River Farm No Longer For Sale By American Horticultural Society

FORT HUNT, VA — River Farm, a community attraction that was once one of George Washington's farms, is no longer listed for sale by the American Horticultural Society.

AHS announced it would keep River Farm as its headquarters. The property had been listed for $32.9 million in late 2020 with AHS citing financial challenges exacerbated by the pandemic.

"Thanks to the overwhelming outpouring of support from our American Horticultural Society members and donors, neighbors and stakeholders, public officials and the community over the past year, we are extremely pleased to announce that River Farm will continue to be our national headquarters and remain a priceless asset for the general public and future generations to enjoy," AHS stated on its website. "We are grateful to all of those individuals and groups who rallied around us to help preserve and protect this historic property."

When the property was put up for sale, community members rallied to keep River Farm as a publicly-accessible resource. River Farm is not only AHS headquarters but a popular spot for the community to enjoy its gardens and host events such as weddings.

The Save River Farm movement highlighted the condition of Enid Annenberg Haupt's financial gift that allowed AHS to purchase the property in 1973. The group argued that her gift to AHS was under the condition of keeping the grounds accessible to the public.

AHS previously maintained that the gift did not have the condition but that River Farm was kept publicly accessible anyway. Now the organization is sharing a new stance.

"First and foremost, we know that it is our ongoing ethical responsibility to honor the wishes of our benefactor Enid Annenberg Haupt, who provided the funds to purchase River Farm in 1973," AHS stated. "Her only stipulations were that River Farm serve as the national headquarters of AHS and that the beautiful grounds and gardens remain open for public enjoyment."

AHS took River Farm off the market after the board could not come to an agreement on selling the property. The board rejected several offers from NOVA Parks, which was working with the Northern Virginia Conservation Trust on the Save River Farm movement. As reported by the Washington Post, the board was not considering an offer from former Department of Education official A. Wayne Johnson to purchase River Farm and adjacent sites for a luxury resort.

The change in direction for River Farm comes as AHS experiences changes in leadership. As noted by NVCT executive director Alan Rowsome in a statement last week, the AHS executive director and several board members resigned.

"Over the past few months, the divisions that existed on AHS' board had prevented them from moving forward as an organization, and hopefully that changes now," Rowsome stated on Sept. 30. "We are excited to work together with the new leadership of AHS to support them and to ensure that River Farm remains an incredible community asset that honors the cultural, historical, and natural legacy it represents."

River Farm remains temporarily closed to the public for walk-in visits. AHS said reopening River Farm to the public and restarting the garden volunteer program would be top priorities in the coming days and weeks.

AHS also said it would work with public and private partners to "fortify safeguards that will eliminate the threat of development on the property permanently."

As for its financial future, AHS will launch a fundraising campaign to secure long-term operations of River Farm, help it remain an open space and make a platform for horticultural programs with a national reach. AHS is also celebrating its 100th anniversary.