Glorious September skies and a host of dignitaries — from Housing and Municipal Affairs Minister Rob Flack to MPP Tyler Allsopp to Mayor Steve Ferguson — were on hand to witness the first shovels of earth turned on the most innovative and ambitious heritage restoration and housing project the County has ever seen.

Alexandra De Gasperis spoke on behalf of the six PEC Community Partners: Deco, Rockport, CaraCo, Paradise Developments, Fieldgate Homes, and PEC Placemaking.

“Six companies with one belief — that this place deserved something extraordinary.

“Let me start with where we’re standing. More than 80 years ago, this land became the RCAF Station Picton, home to the No. 31 Bombing and Gunnery School. Young people came here from across the Commonwealth to train during the Second World War. It’s where our name comes from, and it’s a legacy we carry in everything we build.

“The hangars, the runways, the parade grounds: we didn’t want to erase that story. We wanted to build on it.

“That is what our master plan 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.

“It is built the way the best small towns were built, where you can walk to see a neighbour, a show, or a Saturday market.

“Today we break ground on the first of those villages, Hilltop. Homes to own, as well as a purpose-built rental building of 120 apartments, ten percent of them affordable — side by side, from the very first phase.”

Ms. De Gasperis, whose father Silvio was in attendance, thanked the municipality for its “leadership and stewardship.”

“None of this happens without a municipality willing to think differently. Prince Edward County saw an opportunity and had the courage to support a plan that doesn’t fit the usual template.

“When a community is willing to take that kind of leap, you get more than housing, you get year-round life. You get room for young families, for the people who work here, for seniors who want to stay close to home. You get a place that will still be growing, and still be special, generations from now.”

The first phase includes 230 homes in Hilltop and the rental apartments at The Landing.

Rockport CEO Jack Winberg told the Gazette about 2700 people have indicated interest in initial sales. A giant map of the new neighbourhood, and details of the housing types available, are now on display at the new Discovery Centre at the Commissary.

Ms. De Gasperis closed with the Base’s new partnership to build four townhouses with Prince Edward Hastings Habitat for Humanity’s Hazzem Koudsi.

“Affordable homeownership is part of the foundation at Base31, not an afterthought,” she said.  

 “It was not hard to say yes when Alexandra called,” Mr. Koudsi recounted. “We share a desire to build affordable homes for hard working families and address the growing gap between local wages and high home prices.

“These homes will both stop the exodus of young families from our community and ensure safety and stability for years to come,” he said.

The Base’s developers will build the units while Habitat will complete the interior work.

Minister Flack then took the stage to celebrate the MZO that fast-tracked housing at Base31. “Let me tell you, this is how a good MZO works. Building homes always takes too long and costs too much. An MZO is about speed, which also means lowering costs.”

Mayor Ferguson remembered his first visit to the former air force training base in August 1990. “It was a derelict site. All the buildings were here, but falling apart. The entire property was vacant.

“Since the partners arrived, the sense of life here has been more visible and palpable every year. Since 2022, it has been a place for music, art, culture and community.

“What is happening here represents so much more than new buildings,” he said, commending the team for both supplying the entire range of emergency, supportive, affordable, and rental housing as well as a diverse range of housing types.

“Thank you for your vote of confidence in Prince Edward County.”