The following article appeared in the June 7 edition of the Guelph Mercury:
Neighbours call Findlay’s ‘natural yard’ hypocritical
One man’s idea of a beautiful, natural yard is another man’s eyesore. It appears the two perspectives have clashed on Spring Street.
Ward 2 Councillor Ian Findlay and his wife Janet are in the process of turning the front yard of their heritage home at 40 Spring St. into a wild, wooded plot of land. The house was built in 1867.
During a brief tour of the classic home’s yard yesterday, the couple said they have planted more than 500 trees, all native species, on the property.
A series of stakes mark the many spots where the trees are planted and the lawn has been allowed to grow wild.
“If you think about it in the years to come,” Janet Findlay said, “you can just imagine how beautiful it is going to look. In time, there will be a mature lot full of trees.”
There is a manicured lawn in the backyard, but the front is overrun with growth. That’s how the Findlays like it. They couldn’t run a lawn mower through it even if they wanted to, for fear of damaging seedlings, which include numerous varieties of trees — poplar, white pine and Ohio buckeye among them.
“It was a very exciting property on an acre of land, and we saw so much potential in it,” said Janet. “We have a real love of the outdoors and nature, and we wanted to create a special, natural place within the city.”
When Councillor Findlay spoke out this week about the unkempt state of some of the city’s parks and boulevards, some people who are familiar with his yard chimed in, saying he was being hypocritical.
Was Findlay preaching enhanced park care on the one hand, but letting his own lawn go to seed?
“I’m a little bit disgusted with it,” said Ken Batt, a Havelock Street resident. The picture window of his house looks out on the Findlays’ front yard. “It was well looked after before.”
Batt wasn’t alone in his criticism of the natural yard. Two others sent e-mails and one left a voice message with the Mercury saying Findlay was being hypocritical when he suggested earlier in the week that parks may not be groomed often enough.
“I have a very clear and definite plan for what I intend to do with my front courtyard,” Findlay, the father of two small children, said.
“I am naturalizing it. I am getting another 300 trees next week to plant on here. As part of our effort to be a little more environmentally aware — I like to walk the walk and talk the talk.
“Janet and I had a very comprehensive discussion about how we could make changes in our personal lives, and one of them is to create a more naturalized area for our family to enjoy.”
Earlier in the week, Findlay said the city’s grass-cutting policy at parks should be reviewed.
Cutting is done every 10 days, but he said in the months of April, May and June it may need to be done more frequently to keep up with the rapid growth.
