Longstanding would-be Wellington developer Kaitlin presented its latest plans for Cork and Vine to about 300 County residents  last week.

 The former “Fields of Wellington” and “Country Club Estates” properties north of the Millennium Trail between Consecon and Belleville Streets are now one 147-hectare parcel following Kaitlin’s purchase of the Fields site in 2022.

 Plans for Fields of Wellington were four years in the making. Developer Alan Hirschfield integrated community feedback to prioritize rental units, higher densities, affordability, and walkability. When Kaitlin purchased the property, it promised to honour those plans. 

Accordingly, the project Devon Daniell of Kaitlin and Ryan Guetter of Watson Associates described is a dramatic change from the sprawling 450 bungalows on a golf course it initially proposed.

 Instead, about 1500 units of mixed housing stock will be phased over twenty years. Densities range from moderate to high. Laneway housing, rental opportunities, and an emphasis on affordability are key features. The golf course is on hold.

 Specially designed “coach towns” are linked townhouses facing the street with a coach house over the garage, hidden in back on a laneway. Owners can choose to rent out the coach house or keep a work-from-home studio. Putting the garage in back, the norm in cities, is a design principle that has somehow eluded suburban planners. It means houses sit closer together, and the streetscape is more welcoming. Blocks are smaller and walkable.

 Plans feature two-storey structures clustered closely together punctuated with greenspaces. They deliberately recall the existing village of Wellington.

 The first amendment Kaitlin sought after its purchase was for R4 residential zoning, which permits a wider variety of housing types and higher densities. Plans are also in the works for over 315,000 square feet of mixed-use, commercial, and retail development along Belleville Street by 2031. The village has just 171,000 square feet now and is estimated to be “underserved” by the planners.

“We are ready to go” said Mr. Guetter, anticipating the question top of mind for most in the audience.

 Kaitlin anticipates water and wastewater infrastructure installed by the County in 2024. Construction begins 2025. By 2026, the first townhouses will be move-in ready, and mid-rise condos the following year. Prices start in the $400,000 range.

  The company anticipates building more than 200 units of housing per year over the next five years. That means roughly 400 to 500 new residents each year.

 As for development charges and upfront financing commitments, the upfront development charges required by the County will be paid at the subdivision agreement stage, next year. The developer expects to pay up to 10.2 million for the first phases of development (at 1A and 1B on the map) in area specific development charges in 2024.

 It estimates a further $39.6 million in residential area-specific development charges alone for Cork & Vine, bringing the overall total of development charges to be paid to over $50 million. 

 Feedback from residents was mixed. Top of mind was sustainability. Suggestions included incorporating geothermal and net-zero technologies, including solar and other clean electrics, from the beginning.

 John Ambrose urged Kaitlin to “set the standard within the county and elsewhere” for sustainable building, and noted that for development phased over 20 years, thinking 20 years ahead is essential.

Residents noted the proposed development is “overwhelming,” and would more than double the size of the village. There was real concern for the preservation of the character and feel of life in Wellington.

 Jane Marshall suggested a community working group to develop “robust feedback” for Kaitlin and its planners, Watson Associates, as it fine tunes the details of its plans, many of which are still outstanding, including final numbers of and sizes of houses, house forms, sightlines, landscaping, and tree canopy.