Accumulated news pieces from councils, MAHC, OPP, and more.

Select Muskoka Newsbites from various sources including our own reporting, media releases, and a few notes contributed by our friends at The Bay 88.7 FM.

A Resource to find healthcare

The #WheretoGetCareMuskoka webpage is a regularly updated resource to find healthcare services that features information about when you should go to the Emergency Department and when a visit to your primary care provider is more appropriate.

With Emergency Department visits doubling in the summer months at Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare, wait times can be long. Visit www.mahc.ca/wheretogetcareMuskoka/ to educate yourself about community-based alternatives to the Emergency Department. Information is provided for people who have a local doctor and outlines primary care options for those who do not. Resources are also provided about prescription renewal, mental health and addictions.

Being informed about options for non-emergency care in Muskoka and knowing when it’s appropriate to go to the Emergency Department and when to access primary care or other community-based supports is one way the community can support their local hospital.

Kent Park added to places allowed to host alcoholic beverage events

At its July 24th meeting, the Huntsville General Committee approved adding Kent Park to its alcohol policy list of approved event locations. The change follows a request from the BIA to host an alcohol-inclusive event at the park, which was previously not on the approved list.

Kent Park will now be added, along with any other location deemed suitable by the Director of Community Services and the Special Event Advisory Team.

Huntsville will host Ribbon Cutting for new washrooms

The Town of Huntsville will be holding an official ribbon cutting for the donated public washrooms at River Mill Park.

The washrooms, at a cost of $300,000 which was donated by the Connor family, took 2 summers to install at a cost of over $170,000.

The ribbon cutting will take place on August 10 at 12:30 p.m.

Big Move on Housing in the District

The District of Muskoka continues to move forward with plans to address affordable housing on a variety of fronts.

The most recent update this summer has the District endorsing ambitious plan called the “Big Move on Housing.” This plan will see investments of between $29 million and $36 million over the next five years to assist in accelerating attainable housing initiatives.

Three areas of focus in the Big Move on Housing plan starts with tackling the deepest need of chronic homelessness and housing waitlists; expanding the supply of affordable rental units; as well as capacity building, which includes growing the workforce, technology, and production capacity for building housing in Muskoka.

The capacity building portion includes collaborating with stakeholders and presenting opportunities to support future housing investments and partnership opportunities.

Earlier in 2024, improvements to the Muskoka Affordable Housing Initiatives Program (MAHIP) Capital Incentive Program were recommended by the District’s housing task force that were supported and became effective in the spring.

MAHIP is aimed at boosting the development of rental housing in Muskoka. This program offers funding for additional residential units and multi-residential rental units.

The task force recommendations included changes to the application window, application evaluation, forgiveness period, and updates to uphold program integrity.

Since the changes were enacted, the District has receive a significant number of applications, and the program has almost reached capacity which will result in a increase in affordable housing units in the near future.

To say abreast of what’s happening on the affordable housing front in Muskoka, as well as any initiatives and partnership opportunities, visit: Housing – The District Municipality of Muskoka

Three New Wastes Sites for South Muskoka

New waste drop-off facilities in Gravenhurst, Bracebridge, and Muskoka Lakes are being planned as complementary sites to the Bin Site Transition project currently underway.

The Bin Transition Project is aiming to remove 88 of the District of Muskoka’s unattended lakeside garbage bins by November 2026 and replace them with select waste drop-off sites that will be staffed.

Discussion about the three new facilities was held during a recent District Public Works and Engineering Committee meeting.

1990 Housey’s Rapids Road will be the first new site to open. It is expected to begin operation this fall and will be accepting District-wide residential waste, recycling, and organics, but it will not accept any commercial waste. This facility is set to service the communities of Riley Lake, East Kahshe Lake and Gravenhurst.

The second facility set to open, likely in mid-2025, is the Lake Muskoka Depot on Beaumont Drive in Bracebridge. It will also be only accepting residential waste, recycling, and organics. No commercial waste will be accepted. This facility will service Lake Muskoka East (water-access residents), Strawberry Bay and Beaumont Farm Road.

Around mid-year in 2026, the third facility, the Southwood Depot in the Township of Muskoka Lakes will open. At the moment, this facility will only take in residential waste and organics, however it may add blue box materials closer to its opening date. Much like the other two, no commercial materials will be accepted. The Southwood Depot will provide service to Nine Mile Lake and Bastedo Lake.

Muskoka Lumber Centre opening in August

The long-awaited completion and opening of the new Muskoka Lumber Community Centre in Bracebridge is taking place in August.

The Town’s newest recreational facility opened operationally on August 6 to existing rentals only, though at the time the contractor still had some on-site construction to complete and the facility would not be open to the public at the time.

However, the public opening of the centre is set for August 23 and the Town invited the community to celebrate the event with a series of “try-it” activities, free programming, facility tours and more.

An official grand opening with a ribbon cutting with officially be held in the future with a date and time still to be announced.

Those interested in staying informed on happenings can visit the Muskoka Lumber Community Centre project page at engagebracebridge.ca /MLCC.

OPP has busy long weekend

The OPP ran a province-wide traffic safety campaign from Friday to Monday, targeting aggressive, distracted, and impaired drivers, as well as those not wearing seatbelts. They also enforced Ontario’s Move Over Law.

During the campaign, officers issued 8,050 charges, including 4,040 for speeding, 235 for impaired driving, 125 for racing or stunt driving, and 69 for distracted driving. The OPP urges all drivers and passengers to be safe and responsible to help reduce road and trail fatalities.

Lake of Bays Terminates CAO

The Township of Lake of Bays Council held a special meeting this week and decided to terminate CAO Bryan Brown’s employment, effective immediately.

Mayor Terry Glover expressed that the decision was challenging but necessary for the community’s best interest. Glover thanked Brown for his service and wished him well. The council will now start the search for a new CAO.

Ward and Council Review in Gravenhurst

The Town of Gravenhurst is doing a review of both its ward boundaries and council composition.

Depending on what the review reveals, changes may or may not be forthcoming to the existing situation, which is a five-ward system with one councillor being elected to serve the residents of each ward. The mayor and three District council representatives are elected at-large by voters in all wards.

The Town has hired consultants Watson & Associates Economists Ltd. to collect pertinent residential and electorate information, host public meetings (two were done in July), and compile a full report to present to council with recommendations on what changes (if any) would be best for the future.

Potential changes include adjustments to existing ward boundaries, the creation of new wards, or the establishment of fewer wards. Another option would be to dissolve all wards and move to an at-large system.

The last time a review of this nature took place was in 2009 with the purpose being to ensure residents have equitable access to their elected representatives.

An interim report is expected to be presented to Gravenhurst council by the end of the summer, with an early review of ward boundary options as well as feedback collected through consultation.

After which, residents will have another to provide further or new feedback before a final report is created and presented to council in the fall.

Those interested in providing feedback, can visit: https://www.engagegravenhurst.ca/ward-boundary-review