In a follow-up to a previous story, on May 12, a vehicle struck a pedestrian, a 29-year-old woman, at Fallowfield Road and Via Park Place (OC Transpo Park and Ride). The victim was then transported to the hospital, where she tragically succumbed to her injuries on May 19. The OPS is continuing to investigate the incident and is urging anyone who witnessed the collision, or may have dashcam footage of this incident, to to contact authorities.

In March 2026, members of West Neighbourhood Resource Team (NRT) launched an investigation after receiving a community complaint regarding the alleged sale of illegal cigarettes and other tobacco products. On May 21, 2026, officers executed a warrant without incident on Woodfield Drive, where two Ottawa residents, a man in his 40s and a woman in her 30s, were each charged with selling tobacco products and raw leaf tobacco, as well as possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000. As a result of the search warrant, the OPS also seized 346 cartons of illegal cigarettes, a quantity of shisha tobacco, and more than $17,000 in Canadian currency believed to be the proceeds of crime. While the investigation is ongoing, the OPS encourages anyone with information to contact authorities.

At 6:32 p.m. ET on May 25, the OPS responded to a report of a small plane crash at the Carp Airport, which is located at 1500 Thomas Argue Rd. Fortunately, neither of the two occupants of the airplane reported any injuries. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada was notified of the crash and will be taking responsibility for the investigation, with the airport being temporarily shut down as a result of the incident.

On May 26, The OPS Break and Enter Unit charged a 29-year-old Ottawa man in connection with a series of alleged property crimes that occurred across the city between March and May 2026. The investigation involved numerous incidents of shoplifting, break-and-enters, fraud, and probation-related offences. Investigators allege the accused was involved in repeated thefts targeting retail stores throughout Ottawa. Several incidents also involved alleged break-and-enters into residential and commercial parking garages, where property and bank cards were stolen. The accused is facing nearly 120 criminal charges, including multiple counts of theft under $5,000, breaking and entering, the fraudulent use of a credit card, mischief under $5,000, possession of break-in instruments, resisting arrest and numerous counts of breach of probation order. In total, the arrest helped resolve 40 investigations across the city. Although many of the individual incidents involved alleged thefts under $5,000, investigators believe the cumulative financial impact associated with the offences exceeded $100,000 when accounting for stolen property, related damages, and additional costs incurred by victims and property owners.

The post The Ottawa Police Blotter – May 26, 2026 appeared first on CompassNews.

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Don’t miss one of the last chances to see the Snowbirds in their Tutor jets at the Barrie Airshow

The Barrie Airshow, presented by Pratt Homes, returns to Kempenfelt Bay on June 13 and 14, offering one of the final opportunities to see the iconic Snowbirds in their Tutor jets!  With plans announced to pause Snowbirds performances after the 2026 flying season, this summer’s Barrie Airshow offers a rare opportunity to experience one of Canada’s most iconic aerial teams before they step away for several years. New for 2026, Barrie’s first ever twilight airshow on Saturday evening with a fireworks finale. A free screening of Top Gun: Maverick at Meridian Place will kick off the weekend on Friday night, June 12.

For updates, follow @barrieairshow on social media or visit barrie.ca/Airshow for more information.

Stay active with summer recreation programs

Registration for the City of Barrie’s summer recreation and culture programs opens for residents on June 2 at 8 a.m., followed by non-residents on June 9 at 8 a.m. Customers can currently browse offerings at play.barrie.ca and save them to their “Wish List” to conveniently find desired programs when registration opens. Residents can register online or in person at Allandale Recreation Centre, East Bayfield Community Centre, or Peggy Hill Team Community Centre.

Visit play.barrie.ca for details.

Celebrate summer with a free Kim Mitchell concert July 11

Multi-platinum, JUNO Award-winning Canadian rock icon Kim Mitchell will perform a free concert at Meridian Place on July 11. Residents and visitors are encouraged to make a full day of it downtown, starting with the Downtown Barrie Butter Tart Festival and ending with a free evening concert starting at 7:30 p.m. at Meridian Place.

