Hastings Estates opening a "great day" for village

Posted Feb 2, 2012 By Bill Freeman

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Northumberland-Quinte West MP Rick Norlock, Greg DeFreitas of Batavia Homes, Northumberland-Quinte West MPP Rob Milligan, Trent Hills Mayor Hector Macmillan and Hastings Councillor Bob Crate take part in a ribbon cutting at the official opening of the 150-home Hastings Estates subdivision. Forty homes are to be built in the first phase, a 1,360-square-foot

Bill Freeman, Campbellford EMC

Northumberland-Quinte West MP Rick Norlock, Greg DeFreitas of Batavia Homes, Northumberland-Quinte West MPP Rob Milligan, Trent Hills Mayor Hector Macmillan and Hastings Councillor Bob Crate take part in a ribbon cutting at the official opening of the 150-home Hastings Estates subdivision. Forty homes are to be built in the first phase, a 1,360-square-foot "Surrey" model home, one of six styles to be offered, is already built on site.

EMC News -Hastings - There were smiles enough to power a small town as the ambitious Hastings Estates subdivision development was officially opened Saturday afternoon.

With 151 single family homes to be developed over several phases40 in phase onethe Church and Bay Street Batavia Homes development is an enormous piece of good news for Hastings and a sure sign that developers are bullish on the village, says Hastings and District Chamber of Commerce president Dennis Savery who joined developer Greg De-Freitas, Trent Hills officials and both MP Rick Norlock and MPP Rob Milligan at the opening reception inside the 1,360-square-foot "Surrey" model home.

"I'm very excited for this area," Savery, a Re-Max real estate broker, told the Northwest EMC. "Any kind of development that goes on in Hastings is always a positive for both Hastings and Trent Hills. This is just the start of it."

"I've always said the village is a sleeping giant and now it's starting to awake," he said.

Savery points to a recent offer put together on the ball diamond that is conditional on re-zoning and another de-velopment opportunity for at least 80 homes on property across from the auction hall.

"Developers are looking to this area."

All of the natural amenities Hastings offers as well as the work the municipality has done on infrastructure makes the village very attractive to both real estate developers and young families looking to re-locate, Savery says.

"The location is ideal. You're 30 minutes to Peterborough, 40 minutes to Belleville, 30 minutes to Cobourg and minutes from Highway Seven."

"I'm really proud that people are finally seeing this diamond in the rough being polished off and shined."

"This is such a nice community," says DeFreitas. "We have all these beautiful amenities here, we have the river (and) the municipality is doing such a fantastic job with the docks, we have the trail system. It is such a beautiful area."

DeFreitas says people in Hastings and Trent Hills have been entirely supportive of the project.

"They've been very supportive of this development, there's not been a single objection," he said.

"Help us get the word around about how beautiful this place is, it's such a wonderful community."

"Council has been working on this day for a long time now," Trent Hills Mayor Hector Macmillan says. "We've done the infrastructure work and all the things underground for projects of this size and for the future."

"I think (Hastings Estates) is the spark to a brushfire," Macmillan said.

"I've dreamt about this for quite a few days now. We share their vision for Hastings."

Mayor Macmillan echoed Savery's comments on Hastings' proximity to nearby centres and transportation corridors.

"You're (Batavia Homes) right on the leading edge and I really thank you for coming here and making such a great commitment."

"We're set to go and I'm really excited about it," Hastings Councillor Bob Crate said. "We're just at the edge of what's going to be great.

"It's taken a long time and some great vision from a lot of people but we're sitting in a great spot right now with this development and the other things going on right now. People are going to discover how wonderful this place is."