The rapid route to boom town
March 01, 2008
Robyn Doolittle
Staff Reporter
VIA Rail axed the previous line to Peterborough due to crumbling rails and low ridership. MP Dean Del Mastro estimates at least 900 commuters would use the new high-speed train. FRED THORNHILL PHOTO FOR THE TORONTO STAR
There are only a handful of shops along Millbrook's main drag; a local hardware shop, a pharmacy, one coffee shop, a florist, a crafts store – and five real estate offices.
This tiny village, about 20 kilometres southwest of Peterborough, is on the cusp of a housing boom.
"If you want to know what's coming, just take a look at this street. There are five of us here – all preparing," said realtor Steve Paul.
So to those who think a proposed rail link to Peterborough is a waste of money, Paul and other locals say, "Take a look at the numbers."
There are three major housing projects underway in Millbrook. Housing prices and land values are skyrocketing. Last summer, a 2,000-acre farm that might have sold for $500,000 a few years ago was purchased for $2 million.
"It was bought by a developer. A farmer can't afford to pay that to plant on. This developer is prepared to sit on that property and wait for another seven years or so when there's a demand," said Paul.
In a move that surprised many, and drew criticism from others, federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty pledged to subsidize a passenger train between Peterborough and Toronto during Tuesday's budget speech. While the proposed route will undoubtedly drive demand up, developer interest has been mounting for five years.
When Ontario put development restrictions on the Oak Ridges Moraine, investors hopped over to Cavan Monaghan Township, Paul said. Last year, it was announced that Highway 407 would be extended to connect with Highway 115 – the route to Peterborough.
"Now there's talk about a high-speed railway. This will only mean good things for the area. Think of how many cars are going to come off the road," Paul said.
It's 5:45 a.m. Friday, and a dozen sleepy-looking folks clutching coffee cups board a bus bound for Toronto at the downtown Peterborough Greyhound station.
A few are heading to the airport. One, a Trent University student, is heading to a job interview. The rest are going to work. It's a commute Brian Hamilton has been making for a year and a half.
"I did the car thing for two years, and then the GO (train) thing for two years – you have to drive to Oshawa first. This is the easiest. On a good day, it's two hours there, then two hours back," said the 50-year-old, who works with the Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs.
"But is that really that crazy? I work with people who live in Mississauga and it takes them an hour and a half to get to work every day."
On a typical morning, about 30 people from Peterborough make the trek by bus to downtown Toronto. Most work from home at least one day a week. Peterborough MP Dean Del Mastro estimated at least 900 Durham and Peterborough commuters would use a high-speed train.
Miriam McFadyen, a nurse at St. Michael's Hospital, says she would be one. McFadyen moved to the area because of her husband's job with the Ministry of Natural Resources. She works part-time now because of the long trip.
"A train would be unbelievable, but only if it had regular runs," McFadyen, 50, said. Currently, there are two commuter buses to Peterborough – one at 4:30 p.m., the other at 4:45 p.m. The next bus leaves at 7:30 p.m.
"That means you get home at 10, just in time to go to bed and get up the next morning at 4 a.m. to go back to work," added Hamilton.
Residents say limited service was the problem with the previous rail system, which Via Rail axed in the 1990s due to crumbling rails and low ridership. "One (train) would go down at 7 a.m., and then you couldn't get back until that night," said Dan Smith, sipping java at Millbrook's only coffee shop.
One such trip is one of Mary Ellen McCamus' favourite memories. "Every Christmas, we used to get the kids and get on the 7 a.m. train. We'd spend the day shopping and walking around downtown, looking at the holiday windows at Eaton's, then come home that night. They had such a great time," she said. "This is an area that's attracting young families. Wouldn't it be nice to get that train back for them?"