For more information, visit barrie.ca/events.

Interested in Running for Office? Don’t Miss the Final Info Session on May 28

Nominations for the 2026 Municipal Election are now open. The City is hosting a final information session on May 28, 6 – 8 p.m. for anyone considering running for mayor, councillor, or school board trustee, or registering as a third-party advertiser. The session will be held in Council Chambers at City Hall (70 Collier Street), with the option to attend in person or via Zoom.

To learn more and for full details visit barrie.ca/election.

Licence 2 Ride for Barrie Youth: Your Summer Pass to Free Transit and Recreation 

Applications are open for the City’s Licence 2 Ride (L2R) program, which is available for Barrie youth aged 12 to 17. The program includes free unlimited summer rides on Barrie Transit and free, select drop-in access at Peggy Hill Team Community Centre, Allandale Recreation Centre, and East Bayfield Community Centre.

Find out more and apply at barrie.ca/Licence2Ride.

Brightening Barriers returns with new art installations in downtown Barrie

For the sixth year, the City’s Brightening Barriers temporary public art exhibition is back, bringing original works of art to patios in Barrie’s downtown. With patio fencing serving as a canvas, Brightening Barriers offers an opportunity to turn “barriers” into a collective artistic experience.  Residents and visitors are invited to explore downtown Barrie and support local businesses while appreciating the variety of artwork displayed. Artworks will be on display until October 2, 2026.

For more information and details on this year’s displays, visit barrie.ca/PublicArt.

Do you have your waterfront digital parking permit?

Resident waterfront digital parking permits have been extended to December 31, 2028. A waterfront parking permit, free for Barrie residents, allows you to park for free at select waterfront locations. Each digital permit is tied to a specific licence plate, so you do not need to bring anything with you or display anything when parking in select areas along Barrie’s beautiful waterfront.

Don’t have a permit yet? Visit barrie.ca/Waterfront Parking.

Reminder: Property tax bill due dates

Final 2026 tax bill installment due dates are June 30 and September 29, 2026. Final tax bills are issued each May. All payments must be received by the City on or before the due date to avoid late payment fees of 1.25% per month. Simplify your payments—join the Pre-Authorized Payment Plan and never worry about missing a due date!

Visit barrie.ca/PropertyTaxes for more information.

Attention local businesses: Complete this year’s Business & Employer Data Survey

City of Barrie staff are now conducting the annual Business & Employer Data Survey through door-to-door visits in Barrie’s commercial and industrial areas. The survey helps update the City’s online business directory and informs economic development and planning efforts. Businesses can also complete the survey online at buildingbarrie.ca/BusinessDataSurvey by September 30, 2026.

For more information and to view the 2025 summary report, visit investbarrie.ca/BEDS.

Planning for a Home Renovation or Backyard Project?

Come out to the Building Services Open House on June 4 at Peggy Hill Team Community Centre. It’s free and requires no registration. This is your opportunity to learn about building permits and building inspections from City staff and pick up building project resources related to home renovation projects.

Learn more about building in Barrie at barrie.ca/building.

MyRide: Real-time detour info during construction season

With MyRideBarrie.ca, you can look up real-time bus times, trip planning tools, route maps, and see transit notices/news. MyRide helps you plan your trip for an easier transit experience! During Barrie’s road construction season, it’s easy to see detours on the live map – a quick way to check if there are travel interruptions on your route.

Learn more at MyRideBarrie.ca.

Save time with the City’s Recycling Depot!

The Recycling Depot is located at the lower gate area of the City’s landfill site (272 Ferndale Drive North). This facility helps reduce wait times and makes dropping off select materials more efficient. 

Drop off these items at the depot for free: 

• NEW: Yard waste, residential only (maximum 4 bags)
• Tires on or off the rim
• Organics (items that go in the organics cart)
• Blue and grey box recycling
• Scrap metal
• Textiles
• Electronics – anything with a cord or a battery
• Broken recycling or organics bins
• Light bulbs
• Batteries 
• Saturdays only: household hazardous waste (like paint or chemicals)  

The depot is open seasonally Tuesday to Saturday, from 8:30 a.m.– 3:30 p.m.

