Brechin, Simcoe

Brechin is one of the largest communities of Ramara township that is located in Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada. It is located on the northeastern shore of Lake Simcoe and is 127 km away from Toronto. The Brechin neighbourhood is Lagoon City and the Prophet Beach locality. If you are looking for a quiet and peaceful place to raise a family, away from the city's hustle-bustle, then Brechin is the place for you. The neighbourhood is supported by several local businesses and tourism and is complete with amenities such as schools, churches and supermarkets. The prominent townships near Brechin are Orillia, Washago, Barrie and Midland.

The neighbourhood of Brechin has a decent livability index of 71/100 which is considered remarkable as compared to many other areas in Ontario. It ranks third among the neighbourhoods in Ramara and is ranked better than 82% of the communities in Ontario, as per the locals. Crime and housing have higher grades of A+ and A- respectively, while the cost of living is affordable, too. However, the lack of amenities might be a problem here, but one can commute to nearby prominent townships for such requirements. The Brechin neighbourhood is safer than 54% of the cities in Ontario, and the crime is rated A+ here. This is 38% lower than the national average, which makes it an appealing residential locality.

The median household income in Brechin is $ 71,192, which is 14% lower than the national average and 18% lower than the average of Ontario. About 6.4% of people earn $20,000 or less. Additionally, 12.8% of people earn between $80,000 and $1,00,000, and about 3.6% of people earn $3,00,000 or more. Most of the employment is in the categories of construction, retail and education. The unemployment rate here is 8.7% and is 36% higher than the national average. The Brechin location houses mostly a middle-class population. The majority of the people in the Brechin neighbourhood speak English, and no one speaks French.

The Brechin neighbourhood offers all basic amenities such as schools, healthcare centres, places of worship, restaurants and retail stores. However, the community lacks the amenities of a metropolitan which can be availed by easily commuting to prominent townships and cities nearby.

Schools

Some schools in the area offer quality education to the children of the residents in the neighbourhood. Moreover, there are many schools across the Ramara townships for primary and higher education. These schools are as follows:

• Brechin Public School
• Foley Catholic School
• Orillia Learning Centre
• Conseil Scolaire Catholique MonAvenir

Restaurants

The Brechin neighbourhood is a throbbing area for businesses and tourism, and hence there are many restaurants and cafes in the area to cater to the residents and visitors of the community. Some of the popular restaurants in the area include the following:

• Wild Wing
• Country Style
• Peggy’s Chip Truck
• Tim Hortons
• Captain Jack’s Chip Truck

Shopping Malls

The shopping centres in and around Brechin cater to the needs of the residents. In case you are looking for large commercial shopping complexes for your shopping needs, you can easily commute to the nearby cities such as Beaverton, Hawkestone and Washago for the same. Some of these shopping centres are listed below:

• SmartCentres Orilllia
• Orillia Square Mall
• West Ridge Place
• Alcona Town Centre
• Cross Roads Plaza

Hospitals

Many healthcare centres across Simcoe County cater to the residents of Brechin. These hospitals are equipped with highly-trained medical professionals and advanced technologies to meet the medical needs of the locals.

• Good Doctors Ramara
• Orillia Soldier’s Memorial Hospital
• Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre
• Waypoint Centre for Healthcare

Located in the vicinity of Lake Simcoe and many other prominent lakes of the Ontario province, Brechin provides abundant tourist attractions and places to visit. The locality is a sought-after destination for weekend getaways for those looking to take a break from the city’s hustle and bustle and provides one with many activities.

Lake Simcoe Brechin Beach

Brechin Beach is located just outside of Brechin and stretches about 45 meters across Lake Simcoe. The lake freezes entirely during the winter and provides ice-skating opportunities. In summer, beach activities like jet skiing, boating and fishing attract many tourists.

Old Stone Church National Historic Site

Old Stone Church, located in Beaverton, near Brechin, is considered a National Treasure and dates back to the 1840s. The church has a splendid stone exterior, and the interior preserves historical artefacts and a Bible from the 17th Century. The Church has remained unchanged since its creation, and the locals have tried to preserve the historic site that way.

Western Trent Golf Club

Western Trent Golf Club is a lush green golf course in Bolsover and proves to be a delightful outing spot for locals and visitors. The Club encourages players and new members to experience and participate in numerous golf tournaments. Western Trent also offers excellent dining services to make golfing a wholesome experience.

