Balancing Rural Charm and Urban Progress

A Tight Knit Community Embracing Change and a Dynamic Future

The Township of Laurentian Valley is a thriving, close-knit community, with a population of just over 10,000,  and a prime location in the scenic Ottawa Valley. This growing township offers breathtaking views and rural tranquility alongside convenient access to urban amenities. Embracing a new chapter of growth and development, Laurentian Valley continues to invite progress while preserving the welcoming spirit that defines its identity.

Surrounding the city of Pembroke and located only an hour and twenty minutes from the nation’s capital, Community Development Officer Chris Neff boasts, “Laurentian Valley offers a perfect mix of urban and rural living, with captivating forests extending to the boundary of Algonquin Park, stunning riverfront areas along the Ottawa River, and extensive multi use trail systems, alongside fully serviced residential and community commercial areas. Everything you need to live, work and play, can be found here.”

An Ideal Location

The township has been experiencing steady growth, driven by a lower cost of living, proximity to larger city centers, and excellent access to the Ottawa market via Highway 17. Laurentian Valley is also conveniently connected to the Highway 401 corridor through Highway 41, and to Northern Ontario by the Trans-Canada Highway.

Neff shares, “The township is becoming a popular area for people to locate, whether it be retirees looking to move closer to services, young couples looking to build a family, or remote workers choosing to move further out from major urban centers for a better work life balance and a more affordable community.”

Open for Business

Laurentian Valley is home to a number of major employers, including Roseburg Pembroke MDF, several aggregate operations, government services and large retail establishments. Many residents also work at nearby Garrison Petawawa or Canadian Nuclear Laboratories in Chalk River, making Laurentian Valley an ideal home base for the region.

The township is definitely “open for business,” supporting both existing and future enterprises. “We’re good to work with. We hear that a lot,” Neff acknowledges. “As a small municipality we don’t take growth for granted. We’re there with you every step of the way, and we devote as many resources as we can towards seeing your vision come to life.”

With 250 brick-and-mortar, and 50 home-based businesses, Neff says, “We’re really proud to say that those are growing, but there’s still room for others that want to start up.” New additions to the township include Battlefield Rentals, Petro Canada, Toppers Pizza, and A&W, with three more commercial units ready for fast food tenants. “We’re growing really fast,” Neff relays.

“Many hands have worked very hard to make these projects come to life. Even though we are a small municipality, we are able to attract and successfully develop these larger businesses, which often have really unique and diverse needs that need to be met.”

To further support growth, the township introduced a Community Improvement Grant Program in 2019. “We’re really putting our money where our mouth is and saying we’re supporting businesses,” Neff remarks. The program offers 50 percent matching grants of up to $10,000 per property, covering a wide range of categories including signage, facades, accessibility, landscaping, parking, brownfield rehabilitation, commercial roofs, and even agricultural value-added initiatives.

In addition to the grant itself, the program includes a rebate for municipal application and permit fees, as well as a tax increment grant to lessen the impact of rising property assessments due to improvements. “We’re just getting started here in the township of Laurentian Valley, and we hope that more businesses come, and if they do, we’re ready,” Neff asserts.

Community Connection and Quality of Life

Laurentian Valley supports a balanced lifestyle that values community well-being. The township is home to six public recreation facilities, varying in size and equipped with a variety of amenities, including recreation halls, playgrounds, green spaces, trails, rinks, and splash pads. Community spaces and events are supported not only by township resources but by an exceptional volunteer base. Mayor Steve Bennett emphasizes,

“We’re very fortunate that we’re able to have over 100 volunteers who run all these rec centers, which allows us to keep our costs down and be able to offer more to our residents.” The township offers a number of unique events, including a popular Halloween Walk and winter skating opportunities at the LV Four Seasons Trail, which attracts thousands of visitors annually.

When it comes to connecting the community, new residential developments are being designed with walkability in mind, adding active transportation routes as well as sidewalks. In addition, Laurentian Valley is working in collaboration with the County of Renfrew on the Algonquin Trail, which stretches from the community of Deep River all the way to Arnprior.

“The township has also been working on acquiring and developing another trail system, connecting through several other municipalities,” Neff recounts. “We are actively trying to improve our recreation constantly. So if you’re a resident of Laurentian Valley or a neighboring community,  or a tourist, you can rest assured that there’s always something going on here.”

A Residential Focus

In Laurentian Valley residential development is guided by provincial housing mandates and a strong focus on community planning. The township is experiencing rapid growth, with several key residential developments underway. These include the Taxton and Kirkland subdivisions, which will offer approximately 50 privately serviced lots near the Ottawa River. The River Point subdivision, currently in the draft approval stage, will add 156 residential units, with additional phases already under review.

According to Neff, the East End growth area has the potential for up to 1,700 new units, while the West End is also poised for substantial expansion through the Laurentian Meadows subdivision and new projects in partnership with CreativeDev Ventures.

“Those are really going to be kicking off in the next couple years, into the next 10 years,” he reports. “We think it is going to be a quality of life that a lot of people want to have, and hopefully they are going to come to the township of Laurentian Valley to get it.”

A Proactive Plan

With this volume of growth comes a need for infrastructure investment, and the township has already obtained funding to help lay the groundwork for future development. “We’ve secured $579,687.50 from the province of Ontario to develop roughly one kilometer of Robinson Lane to help connect critical infrastructure to new housing developments,” details Neff.

This will support the construction of roads, sidewalks, and underground services to enable future homes to be built efficiently. “However, we’re still actively seeking funding to support the roughly $2 million in infrastructure needed to connect these developments for water and sewer and storm water to accelerate these projects,” he admits.

To avoid delays in other parts of the township, officials are already planning the next step, working in partnership with the County of Renfrew. “We’ve come up with a plan to develop an area of Drive-In Road,” Neff explains.

“We’ve realized that even though we’re going to be doing this development at one end, the infrastructure is not going to connect to the other end, where there’s separate developments, until those houses are built.” This proposed project will see the installation of water, sewer, storm infrastructure, sidewalks, lighting, and electrical access to 700 metres of road. “It is estimated to cost roughly $7.5 million but it’s shovel ready pending funding approval,” he says. “We’re hoping that the partnerships, the planning, the foresight, will be looked on beneficially by funders to show that we’re ready to go, and we want to support the goal of building houses and getting more people living in homes.”

A Look Ahead

With a plan and a vision, Laurentian Valley is ready for what comes next. “We have the land, we have the product that attracts people, and having a lower tax rate certainly draws the developers from larger areas to come here,” Mayor bennet conveys. “There’s so much that we can offer here for a laid back type of living.”

Moving forward, Neff outlines, “What we’re looking at here in the next couple of years is a whole new urban community. We’re experiencing record growth, and it’s coming at a really good time.” He highlights infrastructure upgrades like the rehabilitation of Highway 148, which will include sidewalks and multi-use paths linking newer developments in the west to underdeveloped areas in the east. New subdivisions in the east end will feature active transportation routes and are designed to offer the best of both worlds.

“This new urban community will be like nothing seen in the Ottawa Valley, with the businesses and community being blended perfectly together with nature, with room to grow,” he depicts.

With the support of council, staff, residents, and business leaders, the township is looking towards the future with energy and intention. Neff underscores, “We think that the next 24 months is going to be really positive and great for growth. Everything is coming together, and it’s going to be something awesome to see.”

AT A GLANCE

Who: Laurentian Valley, ON

What: A scenic township in the Ottawa Valley, experiencing growth and transformation

Where: The County of Renfrew, Ontario

Website: www.lvtownship.ca