Learn more about the Recycling Depot at barrie.ca/Landfill.

Presented by The City of Barrie

The post This Week in Barrie: Week of May 25 appeared first on CompassNews.

According to Senior Policy Advisor Shraddha Badaravada, drone technology is moving faster than the rules, with many questions surrounding citizens’ data at top of mind.

“A drone operation today is a human-operated tool with accountable people behind every flight. It is not an autonomous robot making independent decisions,” clarified Badaravada. “However, greater autonomy is now on the technical horizon.” 

Currently, drones, or remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS), are used under specific circumstances in police work, such as missing person searches and search and rescue, collision reconstruction and crime-scene mapping, and situational awareness at major incidents. 

But Badaravada noted a qualitative shift in this regard, where the use of drones is expanding into the role of a first responder. The idea behind this would be for drones to arrive at a location ahead of officers. Pilots for such usage are not fully operational yet, but have been announced in Peel and Durham regions in Ontario and in Red Deer, Alberta. 

As for how drone technology and the law interact, Badaravada said developments are highly dynamic. 

“The rulebook is actually changing, the pace of this change has been extremely unusual and it’s rapid in motion,” said Badaravada, pointing to 15 legislative and regulatory developments that have emerged at federal, provincial, regulatory, and international levels over the last year and a half. 

In fact, on Wednesday, the Ontario government announced an immediate ban on Chinese-made drones in highly sensitive Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) operations, as well as a prohibition on Chinese procurement. 

How this announcement might impact Ottawa police operations was unknown to Paul Burnett, Deputy Chief of Police.

“I know that we use DJI as equipment,” said Burnett, when asked about the source of the Ottawa Police Service’s drone technology. “I haven’t looked into how that announcement would impact us personally.” 

DJI is a Chinese technology company that manufactures commercial drones. The OPP also uses DJI for its drone equipment. 

Following further questions on data storage, the Board took the briefing for information.

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Rain Ready Ottawa is a program aimed at protecting waterways by awarding rebates to residents who undertake actions on their property that reduce the harmful impacts of stormwater runoff.

City staff explained the reason for expanding the program.

“[The existing rebate program] is one of our most effective tools,” they said. “Council directed staff to explore a low-rise MURB rebate when the RRO was approved in 2024.” 

The proposed program expansion would apply only to low-rise MURBs (buildings under three storeys), including cooperative housing, condominiums, rental housing, and affordable housing. Rebates for MURBs could amount to as much as $30,000. 

Although the new rebate stream will be funded out of the existing program budget of $500,000, with $100,000 specifically allocated to low-rise MURBs, city staff clarified that availability of the existing stream for private residents is not expected to be impacted. 

Councillor Theresa Kavanagh (Bay) expressed her support for the expansion, but wondered about how this might impact the existing program’s capacity. 

“I think we have to grow it. I worry that we have a backlog, and we as a council have to look at the budget,” she said. “Because this program should be expanded. It’s been a huge success.” 

City staff clarified that there is no backlog currently. “We don’t have a backlog when it comes to rebate application itself… The intent of this is to help us further maximize the budget that we have right now.” 

The committee approved the motion, which will be taken to the next city council meeting on May 27.

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The pro women’s hockey team put forward a valiant effort to extend the PWHL championship series on home ice on Wednesday, but fell short to the Montreal Victorie, who clinched the Walter Cup title with a 4-0 win.

The Victorie were in the driver’s seat from the start of the best-of-five series, running out to an early 2-0 advantage, thanks to two consecutive overtime victories.

When the series moved to Ottawa, the Charge were able to cool off the Victorie, taking Game 3 by a 2-1 margin.

But it was only a temporary reprieve as the Victorie put on a defence masterclass to shut out the Charge in Game 4.

It’s the second straight season the Charge have lost in the finals series.

