Ten of the first 17 homes in Parksville's new Cedar Ridge Estates have already been sold.
The plan is for 261 single and multi-family homes on 33.5 acres at Renz and Church roads, which council first gave the nod to in 2009.
The show home is now complete with another handful well underway, which the builders and agents presented to the public for the first time with an open house last Thursday.
Real estate agent Monica Love, who hosted the open house, said the main point was to introduce local builder John Carey to the public.
"He's getting a fabulous reputation in the area because he builds amazing homes," she said.
The developers built a traffic roundabout and entrance at Church and Humphrey as the first visible sign of the the biggest development in Parksville in years, which will eventually include public park space and trails.
Though there were questions about adding the new homes on the edge of Parksville despite an effort to focus growth in the middle of town, council supported the project on land that had been pre-zoned for that kind of development in 1994.
The current development permit allows 71 homes, of which 33 will be built in phase one. The proposed multi-family buildings on the far side of the property still require re-zoning.