The Ecoforestry Institute Society has succeeded in its bid to buy the Wildwood ecoforest near Cedar thanks to a last-minute fundraising blitz.
The possession date for the 77-acre property is Dec. 20, spokeswoman Kathy Code said Tuesday.
“People wanted to see Wildwood kept in the public domain,” she said. “We are very humbled and proud.”
The B.C. Supreme Court decided Tuesday to approve the society’s bid for the well-known site, which has served as a model of sustainable forestry since Merv Wilkinson started working the property in 1938.
The decision came after the judge ordered sealed bids be presented to court.
Wildwood’s owner, the non-profit Land Conservancy of B.C., decided to sell Wildwood, which it has owned since 2000. It initially supported a private bid from Mark Randen, an apprentice of Wilkinson, although its board subsequently endorsed the society’s bid.
Code said the society plans to develop a centre of excellence for ecoforestry at Wildwood that will see a sustainable harvest plan that upholds Wilkinson’s legacy.
Educational opportunities will be available to everyone from kindergarten to university students to professionals and others, she said.
Wildwood is being sold to help pay off creditors. The Victoria-based Land Conservancy has been in protection from creditors since fall 2013, when debts reached almost $8 million. Money is coming by selling and transferring most of its properties.
The 20-year-old land trust had to win court approval to dispose of its properties. Wildwood is the final property to go before the court.
Next up is a Dec. 2 meeting of creditors to seek approval for a plan that would pay off secured creditors and a pay unsecured creditors a portion of what they are owed.
If successful, the Land Conservancy will go back to court seeking to get out of creditor protection. It hopes to continue as an organization mainly supervising protective covenants on land.
The Ecoforestry Society has managed Wildwood since 2001. It had scrambled to raise money to buy the property, but failed to raise enough by previous court dates.
Its latest fundraising campaign saw it bring in an additional $250,000 in six days, Code said. A benefactor who matched and tripled donations and chipped in additional money was a major asset.
The society was able to offer just over $700,000 in cash, plus creditor forgiveness for a total bid of $800,000, Code said. The TLC calculates it somewhat differently, saying the cash amount is $665,000 plus creditor protection, totalling $800,000.
Code said more than 115 individuals contributed to the society’s fundraising campaign over the past three years.
The sale includes a restrictive covenant and forest management plan for the site, along with a new trust to ensure ecoforestry continues on the property, The Land Conservancy said.
Respected ecoforester Herb Hammond submitted an affidavit stating the society’s covenant and management plan were superior to the other offer, The Land Conservancy said in a statement.
That evaluation, along with the money coming in for creditors and the planned trust, prompted The Land Conservancy’s board to support the society’s bid, it said.