McRae Point Provincial Park

McRae Point Provincial Park is a beautiful conservation area on Lake Simcoe. It offers a nature trail alongside Lake Simcoe that has scenic views and several private beaches. It offers camping grounds and many water activities like jet skiing and boating on the beaches.

Brechin is bustling with outdoor activities for the residents to come together and enjoy a close-knit community. Some of the activities that the residents of the neighbourhood can engage in are as follows:

Sports Activities

The Brechin Community Centre Park has sports activities like a baseball field, a climbing wall, a swimming pool and a gym. Baseball is a popular sport in Canada, and many residents enjoy the sport. These facilities are well-equipped to cater to the recreational needs of the locals and visitors. The park area also has multiple benches and picnic tables.

Ice-fishing and Water Sports

Being located close to Lake Simcoe, Brechin provides its residents with many fishing and water sporting activities all year round. Lake Simcoe freezes during winter and opens opportunities for ice-fishing and ice-skating tournaments. In other seasons, activities like fishing, jet skiing, boating and diving are popular among locals and visitors.

Brechin provides easy connectivity to other prominent townships and areas in Ontario. Here are a few of these:

• The township of Orillia is 23.1 km away from Brechin and can be reached in about 21 minutes via car.
• Washago is 27.6 km away from Brechin and can be reached in about 19 minutes by car.
• The closest airport to Brechin is Lake Simcoe Regional Airport which is 42.6 km away and can be reached in 32 minutes via road.
• The closest international airport is the Toronto Pearson Airport which is 145 km away and can be reached in 1 hour 30 minutes by car.

Various markets in Brechin offer daily necessities such as groceries, vegetables, fruits, medicines, etc., to the locals. There are many full-scale groceries and supermarkets in the neighbourhood for the residents to shop from:

Foodland Brechin

Foodland Brechin is a supermarket in the neighbourhood that sells a range of food items and groceries. The food items are good in quality and range from meat, poultry, honey and maple syrup. It is a good way to stock on fresh fruits and vegetables, frozen meats and your week’s supply of groceries.

Costco Orillia

Costco is a wholesale store in Orillia known for its expendable service and quality food products. It has freshly baked items, fresh farm produce and fresh meat. The store is huge and well-lit and provides a friendly atmosphere to shop

Canoe Fresh Food Market

Canoe Fresh Food Market is a small artisan market specialising in high-quality beef steaks, pork, chicken, and fresh farm produce, which is seasonal and locally grown. The store has an in-house bakery and a café serving scrumptious delicacies to the visitors. One can enjoy Muskoka Roastery Coffee and Chocolate Macaroons while shopping for their groceries.

The Brechin neighbourhood is diverse when it comes to its demographic character, with Chinese, Black and Japanese natives residing in the community as well. The neighbourhood is small and sparsely populated, with a total population of only 808 and a population density of 394 per square kilometre. The median age is 53.3 years which means that the majority of the population is over middle-aged. At the same time, 68% are married couples, while 44% have children at home.

There are a variety of amusements for kids in and around the Brechin neighbourhood in the form of parks, community centres, conservation areas and beaches. You can take your kids to play baseball, swim or participate in adventure sports at the Brechin Community Centre Park. Many options for picnics and camping are also available in the conservation areas around Lake Simcoe, such as the McRae Point Provincial Park, which has camping grounds. You can take your kids hiking and biking on the nature trails in these conservation areas and enjoy birdwatching and viewing a variety of plants. Many beaches near Brechin along Lake Simcoe offer water activities all year round, such as ice-fishing, ice-skating, jet-skiing, fishing and boating. You can take your pets to the Brechin Community Campus & Dog Park, which is a leash-free park to play with pets. There are many green parks within the neighbourhood which are pet friendly.

The Brechin neighbourhood offers a decent cost of living of 96/100, which is considered exceptional among the neighbourhoods in Ontario. The cost of living here is 4% lower than the national average and 13.5% lower than the Ontario average. The cost of groceries, goods & services and health care is at par with that of Ontario. However, transportation is slightly on the higher end. The Brechin real estate is 36% lower than the national average.

Three-bedroom properties are the most common configuration in houses available for real estate investors in Brechin. The average price of a housing property in the Brechin neighbourhood is $425,000. On average, a house is listed on the market for 49 days. These are across townhouses, detached homes and condos. The real estate market of Brechin is a thriving one owing to the peaceful and friendly life the community has to offer.