But there’s a silver lining for the team — the Charge broke the PWHL playoff attendance record by drawing nearly 17,000 fans for Game 3 at the Canadian Tire Centre.

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The team is playing in the recently renamed Canadian Baseball League, which is now a fully professional circuit.

And that was on full display in the Baycats’ season opener against the Toronto Maple Leafs, who fielded disgraced former MLB All-Star Yasiel Puig.

Puig, who is preparing for sentencing in the U.S. in a high-profile sports gambling case, was held hitless by the Baycats, who walked away with a dominant 6-1 win.

But the Baycats would stumble in Game 2 on the road against London, falling 4-2.

Next up is a home game tonight against Welland.

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A new sign now stands along Barrie’s waterfront, marking the future home of the city’s planned performing arts and convention centre.

Mayor Alex Nuttall joined several city councillors, Barrie–Springwater–Oro-Medonte MP Doug Shipley, Barrie–Springwater–Oro-Medonte MPP Doug Downey and other dignitaries at 11 Simcoe St. to unveil the sign at the proposed waterfront site.

The project is planned for the current Sea Cadets property beside the Spirit Catcher sculpture and waterfront parking lot. The Sea Cadets are expected to relocate to a new facility next to the General John Hayter Southshore Community Centre, with construction scheduled to begin this summer.

Plans for the approximately 60,000-square-foot facility include a 600-seat main performance hall, a 200-seat rehearsal studio space, backstage areas, a coffee shop, a new restaurant and event facilities. The Spirit Catcher would also be relocated closer to Simcoe Street as part of the redevelopment.

City staff estimate the project will cost upwards of $85 million, although the final price tag will depend on the completed design and any additional space added to the facility.

Nuttall said the project represents a key investment in Barrie’s future.

“This project represents a major investment in the future of our city and reflects council’s commitment to supporting economic growth, tourism, culture and community development,” he said.

“The performing arts and convention centre will become a central destination for arts, entertainment, conventions, community events and cultural programming in the City of Barrie – it’s going to transform our waterfront.”

Downtown Coun. Craig Nixon said the project could help attract investment and visitors to the city’s core.

“Investments like this help encourage further private investment, support tourism, and create opportunities for community events, cultural programming and economic growth,” he said.

“This is about building a downtown that is active, welcoming and positioned for long-term success.”

A waterfront performing arts facility has been discussed in Barrie for decades through various proposals. Downey said the current council deserves credit for advancing the project.

“I do appreciate the collaboration because this council has a way of presenting a purpose, finding a path and actually doing it,” he said.

“For decades, we’ve heard about this project and it was never done.”

The Simcoe Street location was first proposed in 2024. Construction is expected to begin in early 2027, with completion targeted for late 2029.

City staff and council continue to pursue provincial and federal funding to help offset construction costs.

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The Liaison Strategies survey — commissioned by the Ottawa Compass and iPolitics — found that 64 per cent of respondents disapproved of OC Transpo service, including the O-Train.

Reliability and delays were flagged as the biggest concern (54 per cent), with safety, wait times and poor connectivity far behind at 11 per cent each.

Around 1,000 Ottawa residents were randomly surveyed for the poll between May 8 to 10 using random digit dialling across landline and cellphone networks. It carries a margin of error of plus or minus 3.09 percentage points.

The public transit service has been routinely criticized for delays and cancelled trips, as well as its handling of the problem-plagued O-Train Line 1, which is currently running only single-train cars due to issues with the vehicles.

Eighty-one per cent of respondents disapproved of OC Transpo’s handling of service reliability, while the service receives better grades for security, with only 47 per cent disapproving (compared to 32 that approve, and 21 that don’t know).

Approval ratings are also underwater for frequency of service and waiting times (60 per cent disapproval), while residents said Ottawa should prioritize improving existing services instead of expanding the system (60 to 20 per cent).

Meanwhile, 47 per cent said they would be more likely to regularly use OC Transpo if it became more reliable.

Transit will likely become a major issue in the run-up to this fall’s municipal elections.

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