Base31 breaks ground on first rental building and Habitat housing plan

Story and photos by Sharon Harrison
With shovels in hand, and hard hats on, the ground was officially, and ceremoniously, broken at Base31’s Hilltop Village, off Kingsley Road and County Road 22 in Picton, where the first purpose-built rental apartment building (The Landing) is to be constructed.

The first of several residential villages proposed, it marks the start of Base31’s massive multi-village and multi-decade development of the 750-acre site that is expected to provide 500 homes in its first phase, increasing the local population by as much as 7,500 residents once all villages are fully built out. The first part of this initial phase is expected to bring 230 homes to start.

The event included Rob Flack, minister of municipal affairs and housing, Tyler Allsopp, Bay of Quite MPP, and Steve Ferguson, Prince Edward County mayor, along with representatives from Habitat for Humanity, as well as Base31, among others. Councillors John Hirsch, Phil St-Jean and Sam Grosso were also present.

At the groundbreaking ceremony are: councillors Sam Grosso,  Phil St-Jean and John Hirsch, Hazzem Koudsi (Habitat for Humanity Prince Edward-Hastings), PEC Mayor Steve Ferguson, MPP Tyler Allsopp, Rob Flack, Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister, Silvio De Gasperis (DECO/PEC Community Partners Inc.), Alex De Gasperis (DECO/PEC Community Partners Inc.), Jack Winberg (Rockport Group/PEC Community Partners Inc.), Tammy Sweeney (B31 District), Rob Blommestyn (CaraCo/PEC Community Partners Inc.), Carolyn Blommestyn (CaraCo/PEC Community Partners Inc.), Gennaro Di Santo (CaraCo/PEC Community Partners Inc.), Anita Blommestyn (CaraCo/PEC Community Partners Inc.)

Ferguson said he was honoured to participate in the ground-breaking for the first homes at Base31.

“This is a significant moment in the evolution of this historic site. Since opening to the public in 2022, Base31 has been a place where people come together to celebrate music, arts, culture and community,“ Ferguson expressed. “Today, Base31 is taking the next step in becoming a place where people can put down roots.”

Tammy Sweeney

Emceeing the event was Tammy Sweeney, the new general manager of Base31, who spoke to celebrating the beginning of a new chapter and for the ‘Base Living’ community. She called it an “important moment” and said the housing development is the next connecting piece.

“We are mindful that building a strong and inclusive community also means understanding and respecting the history of this place and our responsibilities to one another,” said Sweeney.

Minister Flack said, “This is how a good minister’s zoning order works”.

“This is how it works when the municipality believes in something, when proponents and builders and developers believe in something,” said Flack. “I always say, it takes too long and it costs too much to get homes built, and hopefully, we will have fixed it a bit that it doesn’t take as long any more and it doesn’t cost too much, as it’s about affordability.”

Rob Flack, Minister of Municipal Affairs

Flack also said how there should be more projects working with Habitat. “I love the model and I love what they do.”

“Governments don’t build houses, we are pretty lousy at business, but builders do and our job in government, whether it’s municipal, provincial or federal levels of government, are to create the conditions for builders to do what they do best,” he said. “So, get out of the way, put the right processes in place, but create those conditions, and that’s what we have been trying to do.”

Alex De Gasperis, vice-president of DECO Communities spoke on behalf of the PEC Community Partners.

“More than 80 years ago, this land became RCAF Station Picton home to No. 31 Bombing and Gunnery School. Young people came here across the commonwealth to train during the Second World War,” he said. ”It’s where our name comes from, and it’s a legacy we carry in everything we build: the hangers, the runways, the playgrounds, we didn’t want to erase history, we wanted to build on it.”

Alex De Gasperis, vice-president of DECO

She said that is what this masterplan does.

“Across 750-acres, Base31 will grow into a series of connected villages with homes for every stage of life, streets designed for people, parks and trails, and a district for food, culture and gathering.”

“Today, we break ground on the first of those villages, Hilltop. Homes to own as well as a purpose-built rental building of 120 apartment units, 10 per cent of them affordable.”

She spoke to the new partnership and how Hilltop will include homes built in partnership with Habitat for Humanity.

“From the very first shovel, affordable home ownership is the part of the foundation of Base31, not an afterthought,” she said.

Base31 partners recently announced a partnership with Habitat for Humanity Prince Edward-Hastings, with plans to advance affordable homeownership in the County with the launch of affordable homeownership townhouses planned for Hilltop Village.

As part of the partnership, Base31 will make a designated block of townhouse lots available to Habitat PEH in Hilltop Village, with Base31 leading exterior construction and Habitat completing the interiors and supporting qualifying homeowners through its affordable homeownership program.

Hazzem Koudsi, CEO of Habitat for Humanity Prince Edward-Hastings,

CEO of Habitat for Humanity Prince Edward-Hastings, Hazzem Koudsi, said the ground-breaking is what will become a “magical moment in our community’s history” where he spoke to the home ownership program and the collaboration.

“It genuinely speaks to our joint desire to provide affordable homes for hard-working local families,” said Koudsi. “Most people think we give away these homes, and that’s not the case. Families buy those homes, they hold title, they carry a mortgage and they put hundreds of volunteer hours in before taking possession of that home.”

He also explained that Habitat stays involved after that home has been allocated. He said the Hilltop community is for households with a steady income who would be good homeowners, and who would otherwise be priced out of the market between the gap of local wages and high housing prices.

“Together, Habitat PEH and Base31 are addressing the market gap, known as the “missing middle”, by providing these affordable homes in our community.”

He said this will help prevent the exodus of young families from the community to larger urban centres where they can earn income sufficient to cover the price of homes.

“The ground-breaking today starts the pathway to affordable home ownership for our young families and keeps them here in our community that they love. In essence, it provides that safety and stability for their family for years to come,” added Koudsi, noting the ”incredible journey to making housing dreams become reality”.

MPP Allsopp shared a few words about hope.

“Announcements like the one we are making today, and in these ground-breakings, its not just about housing, it’s about something that might even be more important than that. It is about hope,” shared Allsopp.

“It is about hope for that young couple who wants to get married and start a family, but first they want to buy a home and put down roots. It’s about hope for those hard-working people in our community who are struggling to get by, having trouble finding apartments and houses they can afford, and its about hope for the seniors.”

Ferguson said the start of Hilltop village represents new opportunities for residents, families, workers and seniors who want to live, work and thrive in Prince Edward County. He said, it was a “truly exciting partnership for Habitat and Base31”.

“It’s incumbent on a municipality to ensure that the infrastructure is in place to support this development,” outlined Ferguson. “We are working hard to renew and expand core infrastructure, such as roads, water and wastewater systems and these efforts have attracted support from upper levels of government, including the government of Ontario.”

“Today, we celebrate the beginning of new neighbours, new opportunities and a shared commitment to building a stronger future for Prince Edward County.”

Base31’s Hilltop housing to begin construction this year, first with apartments