Save the Grove Again launches campaign

ARNPRIOR – Despite a lack of prior knowledge, roughly 70 people attended a public meeting in Arnprior Saturday (Sept. 7) afternoon to discuss the latest threat organizers feel historic Gillies Grove is facing as a sale of adjacent property to a developer is currently in the due diligence stage.

Last week, Save the Grove Again (SGA) officially organized an opposition group to the sale, launched a website and announced a public meeting to discuss the issue held last Saturday at Emmanuel Anglican Church, just outside the entrance to the Gillies Grove.

This was in response to the news the Galilee Oblates, a group of Catholic missionaries who own The Galilee Centre and the roughly 35 acres it is situated on agreed to sell some of the property in order to keep the Galilee Centre operating. The Oblates were formed 208 years ago on Jan. 25, 1816, when Father Eugene de Mazenod and four companions came together to preach mission in Provençal, in the rural countryside of southern France. The organization says there are 3,800 Oblates around the world with 720 in Canada and the United States.

The mandate of the Oblates is to minister directly to the poor.

The Galilee Centre, which operates as a conference centre and retreat with a focus on spirituality can accommodate up to 50 people with meal and accommodations. The centre includes three main conference rooms plus a variety of other rooms for intimate gatherings. The main building includes 37 bedrooms, a library, a dining room, and a grand staircase to the second-floor chapel. 

Just over a year a year ago (Sept. 6, 2023), following a meeting of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) Lacombe Canada and the Galilee Centre board met and made the decision to close the centre early summer of 2024.

OMI Lacombe Canada says the decision was made because of several challenges for retreat house ministries, “including declining financial independence, increasing operating and maintenance costs and diminished regular Oblate presence.”

On July 6, the centre’s board had a change of heart and said they would be able to remain open if they sold off a portion of the 35 acres they own.

“Following the September announcement by the Oblates, the board of directors of Galilee Centre made a proposal to the Oblates in October to retain the parcel of land upon which Galilee Centre sits – should we be able to raise funds to do so,” Galilee Centre board President David Perrin released in a statement July 6. “In November, the Oblates signed an agreement with the board of directors outlining the terms and conditions of the above-described proposal.”

The board would put roughly 20 acres up for sale, the land between the Galilee Centre driveway in the east between the hospital, high school and the protected old-growth forest known as the Gillies Grove which includes the community gardens at the centre but not the cemetery.

“In addition, Cavanagh Communities signed an Agreement of Purchase and Sale (APS) to purchase the remainder of the land,” Perrin said. “Cavanagh Communities is undertaking its due diligence and looks forward to consulting with the community as they develop their plans.”

Following the sale of the land, the Galilee Centre board would purchase the centre and 15 remaining acres from the Oblates and “assume total control and ownership of the [retained] land and buildings after compensating OMI Lacombe Canada.”

SGA says the sale, which is expected to be finalized in November, will mean the possible destruction of part of the forest known as the Gillies Grove and will certainly threaten to destroy the rest.

The Gillies Grove is a beloved natural spot in the Town of Arnprior with several trails throughout while taking users back in time to a forest untouched by man, as much of the area was a few hundred years ago.

“An expanse of old growth forest in the north corner of Arnprior, Gillies Grove is a rare remnant of the magnificent forest that once covered this region,” the Macnamara Field Naturalists write on their website. “The Grove includes sugar maple, yellow birch, American beech, eastern hemlock and Basswood trees. In one section, a stand of ancient white pines thrusts high above the surrounding trees. The largest basswood in Canada once stood here. The Grove’s ecosystem has been evolving ever since the Champlain Sea left this region about 10,000 years ago. It harbours multitudes of creatures, some quite rare and elusive. A National Historic Site, Gillies Grove is a living monument to the human history of the Ottawa Valley.”

Members of the SGA, some of which are also member of the Macnamara Field Naturalists, agree and have banded together in an effort to protect the grove, hopefully by terminating the sale.

“SGA is recently born out of a shared love of the land,” SGA spokesperson Lacey Smith told the meeting attendees which also included Arnprior Mayor Lisa McGee, Coun. Chris Couper and Coun. Billy Denault as well as former councillor Ted Strike who still sits on the committee of adjustment. “This land is sacred and needs our help. Since we made our announcement Tuesday (Sept. 3) the floodgates have opened. If we didn’t know before, we do now. This land is loved by the community.”

Many attending the meeting said the were unaware of the issue, SGA, or even the meeting (until the last minute) but wanted to know more. Organizers also collected donations and emails addresses for a mailing list while handing out brochures.

Resident Herb Langer, who was one of the original organizers of the Save the Grove campaign some 30 years ago when the land was last at threat of being sold (keep in mind the actual Gillies Grove land is now protected).

“We did it 34 years ago,” Langer said wearing his t-shirt from that original campaign. “I didn’t think we would have to do it again. We don’t stand in front of city hall with placards. That’s not how it works. You do it with committees – that’s how it works. At the end of the day, we may have to buy the land. Be prepared for that. But the first thing we have to do is stop the development.”

He’s not wrong. As the land is a private sale and is already zoned by the town as ‘future development,’ there is very little legal opportunity preventing the deal from going through, which is expected to be finalized around Nov. 15.

Smith went through a list of users and the reasons they use the Grove, gleaned from a recent survey. The list was expansive and included four-season use.

“Three schools in the vicinity rely on this land for education,” Smith said.

At the end of August, the SGA submitted a written submission with six recommendations to the Galilee Centre board outlining their concerns. Last Thursday (Sept. 5) they heard back.

The board said they appreciated the feedback but will not be commenting until “Cavanagh Communities finishes their due diligence,” Smith said.

The end of the 90-day due diligence period is Sept. 15 when the sale is expected to be finalized. The SGA says they may be able to bring the sale to the Ontario Land Tribunal to reject the deal, but that comes with great financial risk.

Mayor McGee said here role at the meeting was as a listener.

“Thank you for the opportunity to listen to your concerns,” McGee said. “We have been through tribunals before. It costs a crazy amount of money to go to tribunal. If we do go to tribunal, we have to have teeth to go. We’re in tough times. We have to find a balance between community and the taxpayer.”

McGee said the Town of Arnprior was not involved in the sale process.

“We weren’t invited to the table,” she said. “So, we heard about this at the same time as you.”

McGee told West Carleton Online as part of the development review process, developers are asked to provide several plans, studies and document.

“Any significant development of this site would require submission of an environmental impact study, stormwater management report and plans, servicing study and plans and a traffic impact study,” McGee said.

McGee says no planning applications have been submitted for the site. Because it is a private sale the site plan process and subdivision process do not require public meetings under the Planning Act and cannot be appealed by residents.

“In cases of future development lands in the Town of Arnprior, provincial policies generally support development, however comments from the public can help shape what that development might look like such as where a park is located, pedestrian connections, sidewalk locations, etc.,” McGee said. “Once again, there are currently no planning applications submitted regarding the development of the Galilee Centre lands. This means that at this time there is now way to make comments on a specific application. At this time, the purchase and sale of these lands is a civil matter between the two parties.”

The Galilee Centre board says the proponents of the deal will hold a public meeting in the future.

“As more information becomes available about the future of Galilee Centre, we plan to hold public information sessions to answer your questions,” the Galilee board released in a statement. “Please check our website for updates about these future sessions.”

For more information on the Save the Grove Again organization, visit their website here.