Five Acres: A Historic Farm for Nanaimo's Future

The Five Acre Farm at 933 Park Avenue is one of the last intact pieces of the historic Harewood 5-Acre parcels. For the last three years, two local non-profit organizations, Growing Opportunities and Nanaimo Foodshare have been working together to operate an organic demonstration farm using the property as an education centre, therapeutic space and source of local food. Local employability skills training programs including VIU’s WEST program for students with disabilities and Foodshare’s Home Grown program for youth with multiple barriers to employment, use the farm as a training site. Growing Opportunities sells the produce at local farm markets. There are also seed trails to grow and select seeds that suit the local climate and to protect biodiversity and heritage seed.
This farm is historically significant. Harewood was the first planned agriculture community in British Columbia. The ‘Land of Wakesiah’ as it was originally known, was a hunting ground for the Snuneymuxw First Nation. It was purchased by the Vancouver Coal Mining and Land Company in 1862 and in 1888, Samuel Robins, the company superintendent started leasing five acre parcels to miners and their families. Robins saw the need to provide his workers with an opportunity to “lease to purchase” farmland. He divided up the “Land of Wakesiah” into 5 acre lots, and provided them under 21 year leases to his workers on the condition that a portion of the land was cleared and fenced for food cultivation. After 10 years, the workers had an option to purchase the land. Harewood became the breadbasket for the Nanaimo community and area mines. Robins was also responsible for the creation of Bowen Park and Robins Park.
The farm is ecologically significant. It includes a wetland and stream that is a tributary to the Chase River. It is also a significant green space in the neighborhood and has been identified as an open space in the Harewood Community plan and part of a network of green space centered around the stream. "The Plan illustrates how these elements integrate to form a coherent, rational, efficient and more complete neighbourhood that achieves the overall goals and objectives of the Harewood Neighbourhood Plan, protects the remaining natural assets, preserves some of the remnant farmland, and creates a more sustainable urban community."
This area is being rapidly developed with dense single and multiple family housing the time to implement this part of the Harewood community plan is now. We would like to see this historic farm purchased and held in trust by the community in perpetuity as an educational farm and community green space. We want to share this vision and are inviting the community to come and tour the farm and get involved in production and planning for it’s future. For more information contact Growing Opportunities at [e-mail] or [phone]

[@NanciesArt11]

Thanks for sharing. I hope that with all that has gone on recently ...that You are still viable and thriving. ☺