A street that’s being created in tandem with the Potters Creek subdivision development will be named after one of Belleville’s biggest community supporters.
Belleville City Council approved a request to have a street named “Maurice Court” in honour of the late entrepreneur, builder and philanthropist, Maurice Rollins.
Rollins is best known on the business end as the founder of the Journey’s End motel and hotel chain and for supporting a number of local charities.
This includes the United Way of Hastings-Prince Edward, the Belleville General Hospital Foundation, the Enrichment Centre for Mental Health, the Salvation Army and others.
“Truly a noble man. Not large in stature, but a giant in the community,” Councillor Chris Mallette told council.
“The very least we can do is to name a street in his honour. I would love to see a statue in his honor but that’s for another day.”
The street will run north and then west from the extension of Hastings Park Drive as part of the subdivision development.
Councillor Tyler Allsopp spoke about his dealings with Maurice Rollins, specifically about Rollins’s autobiography detailing his mental health battle and his support for the Enrichment Centre for Mental Health.
“He said to me, ‘The reason I wrote it was not to show people all the things that I had done in my life, but to show them what can be done in a life affected by mental illness,’ ” Allsopp told council.
“That’s something that has stuck with me and certainly I think this is a great tribute to a great man and very happy to see it.”
The naming rights to the street were won by a family member in an auction hosted by the Belleville General Hospital Foundation in 2021.
Rollins passed away on June 3, 2021 at the age of 94.
