{"id":19459,"date":"2023-07-13T01:33:07","date_gmt":"2023-07-13T08:33:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/thornbury-acres-farming-and-condo-living-combined\/"},"modified":"2023-07-13T01:33:09","modified_gmt":"2023-07-13T08:33:09","slug":"thornbury-acres-farming-and-condo-living-combined","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/thornbury-acres-farming-and-condo-living-combined\/","title":{"rendered":"Thornbury Acres: Farming and condo living combined"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A new development being proposed in Thornbury, Ont. is giving different meaning to living on a farm, combining a residential community with agriculture.<\/p>\n

Thornbury Acres is a residential farm co-operative on large lots that will allow the condominium owners of each homestead to utilize agricultural and recreational common elements.<\/p>\n

The development will also include a barn and community area as well as trails.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re converting what was formerly zoned for a golf course into effectively what will be the residential development land,\u201d said Harley Valentine, a partner with Castlepoint Numa. \u201cThe farm aspect is through a partnership that we\u2019ve done with a neighbour of ours that has a 50-acre parcel, 25 of which has been laying barren that we will reactivate through this development.\u201d<\/p>\n

Developer Castlepoint Numa has submitted a zoning bylaw amendment application to redevelop the lands located at Grey County Road 40 and Grey County Road 2 in the Town of Blue Mountains.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe made an application, it\u2019s deemed complete. We received staff comments and now we\u2019re just waiting for a report and approvals,\u201d Valentine said. \u201cWe hope to be in the ground delivering the farm and the barn program in early 2024.\u201d<\/p>\n

The proposal maintains 74 per cent of the land in a rural landscape condition, states the project website, adding a minimum of 60 per cent of the original land holding will remain available for the active primary agricultural or recreational use. The 150-acre site will include 37 residential units, have a 50-acre farm program and 40 acres of passive recreation. Lots will range in size from 1.3 to 1.5 acres.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a barn on the land, it burned down in the \u201890s and one of the exciting things about this project, it\u2019s going to restore a farm that had previously gone barren,\u201d Valentine said. \u201cWe\u2019re going to rebuild the barn, we\u2019re going to re-establish that farm and then nestle in the 37 units around the farm tucked in behind so that it\u2019s hidden from the road. Really the main visual feature will be a new frontage of active agriculture.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou own your unit of land at Thornbury Acres\u2026and you\u2019re tied to the balance of the 90-acre compound, which is both farm and passive recreation. You\u2019re also required to support that through a condominium fee.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is the first project of its kind in Ontario, but other models exist in B.C. and throughout the United States.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s happening across Canada today is the average farm size is becoming larger, the average age of the farmer is becoming older because of the consolidation that is happening,\u201d said Valentine.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat Thornbury Acres does is it really underscores the value of small-scale farming. We hope to use it as a launchpad for education and awareness around the power of small-scale regenerative farming. We have an agricultural advisory board and a lot of them are active regenerative farmers.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the farmers serves 35 families from just one acre of land and provides them with 18 baskets a year of produce.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a worldwide trend towards this farming practice that turns its back on commercial farming, heavy machinery, pesticides,\u201d Valentine explained. \u201cThis idea of high intensity planting, smaller rows, bountiful outputs, that is really the focus of our farm program, and we hope to use this community as a launchpad to generate further learnings.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team is about to bring on a design architect.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur vision is that this is going to be a very tightly curated community and that there will be a number of home typologies that repeat throughout. There will also be an iconic architectural barn that will of sort of anchor and also create a sense of destination for this community,\u201d Valentine stated.<\/p>\n

\u201cA selected design architect will be creating an agrarian home or a homestead which would be an alteration on the modern \u2018A\u2019 frame. They\u2019re going to be offered from 1,500-square-feet to 5,000-square-feet. It will be slab-on-grade construction and they will be serviced by well and septic.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the unique things about the lot plan is a 30-foot lot buffer around each property.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to create that sense of rural privacy that\u2019s typical for larger lots in this area\u2026so there is no need to build fences,\u201d said Valentine. \u201cWe want to be the antithesis to the typical tract housing development that you would encounter through the GTHA.<\/p>\n

\u201cBetween you and your neighbour there will be 60 feet of natural wooded area and that\u2019s consistent throughout the development.\u201d<\/p>\n

Follow the author on Twitter @DCN_Angela<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n