The city of Orillia seems to be experiencing a major building boom if a new development report is any indication.
Entitled Development Status Summary, the recent staff report shows a total of 49 projects on the books, including two new hotels that could eventually set up shop.
“We have got a lot of different projects in the mix,” city planner Jill Lewis said.
Construction is expected to begin this spring on the first hotel; a five-storey, 92-suite building with an indoor pool and meeting rooms planned for Mulcahy Court in the city’s west ridge area.
The second would involve building a new 105-room hotel and conference centre behind the existing Best Western Plus Mariposa Inn & Conference Centre.
Under that plan, the new offering would be run under the Hampton Inn & Suites banner with the current hotel converted to a retirement home with 83 suites.
“It does back onto our municipal waste-diversion site,” Lewis said, adding staff sent the hotel’s planning team notes regarding the proposal, but hasn’t yet heard back.
“We want to make sure there won’t be any smell or noise issues related to the waste-diversion site.”
City tourism manager Michael Ladouceur said more hotel rooms within city limits makes a lot of sense given the number of events now taking place in both Orillia and at nearby venues like Burl’s Creek along with council’s commitment to embrace sports tourism that included the city hosting last year’s Ontario Winter Games as well as next year’s offering.
“We’ll have more capacity to host people in town,” he said, pointing out not all Games’ athletes and officials were able to find a room right in Orillia last year.
“It will be a huge boost for us. Being able to accommodate everyone in the same city will be a plus.”
Added Orillia economic development manager Dan Landry: “Their (the hospitality industry) research has shown them there’s capacity for more rooms.”
Landry said the abundance of proposed projects illustrate that the waves that swept over Barrie a decade or two ago while lapping Orillia’s shores are now washing over the city.
“We’re definitely riding a bit of a boom cycle,” Landry said. “Residential, industrial, commercial (building) is as high as it’s been in decades.”
Landry said the city’s experiencing record building numbers and housing starts while also benefiting from a council that’s committed to keeping up that momentum.
“The natural growth has happened in the greenfield areas of west Orillia,” he said, noting the waterfront and downtown are also benefiting from the flourishing growth.
“There’s a lot of interest in the waterfront. We’re on a good path. What was tire kicking five or six years ago is really kind of materializing.”
Other major projects outlined in the report include the new Lighthouse shelter, a new Orillia OPP detachment, Hydro One Networks Inc. integrated systems operations centre, the recreation centre, a car dealership and a daycare addition at St. Bernard’s Catholic Elementary School as well as several other large-scale residential, commercial and industrial initiatives.
But Lewis noted that while the city has received applications for the 49 projects, they’re all not at the “shovels in the ground” stage.
“Some of these are longer in the tooth,” Lewis said. “We have projects that have been on the books for years, but sometimes they go quiet. But we still keep them active.”
