‘Once in a lifetime opportunity’: Work underway on massive community campus in Ingersoll

Bryan Bicknell reports on the campus that will feature new residential development, new elementary school, rec centre and more.

Ingersoll may have lost its largest employer when General Motors announced last year it would stop building electric delivery vans at the CAMI plant. But, that setback hasn’t put the brakes on major growth in the Oxford County town, as work gets underway on a so-called ‘community within a community.’

“We’re going to have a recreation facility here. We’re going to have long term care facility. There’s a space for a new school and over 20 acres of housing,” said Ingersoll mayor Brian Petrie.

He was commenting on the new Ingersoll Community Campus. Located in Ingersoll’s southeast corner, along the north side of Highway 401 and fronting onto Clarke Road, an agriculture field is being transformed into the town’s newest living space.

It’s a project that’s been more than a decade in the making, said Petrie.

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Our rec centre is over 70 years old. It’s time, we have to replace it. And so having the opportunity to do it out here with the benefits of collaboration with the school board for school, and long-term care and housing to create a complete community,” Petrie explained.

Petrie says the project is in part the result of the town acquiring 30 acres of land from Grobrook Farms, including a major donation.

Grobrook partner Nick Groot says they wanted to give back.’

“The town approached us that they’re looking for 30 acres of recreational space. That is what really intrigued us. And we thought, ‘Hey that’s about half the farm.’ We thought that would be great to have that beside us but also give back to the community,” Groot explained.

The project includes a new $37 million multi-use centre, a seniors care community, a public school, future housing, and open space. The cost to service the land is $52 million. Infrastructure and Development Director, Matt Sweetland, says there’s been no project quite like it in Ingersoll.

“The town has in the past developed industrial subdivisions, so this is more unique where it involved residential works and community works. And that’s where it differs from other development projects the town’s undertaken,” he explained.

Ingersoll CAO Mike Graves says the community is positioned to tap into even more growth in the future.

“I think we’re going to grow slightly above the average. We’ve got good services. We’ve got literal, physical services, we’ve got good capacity. We’ve seen some others that are running out of that capacity,” Graves said.

Officials say the Community Campus will take several years to build out. Ground will be broken on the rec centre this spring, with an opening date set for 2028.