Hotel, tourism officials want convention centre built in Barrie

Calls for convention centre in Barrie Some in the tourism industry are calling for a convention centre to be built in Barrie. CTV Barrie's Mike Arsalides reports.

During Barrie's busy summer tourism months, finding a hotel room during events like Kempenfest is sometimes next to impossible.

The lack of hotel space is forcing guests to find accommodations in other cities and towns.

“We try to work with hotels as far down as Vaughan and as far up as Bracebridge and Muskoka,” says Tone Svenningson, general manager of the Four Points Sheraton.

From hockey tournaments in the fall and winter, to national mountain bike championships in the summer, Barrie's 12 hotels welcomed nearly half a million people last year.

It’s estimated they brought in almost $70 million to the local economy.

“That's what tourism is about. It's about bringing new money into the economy. Money that otherwise wouldn’t be here,” says Kathleen Trainor, executive director of Tourism Barrie.

The tourism office says as the city continues to grow it will need more hotels and meeting places to keep up with demand in peak seasons.

Hotel owners say while occupancy averages out to a little more than two-thirds. They say the city really needs a convention centre to bring more business year round.

“We're losing a lot of this market to cities like Markham, Horseshoe, Nottawasaga,” says Mick Ahluwalia, owner of the Super 8.

Everyone from city hall to local business owners agree a convention centre is desperately needed in the city, but who’s going to pay for it and where will it be built?