About 1,200 homes in development pipeline

Markets will determine pace of sales and construction, council told

Jan 16, 2025

There are about 1,200 housing units approved in Trent Hills that should be built by 2035, a municipal report says.

But the total number of homes built in the next decade could be higher since other projects are likely to be approved, Planner Cameron Law told council on Tuesday, Jan. 14.

Trent Hills saw significant growth between 2016 and 2021 (+7.5%), as people moved from urban areas during and after the pandemic, Law wrote in a report to council. The growth is expected to continue at a rate of 0.7% per year, or approximately 100 residents per year.

There are 550 units scheduled to be built in the Campbellford area, Law said.

Two approved draft plans of subdivision lapsed within the past year – BGS Homes on Steelcrest Ave. and Valley Green Homes, behind Blommer Chocolate Co., and development services has been in contact with the applicants with the suggestion to submit new plans that better meet the town’s needs, Law said.

Planning Director Jim Peters said the developer of Valley Green Homes has been talking to the municipality about resubmitting a plan. Council rejected a request for an extension on the previous plan that was approved in 2006 but never saw any construction. “It’s certainly not abandoned,” Peters said.

Similarly, he said BGS Homes owns several properties in Trent Hills and he expects to be talking with their planner to see what it plans to do.

The department is also meeting with Sunny Life Properties Inc. to discuss concerns residents raised about its plan to modify its Church Street subdivision to include an 80-unit apartment building on a previously vacant park block. The statutory public meeting for this application was held in October of 2024.

Phase four of the Haven on the Trent development is nearing the final stages of approval, with a draft of the Subdivision Agreement nearly completed between both parties, Law reported. The early stages of Phase 5 are being worked on by the owners and by staff.

Camelot Subdivision, located off Bridge Street, slated to eventually have 336 units, is constructing the first model home and sales are expected to begin this year with 30 units offered, Planning Director Jim Peters told council. Services for phase one have been completed, the subdivision agreement has been registered, and the lots have been created.

Deputy Mayor Mike Metcalf said he was glad to see that the planning department is seeing more interest in building townhomes and apartments. “We need more high density, that sort of diversification is something that we need to strive for, we need to give people options for housing,” he added.

Law said he expects about 200 homes to be built each year for the next two years but noted that pace depends on the housing market.

Peters said he expects Lock 18 in Hastings will move ahead with the second half of its development this year.

He said McDonald Homes, which is building on Homewood Avenue in Hastings, is “actively talking to us about three other developments.”

In 2024, the planning department dealt with 455 inquiries averaging 38 responses per month, a 13 per cent increase over 2023. “Three-quarters of the inquiries were related to the zoning of a property -- appraisers and realtors asking for the zoning of properties being sold, residents looking at provisions for secondary units, and those looking to invest and start new businesses being some of the key themes,” Law wrote.

The average response time was 1.51 days with 43 per cent of all inquiries being responded to on the same day.

The Homewood Avenue subdivision in Hastings has seen major progress in the past year, with the signing of a pre-servicing agreement to install services, the first upgrades to the road, the construction of several model homes, and the registering of the subdivision agreement, Law wrote.

Osprey Point has also seen significant progress, with several occupancy permits granted for the townhomes.