Heather Wright/The Independent

Overwhelmed by expenses, lack of workers, theft of equipment and homelessness encampments, the St. Clair Region Conservation Foundation has closed a Wilkesport landmark.

Greenhill Gardens – a once privately-owned oasis in rural St. Clair Township – closed Monday.

The gardens were cultivated by Joy Robson for years. She and her husband, Bill, allowed people to come and walk through it for free. After Joy died in 2016 and her husband, Bill, passed in 2021, the gardens were maintained by a landscaping company paid by the family.

In 2022, the Robson family offered the 100-acre property to the conservation foundation. While many have admired the six-acre cultivated gardens, Ken Phillips, general manager of the foundation, says the 19-acre woodlot was the prize of the property for the conservationists. 

Phillips says the family maintained the property for another year to give the foundation time to figure out what would be needed to operate it. Last summer, the foundation took over. That’s when things started going wrong, according to Phillips. Lawn mowers and weed whackers locked in sheds were repeatedly taken. The equipment needed to maintain the gardens was moved off site for protection, making even more work to maintain the grounds.

And there were a lot of unwanted people on the site. “We had a flow of homeless people occupying the property,” says Phillips. “We’d remove them and then they break back in again. They were utilizing the building there and vandalizing that to get back in; breaking windows, breaking the doors, ripping off the frames, and we’re getting more and more people tearing through their ATVs.”

That was draining. But the biggest issue was the sheer size of the garden and the work it required. Phillips says they don’t use herbicides on the property so every weed has to be pulled by hand. This year, postings for students to maintain the grounds were left unfilled. And there was not money to hire a contractor to do the work. 

To meet provincial accessibility standards – a requirement for public facilities – about $250,000 in repairs need to be completed.

Phillips says that’s on top of maintenance on the property – about $150,000 a year.

The foundation is bringing in about $27,000 a year in rent for the farm land and another $3,000 from garden rental fees.

“It’s a huge loss in order to maintain it,” he says. The foundation applied for grants and considered selling the farmland to pay for upkeep.

“That will only provide enough revenue to keep the gardens functioning for another 10 years. That’s not that’s not enough money to keep it going.”

So, Phillips said, after talking to the disappointed family, the foundation decided to close the gardens for this summer to regroup.

“I have to stress, we did not undertake this decision without consulting the family. …We had extensive discussions with the estate to let them know what was going on, let them know what the challenges were, and they fully understood,” he says

“They were disappointed, obviously, but they understood what our position was.”

The closure drew anger online. Some were upset their weddings booked for the summer now had to be moved. Others were angry the gardens meant for the public to enjoy were deteriorating.

“I feel this space was only seen as a money maker when they received it and came straight for photographers to make their profit with unreasonable prices,” said Nathalie Burr online. “I couldn’t imagine dedicating my entire life to something like this and have it go right down the drain with poor management.”

“Sever the farm land off the ponds. Sell the workable land to a area farmer, invest the money and use the interest to maintain the ponds like Joy and Bill had intended,” wrote St. Clair Township Councillor Brad Langstaff.

Gord Middleton called for the resignation of the board and management of the foundation. “This announcement is a disgraceful black eye on not only the Robson family but also our community as a whole and the many people who came from other areas to see and experience these gardens,” he wrote.

There were also calls to have horticultural societies pitch in, with others suggesting it should not cost more than the rent on the farm land to maintain the oasis.

Phillips has seen and heard the complaints. “People have called and complained about the condition of the gardens, and I asked, ‘Well, would you be willing to volunteer or donate money?’ The response, nine times out of 10 is incredibly negative.”

The foundation has also approached horticultural societies in the area but none responded to the request for help. 

“The amount of people we would need to maintain the property – you’re talking a very solid commitment for months on end. And I fully understand why there might not be a willingness to do that.”

Phillips says the foundation is willing to take suggestions to improve the situation but says “You’re talking a very isolated property in a very small community, so the potential to do much with it is very limited.”