I've been in this area on foot a few times and here's my wish list for this area:
1) preserve the heritage and see if the retail can fit inside for a fine grain, old timey feel at street level
2) tower should be purpose built rental, Barrie has a significant shortfall of rental units
3) improve Sam Cancilla Park across the street: more trees, formalized desire paths, rethink the old swings and booth - no one uses them apart from a few of the local hard done by set
4) provide supportive housing for the ragged individuals in the aforementioned park
5) widen sidewalks and narrow car lanes on Dunlop, potentially by way of eliminating the street parking - there's plenty more just around the corner
Obviously, not all of these can be funded by this one development. But these improvements should be on the list as this area redevelops. Another important consideration is ensuring future developments don't get flooded given the proximity to the water.