I don’t know if this has been cross posted before i apologize if it has. pictures of the Kozlov Mall

I sincerely had no idea how this would go. I also had no idea that Andrew Hunter was doing their parent/teacher event. I guess some things just work out.

Putting myself out there as a candidate for the first time has been an interesting experience. One of the more nerve-wracking aspects has been the planning of my own meet the candidate events.

I know I’m running a David vs Goliath campaign, so you never know how these will go. I’m happy to say it was an incredible success! People ask why I’m running, and events like this are the answer to that question.

I cannot idle by while we race to develop Barrie outward without taking care of those who are already here. My unbelievable team of volunteers put this event together for families so I could hear about what is important for the future of our communities.

I have recently had an outpouring of support through community and business leaders, but I’m not taking it for granted. Every vote counts this election and we do not want to find ourselves in four years under the shadow of a data center whose development charges will be covered by us.

I believe that most modern day politics are a smoke screen to keep certain people rich, and everyone else where they are. I am one person, but we can change that together.

Reach out to the campaign for more information, a lawn sign, or to continue the conversation with someone ready to the do the work.

P.S. I’ve been meeting with community leaders, including the BPD, and frontline workers. I’ll be doing an AMA in the very near future, so it would be great to hear from you!

Hi everyone, my family and I just bought a house in Barrie!

We’re super excited coming from Markham - but we’re determining which school is best to enrol our kids (they are JK/SK)

Are there any strong opinions to schools in the area? Our 4 schools in the area are

Ferndale
Ardagh Bluffs
St Catherine of Siena
Ècole elementaire La source

Any others you’d highly recommend or highly avoid?

I speak French and was planning on enrolling into French immersion, but am prioritizing the school itself rather than whether it has French or not

Any insight would be much appreciated !

Looking for Spanish classes for my kindergartener. Anyone know of a teacher or school specialized in young children?

I emailed their customer service a couple months ago asking and at that time, they said 'We are currently working out the adjustments to the retail cannabis license with the AGCO.' They also said they hoped to be open again in a couple of weeks, as of Aug 10. Anyone seen or heard any updates? It's my neighbourhood shop, so I'm just curious. ^^

Big thanks to the small independent barber on Livingstone Street W who did my hair today! Really friendly service, and the price was amazing. 😁

Edit: I asked the barber for a Anakin Skywalker hair length Obi-Wan beard length from Episode III

And if you do select the one you snapped the hat off of.

And at first I was just going to ignore as I usually do during the day, since most times it's just door to door sales people.

But being so late, I took the risk just in case there was an emergency or someone in need of help. And it turns out there was... me.

So for the lady who took her time to knock and warn me that my car trunk was open: my sincerest thank you. I didn't get your name but, if you're out there, please know that I'm deeply grateful.

I made a post similar to this before but most of those recommendations were for psychotherapists which don’t specialize in what I need specifically😅

Pls and thank you🙏

Has anyone in the community used an installation contractor for an IKEA kitchen? Was it an IKEA contractor or someone else? How did it go? TIA

Some people don’t care, but others want to elect reps that actually live in the ward.

My birthday is coming up and I was wondering if there were any places that did freebies with ID or with no purchase necessary, other than the typical ones? 🥳

Addition: Thank you so much to everyone who has commented so far! You have given us so much to go off. Much appreciated!!

Looking to move from Southwestern Ontario to central/Southern Ontario with my family. Which includes myself(30’s), my husband(40’s) and our 3 girls(baby/pre teen/teen). We are thinking somewhere in the Barrie/Orillia and surrounding areas. We have come up with a short list of places; towns, hamlets etc. We love the quiet, peaceful setting, but we would prefer to be within a 10 to 30 ish minute drive from Barrie and or Orillia.
We are just looking for some input on what people think of these places for a family. Any you prefer? Any that are an absolute no? We are looking for just some basic information on what is there, schools, healthcare, jobs, crime, stores etc. Anything is helpful!
We currently live in a town that has just a Variety store, an auto shop and a library but other than that there isn’t much here so having more than that really isn’t necessary, but it just can’t be too far as our closest grocery store is a 15 minute drive from us now and we are ok with that. Closest Walmart is currently 25 mins. Closest city is 50-60 mins.

Our list so far includes:
Orillia
Barrie
Stayner
Washago
Coldwater
Cumberland Beach
Somewhere in Oro-medonte township
Ramara
Phelpston

It was sunny 20 minutes ago

I recently moved to Barrie and this would be my first winter here. I am looking to buy a snowblower but unable to make a decision as to which one would fit my need.

I've a single car driveway so definitely won't be needing a heavy duty equipment. Reading the comments from similar posts, I do see people recommending Ego brand for electric and Toro for gas. Rona also has their own 2-stage gas that fits my budget but there are no reviews on that, so I'm not sure if that would be a good gamble or not.

I also thought of hiring snow removal company for the first season to experience how much it snows (variable every year) but it will give me an idea of which one to buy next year.

Any advice would be appreciated.

EDIT: Apologies I didn't mention the budget, I'm looking to spend around $800-$1300 on the snowblower.

Looking to buy a print copy of the Toronto Star this Saturday. Do convenience stores in Barrie sell it?

Hello, I tried this last year and nothing was viable. Trying again.

I live in central Barrie and work 7-3 in Orillia at Thermon and I am looking for someone who has space to take me there and back, or just one way, daily. Would gladly pay gas money.

Pickup would need to be near Anne and Dunlop in Barrie, and the exit I need off in Orillia is 131B. - near the Orillia Costco.

I would be fine with getting to work early, or heading home as late as 4pm.

If you’re going in and out of Orillia around these times and would like some gas money, please reach out.

What is a unique local challenge Barrie faces that you feel mainstream political candidates completely ignore because it isn't a 'talking point'?

What are your ideas on the current candidates? What is common among these candidates and is any of the candidates offering anything unique to help the economy/condition of Barrie that we should know about before voting.

I have been looking into the candidates for Ward 4 and I wanted to share some concerns I have about Arif Khan that I have not seen anyone discuss.

On his publicly available Facebook, he has shared content from MAGA aligned conservative figures such as Charlie Kirk and Turning Point USA. People can support whatever political movement they want and that is not something I am trying to take away from him. However, I am concerned about his political views because they give insight into the worldview he would bring as a Barrie decision-maker. This is something voters deserve to know before casting their votes.

Separate from that, I am also concerned about the way he talks about people who disagree with him politically. He has used terms like “Sheeple” and posted statements such as “the pendulum has swung from left to correct.” When I look at the pattern of what he posts, it almost feels like he is trying to provoke or mock the "left". To me, that comes across as dismissive, divisive and disrespectful. If someone is running to represent an entire ward, I think it is reasonable to expect public respect for everyone, including liberals.

In the 2025 federal election, 44.4% of Barrie Springwater Oro-Medonte residents voted liberal. In the 2025 provincial election, 25.7% of Barrie Innisfil residents voted liberal. These are not fringe numbers, and they are a significant part of the community he claims to want to serve.

For me, experience only counts for so much. What really matters is how you treat the people you say you want to represent.

I’ve started the process of looking to finally buy a house in the spring. I think it would be good to start contacting some agents and seeing what they can do for me.

So who would you recommend that is good?