Base Living: The Next Chapter at Base31

At the start of the Second World War, this land took on a new purpose. It became home to No. 31 Bombing and Gunnery School, where thousands of young airmen trained. They filled the hangars, mess halls and parade square with noise, nerve and ambition. That number stayed with the place: it’s the 31 in Base31. When the base closed in 1969, it fell quiet for decades. The buildings remained standing and the fields grew over, but the heartbeat stopped.

Five years ago, we began bringing it back.

Today, concert nights bring live music to the hangars that once held aircraft. People come for food at the Commissary, wellness mornings and afternoons on the B31 District Art Walk, a sculpture trail that winds across the grounds. In summer, kids spend their days at camp exploring a site full of stories. Base31 has become part of the rhythm of life in Prince Edward County.

The heartbeat is back. Now it’s time for people to live here.

A different way to build

Most new neighbourhoods follow the same pattern: clear the land, draw the lots, put a garage at the front of every house, and turn whatever remains into a park. It’s efficient, but it’s why so many places feel like nowhere in particular. You have to drive everywhere and wave to neighbours in passing. There’s no centre, no reason to linger, and nothing that makes the place feel like home.

It wasn’t always like this. For most of history, people built villages, with homes gathered around a green and a short walk from where life happened. Many of North America’s most beloved communities are rediscovering this approach, and Base Living is built on the same idea. We started with the land, not the lots. Heritage, restoration and green space—even the landscape itself—were part of the plan from the first conversation. We planned the homes around the park, not the other way around.

Built on what the County asked for

We didn’t come up with this alone. At the 2023 Ideas Fair, people across Prince Edward County told us what their community was missing. They wanted homes locals could afford, places where young families could put down roots, and options for seniors who want to stay in the area they love. They asked for trails, parks and places to gather. Above all, they wanted a real community with room for people at every stage of life.

Base Living is our answer to those needs. It’s a place where people can rent, buy their first home, raise a family and later downsize without ever leaving the neighbourhood.

Hilltop: where it begins

Hilltop is the first village. It sits directly across the street from the District, with the Commissary, Drill Hall and cultural heart just a short walk from your front door.

Townhouses, laneway homes, semi-detached and detached homes share the same streets, bringing neighbours at different stages of life side by side. At its heart is a 5.1-acre village park with community gardens, a playground, places to gather and a pond.

The first Hilltop residents are expected to move in by 2028.

270 acres that belong to everyone

Green space extends beyond the village. About 270 acres across Base31 will remain open, connected by an extensive network of trails. None of it sits behind a gate. It belongs to the District and everyone in the County.

That matters to us. Base31 became a gathering place for the County before anyone lived here, and new neighbours should only make it stronger. If you’ve come for a concert, summer camp or a walk among the sculptures, this place is already partly yours, and that won’t change.

Homes for everyone, not just some

Base Living will offer a range of homes and tenures. Construction has already begun on a 120-unit rental building at Base31, bringing new rental homes to Picton. Through our partnership with Habitat for Humanity Prince Edward-Hastings, affordable homeownership townhouses are coming to Hilltop, with more planned over time.

A community where people who work here can also live here is better for everyone.

The people who come first

Every place has a first chapter, written by the people who show up early. The first neighbours at Hilltop will set the tone for everything that follows: the traditions, the friendships and the feel of the streets on a Sunday morning.

Base31 has waited a long time for people to call it home again. Base Living is how that happens.

For more information on Base Living and Hilltop, visit https://www.base31.ca/living