Listowel Gardens delivers an incomparable combination of multigenerational living and sustainability in rural Ontario, its developer said, allowing families and locals to stay put in their established communities.

Set on a 4.6-acre campus of two apartment buildings, a club house and commercial area, Listowel Gardens is a mixed-use project of 178 purpose-built rental units in a town located to the northwest of Kitchener.

Developer BluView Developments Inc., a Mississauga-based company, initiated the project to address the shortage of rental housing in the Listowel area and the trickle of investment flowing to rural Ontario, its principal Nizar Mawani said in an interview with RENX Homes.

A downsizing farmer nearing retirement, for example, would find it daunting to move to a condo in Toronto and shed their lifestyle and social circle, Mawani said. With Listowel Gardens, he hopes to avoid such a scenario by providing vital commercial and medical options in the campus, while also accommodating young families.

“What we wanted to do was create an opportunity. These communities are worth building....These communities deserve to get world-class, multigenerational housing,” Mawani said. The intent is to build a community with “all the bells and whistles of city living but in a rural setting.”

Listowel Gardens' units

BluView, which previously did most of its work in provinces like Manitoba, shifted its focus to Ontario after the COVID pandemic, Mawani said, buying land in the rural areas of the province. It acquired the land for Listowel Gardens in 2021 and construction on the project began in late 2024.

The project consists of studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom suites, with 420, 675 and 837 to 948 square feet of floor space, respectively. Rents range from over $1,000 for the studios to over $2,200 for the two-bedroom units.

The make-up for each of the two five-storey apartment buildings is 15 studio, 35 one-bedroom and 39 two-bedroom units.

The first apartment building is complete and residents have been moving in since July. Construction is to start on its twin in 2027.

Most of the tenants to date have been from the Kitchener-Waterloo area, Mawani said, driven by the more affordable housing in Listowel. Those residents include single people, couples, families with children and seniors.

A multigenerational community in an ecosystem

Mawani emphasized how Listowel Gardens is specialized for the needs of downsizing elderly people, who can be close to their families, neighbours, doctors and community institutions, and also will have commercial and medical options within the project.

“It’s multigenerational housing that allows people to live in an ecosystem,” Mawani said.

Family services, dining options and commercial buildings are within walking distance of Listowel Gardens, which is designed to have 14,000 square feet of fast food restaurants, a dental clinic, a pharmacy and daycare space on site.

An approximately 4,000-square-foot clubhouse in the centre of the community, alongside a pickleball court and children’s play area, is to feature a gym, a lounge room, a boardroom, work and meeting spaces and flexible areas for gathering.

Groceries can be purchased across the road from the development, with much of Listowel available in a 15- to 20-minute walk, Mawani added.

BluView is also exploring the possibility of a partnership with Cleveland Clinic Canada to provide virtual health care support for residents as part of its rental structure.

Lowering environmental impact

As a way to minimize the environmental impact of the community and lower energy bills for tenants, Listowel Gardens has a geothermal system and a solar power installation, and is built using high-performance materials and design techniques.

The geothermal system for heating and cooling the community consists of 25 boreholes that were drilled 840 feet below ground. The system eliminates the use of natural gas-powered equipment for heating, lowering energy consumption by approximately 43 per cent and saving over $16,000 per year in energy bills. It cuts approximately 120 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per year.

The roof and exterior wall assemblies were built with substantial insulation, energy recovery ventilation and efficient heat pump systems.

A rooftop solar array is designed to generate approximately 172,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, netting just under $26,000 in annual electricity savings at full utilization.

Energy modelling has found Listowel Gardens is projected to have approximately 44 per cent lower annual energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions compared to the 2017 National Energy Code.

Mawani is encouraged by the experience of developing Listowel Gardens and hopes to replicate the model across the country. BluView plans to develop projects in Parry Sound and either Muskoka or southwest Ontario, Mawani added.

“We want to go to markets with a rural community that respects us, respects our investment and what we’re trying to do as partners.”