen what occurs when building these types of housing from the experience of being between the two towns of Barrie and Alcona, and feel more than unimpressed.
The traffic that now occurs from these towns travelling through our town has increased extremely and adding in these other houses will only create more traffic and noise disturbing what was once a peaceful atmosphere.
Our elementary school in Stroud is already at full capacity which means many of the children living in this area will need bus routes added into the already busy morning to be driven to another school that can take them.
The noise that will come from these areas is also going to change the way current residents live comfortably in their homes.
This noise study that was done doesn't seem to understand the frantic family lifestyle of people going in and out, cars being started, and weekend parties held in these tiny yards that face other yards that once didn't contain noise.
This includes the animals being let outside in these yards, which if these houses were properly spaced like our current ones the noise would drown out but instead these tiny areas would echo and emanate noise.
These townhouses are also not visually appealing. We have seen several designs time and time again in Barrie and none of them add anything positive to property value as these are created for an extended amount of capacity with little regard to creating harmony with the existing town.
We really do plead with this council to rethink this idea, instead of going the route of creating more housing in an area for the literal reason of avarice, integrate something for the community without destroying the atmosphere and peaceful area for current residents.
We don't need more housing. There are so many of these townhouses being built five minutes both north and south of us. Adding these as well is a clear projection of greed and disregard for the current residents.
Creating a wildlife trail/park would benefit this town, the community, and our planet. Making a space which isn't filled with polluting houses and cars is the best idea for everyone.
Thank you,
Happy and content resident,
Julia Baker