A private development proposed for lands opposite the Lake Simcoe Regional Airport would boast four million square feet of industrial space.

Plans for the sprawling industrial business park are quietly forging ahead under the direction of Berardo Mascioli and two partners.

In an exclusive interview with Huronia Business Times, the Oro-Medonte native revealed his vision for the seventh concession site, to be known as the Lake Simcoe Aeropark.

“It will be over $100 million to do everything completely,” said Mascioli, company president.

The development will be situated on two parcels of farmland comprising 212 acres.

Mascioli, with partners Elizabeth Betowski and Stan Gidzinski, is aiming to lure transportation-related business, cargo carriers, light manufacturing industry, and aviation-related ventures.

The site would require more than three kilometres of road and feature as many as 77 individual lots, ranging in size from one to 16 acres.

A third parcel of land, also owned by Lake Simcoe Aeropark Inc., measures slightly more than 90 acres, and requires a zoning amendment.

Located behind the airport, it would be developed at a future date and house airplane hangars and other commercial ventures.

“The more we looked at it, the more feasible it became,” Betowski said of the ambitious plan.

The trio views the aeropark as a natural fit with the neighbouring airport, which is itself on the verge of major growth.

Officials there are seeking $15 million in funds from senior levels of government and its member municipalities to carry out a runway expansion and other upgrades, including enhanced security measures.

The facility is ripe for growth, Mascioli says.

“The airport itself has been there for a very long time, and it is hard to get people to understand that there is such an opportunity there,” he added.

The company has filed a draft plan of subdivision, an archaeological plan and a transportation plan for the portion earmarked for the initial phase of development.

An environmental study is ongoing and Mascioli is awaiting the results of an engineering study.

A sewage treatment facility located on-site would also serve the airport, “and anybody else who wishes to tie into it,” he said.

“We need a strong airport next to us to achieve our goals.”

In a business plan provided to Huronia Business Times, the group contemplates selling lots at $125,000 per acre, with fees of about $30,000 per acre for roads and utility servicing.

The goal is to complete all servicing of the lands and have 40 per cent of the lots developed and sold within five years.