Allandale Waterfront GO Station, formerly known as Allandale Station, is a historic and now unused train station

Train station

A train station, also called a railroad station or railway station and often shortened to just station,"Station" is commonly understood to mean "train station" unless otherwise qualified. This is evident from dictionary entries e.g...

 that occupies a large property on the southern shore of Lake Simcoe

Lake Simcoe

Lake Simcoe is a lake in Southern Ontario, Canada, the fourth-largest lake wholly in the province, after Lake Nipigon, Lac Seul, and Lake Nipissing. At the time of the first European contact in the 17th century the lake was called Ouentironk by the Huron natives...

 in the waterfront area of Barrie

Barrie

Barrie may refer to:* Barrie, city in Ontario, Canada* Barrie , Canadian federal electoral district* Barrie , provincial electoral district* Barrie—Simcoe—Bradford, former Canadian electoral district...

, Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

.

In 2009, work began to renovate the facility, and on June 15, 2011 GO Transit announced the station will be in use in the fall.

Early years

The Ontario, Simcoe and Huron Union Railroad (OS&HURR) first built a station here in 1853. The current structure, the fourth station building on the site, was built in 1904 by Richard Scruton, and opened by then-operator Grand Trunk Railway

Grand Trunk Railway

The Grand Trunk Railway was a railway system which operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario, as well as the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The railway was operated from headquarters in Montreal, Quebec; however, corporate...

 on June 19, 1905. The station provided passenger service for the Grand Trunk and later the Canadian National Railway

Canadian National Railway

The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....

 and Via Rail

VIA Rail

Via Rail Canada is an independent crown corporation offering intercity passenger rail services in Canada. It is headquartered near Montreal Central Station at 3 Place Ville-Marie in Montreal, Quebec....

 until closing in 1980. It briefly reopened as a GO passenger facility from 1990 to 1993. In 1996 the CNR lifted rails between Allandale and Longford.

ACDC

The Allandale Community Development Corporation or 'ACDC' (with City interests) purchased the buildings and adjacent 7 acres (28,328 m²) from CNR after train service discontinued in the 1980s. ACDC then sold the station to CHUM Ltd in 2000.

CHUM ownership

CHUM Ltd. purchased the 6.9 acres (27,923.3 m²) of land, including the station buildings for $1,050,000 in 2000. CHUM planned to restore the Allandale Station building as part of their plan to develop of a new broadcast centre on the site, though changed their plan in 2004. In 2007 CHUM agreed to sell the property to the City for the same amount CHUM originally paid. CHUM received a Charitable Donation Tax Receipt reflecting the increased value of the property since 2000 largely due to the restoration and site works completed by CHUM.

Redevelopment

The area of the historic Allandale Station is currently undergoing three stages of redevelopment: (i) the City of Barrie is undertaking the restoration of the historic Allandale Station, (ii) GO Transit is constructing a new station directly next to the historic Allandale station, and (iii) the City of Barrie is undertaking the restoration of Gowan Street, which borders the southern edge of the station lands. The area is expected to become a new transportation and cultural hub of the city once all construction is complete.

Regarding the restoration of the historic station, the exterior works are almost complete as of September 2011. Regarding the new GO Station, it broke ground in spring 2010 and as of September 2011, construction is well underway including the installation of a tunnel that will be part of the new station stop. Following the completion of this work, GO will begin work on a platform, shelter, parking, lighting and an internal roadway, as well as enclosures for communications and mechanical equipment. The total budget is $10.7 million . Regarding the Gowan Street reconstruction, as of September 2011 the servicing upgrades have been completed and the base asphalt has been laid, following these works, street lights will be installed, parking spaces identified and the final landscaping requirements will be completed.