Trees being grown at the Vernon Seed Orchard Company site (photo by Liam Verster / Vernon Matters)

By Liam Verster

valuable services

Tree farm leases extended for 35 years

Mar 13, 2024 | 5:00 AM

The organizations that plant and grow trees in Vernon have received long-term lease extensions.

A declassified motion from Vernon council’s in-camera meeting Monday, March 11, showed the lease for lands occupied by the Vernon Seed Orchard Company and Pacific Regenerative Technologies had been renewed for a 35 year period, effective January 1, 2024.

The agreements also set increases to the base rents for the two companies.

Vernon Seed Orchard will see rent for the 194.6 acre property, located at 6555 Bench Row Rd., across from Carlson Park, increase to $65,310 in the first year of the agreement. It will then go up to $67,270 for the second year, $69,230 for year three, $75,540 for the fourth year, and $76,500 for the fifth year.

Renewal Pacific will see rent for its 57.5 acre property on Bench Row Rd. that houses multiple large scale nursery greenhouses, increase to $18,213.58 for the first year. Base rent will then rise to $18,819.56 for year two, $19,435.54 for the third year, $20,956.52 for year four, and finally to $21,526.50.

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The base rent for both properties will be up for renegotiation following appraisals after the five year term.

Both properties have also seen their required amount of liability insurance increase to $5-million.

Speaking with Vernon Matters, Mayor Victor Cumming stated the two companies provide valuable services.

“[Vernon Seed Orchard] actually creates the seed to create the conifers that are planted in our Crown Lands in B.C. and then in many places of the world,” Cumming said.

“Then Pacific Reproduction Technologies takes those seeds, and other seeds, and they grow the seedlings, and those seedlings are for replanting after logging and forestry operations.”

The mayor stated these are “key enterprises for the City of Vernon,” adding “they do a good job of making quality use of our treated effluent” in their operations.

He also said the 35 year lease allows for stability in their long-term work on the Agricultural Land Reserve properties they occupy.

Vernon Seed Orchard has been situated at its location since 1989, and Pacific Reproduction Technologies has leased its lands since 1992. The new leases will allow them to occupy the properties until December 31, 2058.

The Vernon Orchard Seed Company (above) and the Pacific Reproduction Technologies (below) sites on Bench Row Rd. (photos by Liam Verster / Vernon Matters)