Editing Barrie (section)

=== Expansion ===
Barrie has been designated an Urban Growth Centre by the province of Ontario. As one of the fastest growing cities in Canada, this designation aims to mitigate urban sprawl and concentrate higher-density development in areas specified by the City of Barrie. Its population growth can be attributed to the emergence of the city as a bedroom community for Toronto. In 1991, Barrie had a population of 62,728 and by 2017, Barrie had an estimated population of 147,000. By 2031, the city's population is expected to exceed 200,000 people.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.barrie.ca/City+Hall/Planning-and-Development/Pages/Growth-Management.aspx|title=Growth Management|website=Barrie.ca|access-date=July 24, 2022}}</ref> To plan for the continued growth of the city, Barrie successfully annexed {{convert|2,293|hectare|km2}} of land from the neighbouring Town of [[Innisfil, Ontario|Innisfil]] to the south and southeast on January 1, 2010.<ref>{{cite web |title=Barrie-Innisfil Boundary Adjustment Act, 2009 |url=http://www.fairgrowth.ca/pdf/Barrie-Innisfil-Adjustment-Act2009.pdf |publisher=the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario |access-date=15 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101122070201/http://www.fairgrowth.ca/pdf/Barrie-Innisfil-Adjustment-Act2009.pdf |archive-date=22 November 2010}}</ref> The annexation comprised lands south beyond McKay Road and west of the 10th Sideroad, and as far south as Lockhart Road on the east side of the 10th Sideroad.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fairgrowth.ca/images/proposedBoundaryChanges.PNG|format=PNG|title=Photographic image|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100214130142/http://www.fairgrowth.ca/images/proposedBoundaryChanges.PNG |access-date=July 24, 2022|archive-date=February 14, 2010 }}</ref> The annexation allows Barrie to meet its future population needs without having to extend into the countryside north, east and west of the city. Intensification and infilling are simultaneously being undertaken in and near the downtown core to foster a more active urban environment within the city.