Feasibility Study for a New Tecumseth Skilled-Trades Centre
Asked by Melissa Marshall · 2 months ago
The 2026 Approved Budget directs Growth and Innovation to undertake a feasibility study for a post-secondary skilled-trades centre in New Tecumseth. It appears as a single line, with no supporting rationale, cost estimate or business case. (Page 79)
Relevant context:
Ontario colleges have cut approximately 600 programs amid $1.8B in losses since the 2024 international student visa cap.
New Tecumseth is within Georgian College’s catchment area. Georgian closed its Orillia and Muskoka campuses in August 2026, consolidating programming in Barrie, and has reduced its full-time workforce by approximately 22% with projected losses of 45M and 15-25M next fiscal.
Honda’s $15B Alliston EV expansion is permanently suspended, removing a major source of projected local skilled-trades demand.
Meanwhile, The Province’s Regional Technology Development Site for Simcoe County, Barrie and Orillia is already funded and includes Georgian College, Lakehead University and Honda. New Tecumseth is not currently part of that initiative.
For each candidate:
Do you support proceeding with this feasibility study? Why or why not?
Why pursue a separate facility rather than seek a role in the regional initiative already underway? As home to the region’s anchor automotive employer, should New Tecumseth be pursuing a seat in the existing RTDS network instead, and would you support that approach?
James Dougall's answer
I support the skilled trades and I think our young people would benefit from a local place to train for local jobs, instead of travelling to Barrie or Hamilton. I support the study because that's what it's for — to show the demand, the costs, and whether we should build something here or join the regional program that's already running with Georgian, Lakehead, and Honda. I'd look at both. But I won't commit tax dollars to a town-built facility no matter the cost. The study has to prove the need first.
