The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing has issued an MZO in support of Base31’s housing development. The approval follows a joint request made early in 2024 by the County of Prince Edward and PEC Community Partners Inc. 

Deco Communities’ Vice President Alexandra De Gasperis called the moment “transformative.” 

“This is an incredibly exciting milestone for Base 31 as it gives us the green light to move from vision to action.”

The zoning order applies only to the Revitalization District and the land apportioned for Village A, or 217 acres of the 750-acre site. The Revitalization District comprises 143 acres of barracks, hangars, walkways, and a large airstrip that will become a public park. Village A will be set on 74 acres across Kingsley Road.

The order allows the next phase of draft plan approvals to move ahead — a purpose built, seven-storey rental apartment building within the District, and Village A, with its plans for 481 townhouses and detached homes. 

At a neighbourhood meeting convened with nearby residents earlier this month, Ms. De Gasperis noted 10 percent of the 120 units in the apartment building will be within the “affordable” range, or 80 percent of market rent.

She went on to stress the focus of the development partners is creating the “full gambit of housing types, from starter bungalows to larger single-family homes, to towns and stacked towns, with pricing ranging from affordable to attainable to market.

“We have different demographics in mind and are targeting them with a wide variety of sizes and prices, and including options like secondary suites.”

Village A will have two vehicular access points, one from Kingsley Road and another from County Road 22, while multiple pedestrian and bike paths and trails will connect it to Macaulay Village on the one side and the Revitalization District on the other.

The land for Village A has been cleared of trees, which, according to Deco Communities’ Christopher Marchese, “were mostly scrub, red cedars. We obtained municipal approval for clearing, and did not find any trees of any significance. We kept all the cleared material though, to re-use it, and paid the municipality up front.”

“Replacement tree planting will occur on a 1-to-1 ratio as per our subdivision agreement,” he said. The partners intend to break ground on Village A in Spring 2026, while the apartment building could get underway as soon as this summer.

According to Base31’s Acting CEO Assaf Weisz, “greenscaping across the entire site is top of mind. The Neighbourhood Plan imagines individual villages set into naturalized areas and connected with trails. Alongside housing, we are creating a beautiful, rich, and natural environment.”

As for right now, “this is our beautification year,” said Ms. De Gasperis. Landscaping throughout the Base, which has been under water servicing construction for over a year now, has priority. 

“The renovation of the historical buildings in the Revitalization District has taken a lot of attention, including a major financial investment. We are now turning to housing development, and that means creating more of a neighbourhood feel. This is a place where people are going to live as well as go to concerts.”

Signs are now up advertising “Base Living,” with a website for early registrations. One is positioned right next to a shiny red fire hydrant.

Mr. Marchese noted the developers plan to exceed the provincial requirement that 5% of any housing site be dedicated to parkland. “Our plans dedicate at least 40 percent and potentially 50 percent of the entire site to parkland.”

A central feature will see the former airport runway transformed into a large “destination park.”

“While children’s playgrounds and community parks will be studded throughout the development in every village neighbourhood, the runway will be turned into a destination park, with amenties such as washrooms, picnic tables, and sports equipment,” said Ms. De Gasperis.  

“When we did our community consultations, we heard loud and clear. There’s a lack of housing diversity here, so we prepared a wide range of housing typologies including purpose built rental apartments. PEC needs supports to develop a year round economy. There’s a lack of social infrastructure, like daycare and community centres and parks. We have exciting things coming on all of these fronts.”