I don't know about the rest of you Orillia folks, but I am incredibly sick of the constant building on our once-beautiful (and peaceful) waterfront.
This newest development (see the conceptual images here, including the one showing a ghosted-out large building beside the Champlain Hotel ... what is that anyway?) Apparently named "Sunshine Harbour" (they don't get the harbour, that's still "Port of Orillia", but you can bet the traffic to, from, and around the port is going to be unmanageable after a few years of all these new buildings).
Not just this development either. All the new ones in the last year or two practically sitting at the waterfront ... too much. Looking at Sunshine harbour you can see the houses that USED TO BE facing the waterfront, will now be facing ... well, basically nothing more than townhouses.
(Sigh) Smarten up Orillia. Sure, yes, we do need more homes. We DO NOT NEED MORE CONDOS NO ONE CAN AFFORD!!! People are crying there's not enough apartments. Yes, yes there is. If you can afford one. It isn't that there aren't homes to buy (plenty according to the market), or apartments to rent, provided you have a decent enough job. Can't afford one otherwise.
Herein lies the problem. New buildings, the vast majority have NOT been affordable to the average person. Please don't point out the homeless problem to me. I'm well aware of it. However, what makes anyone (anyone at ALL) think any of the homeless can afford those homes? hmmm? What? Are you even thinking? Sorry Orillia. If I wanted to live in a big ugly city with too much traffic, I'd move to one.
If you really want to build more homes, make them affordable. In our location, average people MIGHT be able to afford homes around $599,000-$650,000, but a lot of people can't even afford that. Young people in their mid to late 20s, even early 30s are still living with their parents, so ... who exactly are you building these things for? Not us (no, I'm not living with parents, I AM the parent) and not our kids and grandkids. Nope. They're for city folk.
If you really want to improve Orillia ... well, where are the jobs? Where's the manufacturing we used to have (long gone now)? No jobs, no affordable housing.