By Griffy Vigneron (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: July 17, 2013
“In life you have to make difficult decisions [and this is] one of them,” says Brian Minter, UFV chancellor and co-owner of the world famous, family-owned Minter Gardens.
With changes in the tourism industry and the deterioration of weather in the Fraser Valley, Minter Gardens has seen a significant decrease in business in past years. As the business has become less and less sustainable, the Minters have decided to close after 25 years of service.
“If you look at the weather patterns in terms of the amount of cool, damp days we’re having in springs, it … dropped quite a few years ago and it has been that way ever since,” Minter explains.
The change in weather, while not necessarily a detriment to the plants, has become a deterrent to people.
“The psychological factor, and we’ve studied this, is that when you have a cloudy day or rainy day people are less inclined to do outdoor activities,” Minter notes.
Since the Fraser Valley only has a few months of good weather in the year, the deterioration of summers has resulted in a significant loss of visitors.
Changes in tourism trends also affected business. The events of September 11, 2001, drastically affected the tourism industry, especially in the Fraser Valley, due to its close proximity to the border.
“Going back to [pre-2001] we had so many American tourists that we worked very hard to maintain. 9/11 stopped most of those,” Minter explains. Tougher border restrictions post-September 11, combined with the fact that many Americans didn’t have passports, resulted in lower visitor attendance at the gardens.
The movement of cruise stops from Vancouver to Seattle also resulted in decreased guest attendance. While previously there had been a deal bringing cruise guests out on a Rocky Mountain tour passing through Minter Gardens, the location change halted that. More tourists are travelling by air, passing by Chilliwack and the gardens.
In an attempt to gain back some business, Minter Gardens opened their services for weddings and catering.
“We’ve done very, very well; our folks have truly done a magnificent job out there, but again the problem is as a seasonal business,” Minter explains. “It’s hard when you have three or four months of doing business and weddings [and] there’s eight months where you’re not.”
The closing of the gardens, with much of the Minter’s family history being a part of it, was not an easy decision.
“Imagine spending your life, blood, sweat and tears, with your whole family’s involvement and [the involvement of] many, many wonderful people … and having that disappear. That’s incredibly devastating,” Minter says.
Some staff will still be kept on, as the gardens will still need maintaining. Minter also explained they have been working with staff to ensure they find work elsewhere that suits them.
Minter is doing his best to stay positive about the whole situation.
“I guess it’s always about making the very best of any situation and being very positive as you move forward. I think that’s absolutely crucial,” he says. “At this point we’re just simply closing the gardens. We have to assess what the opportunities might be going forward.”
The Minters are already speculating about the future, and making the best of what they’ve got.
“We are going to focus on our destination garden centre, which is about 30 acres in Chilliwack, to significantly upgrade that in terms of being a world-class facility and turning it into a visitor facility as well,” he explains. “So we are not going away, we’re simply shifting focus.”
