Last Updated on January 24, 2024 by CREW Editorial
Hillsdale, a small municipality on the outskirts of Barrie, is evolving into a slightly more bustling version of itself without sacrificing its bucolic charm—and the lynchpin for this transformation is Hometown Hillsdale, a new housing development with farm-house elevations that reflect the community’s traditions as much as they symbolize its future.
Hometown Hillsdale is being developed by three experienced developers in Crystal Homes, Fernbrook Homes and Zancor Homes, which each have 40-year proven track records of completing every project they start. Fifty percent of the 270-acre master-planned community will comprise green space, and in doing so the developers say they’re protecting the integrity of the community. According to Kathy Di Silvestro, owner of Crystal Homes, Hometown Hillsdale wants to be a welcome neighbour rather than just any new neighbour.
“Hillsdale is just so charming, it’s country-quiet, but city-close, the perfect location for people who want to return to their roots, but still have access to all the facilities and amenities of Midland and Barrie, just a few minutes away,” Di Silvestro said. “And the stars still shine brightly here, the air is so fresh smelling, it’s a stunning community that we fell in love with when we first came to visit the community. Danny Salvatore, the owner of Fernbrook Homes, and I drove through here one day and fell in love with the area, the air, the open skies, quiet roads, the architecture, all of it.”
Even Hometown Hillsdale’s architecture is designed for seamless integration into the community with the homes’ external “farm-house” motifs that are reminiscent of Old Ontario. However, the interiors are as modern as they are capacious.
“We want to be part of the community, not change it. We named our community Hometown Hillsdale because Hillsdale has that hometown feel, like you wish you could have grown up there,” Di Silvestro said. “We added fully contemporary interior designs and some modern-ish exterior, but our aim was to provide more of what we love in Hillsdale. The outside features wide front porches and lots of fenestration to bring the outside in and the inside out so that friendly neighbours and the gorgeous landscape are part of everyday living. And, in keeping with the expansive lots the current homes in Hillsdale are built on, our homes are being built on 50-, 60-, and 100-foot-wide lots with depths of 120-200 feet.
“Inside, all the modern conveniences and latest design innovations are features that are usually associated with urban living—super kitchens, principal bedrooms, luxurious living spaces with all the bells and whistles.”
Barrie and Midland are nearby, providing Hillsdale with a rich suite of amenities only minutes away, but with the infusion of new families at Hometown Hillsdale, the time for economic development in the community is nigh. That’s one reason Hillsdale’s mayor and town council have been supportive of the project, pushing it through as quickly as they can, Di Silvestro says.
“They recognize the boost to the local economy that will ensue and are very willing to work together with us and the community. But a development of this size is very complicated and there are dozens of pieces that have to come together to make it into the stellar community we envisage—water, sewage, drainage, street patterns, servicing, storm water design and other details. This new master-planned community will be truly state-of-the-art.”
From an investor’s perspective, Hometown Hillsdale is quite a unique opportunity. Low-rise pre-construction investments are scarce, and those that are more than 3 years out… even more so! A long runway to occupancy gives plenty of time for a property to appreciate and yield high returns. Select brokerages are currently running very attractive incentives for the project, offering up to $100k in savings. To learn more about the investment aspect of the community, click here to request more information!
