Save River Farm Momentum Builds With State, Local Support

FORT HUNT, VA — Weddings. Family outings. Community events. Fundraisers. River Farm has been an important setting for many neighbors over the years due to its picturesque gardens and history. Once the northernmost of George Washington's farms, it is now the headquarters of the American Horticultural Society (AHS) and a mainstay for visitors and special events.

But in September, AHS indicated it would put River Farm up for sale amid financial challenges exacerbated by the pandemic. Neighbors and officials began expressing concerns about the future of the historic property and whether it could be redeveloped and no longer publicly accessible under new ownership.

So began Save River Farm, a grassroots campaign to protect River Farm as a public property that will not be redeveloped or privatized. The campaign also raises money to support the Northern Virginia Conversation Trust's effort to purchase River Farm. The Northern Virginia Conservation Trust in partnership with NOVA Parks put in an offer to AHS to purchase the property in hopes of taking over River Farm and keeping it publicly accessible. The first offer was rejected, and another offer was submitted.

State and local officials, as well as neighbors, gathered outside River Farm Wednesday to urge AHS to accept an offer that would keep River Farm open to the public and preserve it. Attending officials included Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring, Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck, Virginia Sen. Scott Surovell, and Del. Paul Krizek.

"We're all here for one simple thing...to protect and preserve River Farm," said Storck, who has been part of the Save River Farm effort and pushed for protections at the county level.

The AHS board has framed protecting the property as a "hope," according to Storck, based on his conversations with its members.

"Hope is not enough. We need their commitment. We need to make sure that this in fact does get protected and preserved for the long term," said Storck.

Attorney General Herring has opened an investigation into the whether the terms of a gift AHS used to purchase River Farm are being honored and whether the public's interest is being protected as AHS considers selling it.

AHS had purchased River Farm in 1973 with funds provided by philanthropist Enid Annenberg Haupt, and the attending officials and neighbors believe keeping River Farm accessible to the public was a condition of Haupt's gift. AHS maintains that it was not a condition of Haupt's gift, but AHS nevertheless has kept River Farm open to the public.

"When Enid Annenberg Haupt graciously donated $1 million to AHS enabling them to buy the property, it was her condition that it be maintained as a center for horticultural excellence and that it be open and accessible to the public," said Herring. "As attorney general, I have the authority to ensure that charitable assets and gifts are used by beneficiaries in accordance with the donors' terms."

Herring said AHS has been cooperative during the investigation and willing to discuss "suitable options" for River Farm, which he hopes will remain accessible to the public.

"River Farm has been a proud Virginia institution for hundreds of years," said Herring. "Our first president owned this property, and so much of its history still has yet to be uncovered in study. Its magnificent gardens have wowed visitors over the year, and as an avid gardener myself, I know that there is nothing more gratifying than walking through such well-kept gardens. Residents of both Fairfax and Alexandria consider River Farm to be a centerpiece in their communities that they and their families have been able to enjoy for decades."

Herring's investigation is being done in conjunction with an investigation by DC Attorney General Karl Racine. DC is investigating since AHS is incorporated in Washington, DC.

Protecting River Farm Through Legislation

State and local officials have taken other steps to help protect River Farm amid the AHS effort to sell it.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors expedited a process to create a Historic Overlay District, which provides regulations over the standard zoning regulations to protect sites of historic value. Storck said hearings will be held in June, and he expects additional protections for the Historic Overlay District process will be approved to protect River Farm.

Storck added that legislation from state Sen. Scott Surovell supported efforts to create the Historic Overlay District in Fairfax County, and state Sen. Adam Ebbin and Del. Paul Krizek spearheaded a $2 million state commitment to preserve River Farm.

Collaboration between state and local officials sends a message to the AHS board that "they just can't do whatever they want with this property and that we're paying very close attention," Surovell said. The state senator and his wife got married at River Farm, making him one of many locals with fond memories of the landmark.

"There's hundreds and hundreds if not a thousand people who have done the same thing. There are community events that happen here every year," said Surovell.

Surovell also highlighted River Farm's historical significance as it was once owned by George Washington. The property has evidence of a home as early as 1760, and it was gifted to Washington's personal secretary. The property was later owned by Washington's nephew.

"This asset, this house, this property has been an absolutely essential critical historic asset to the Mount Vernon community, to the Northern Virginia community, to the Commonwealth of Virginia, for the last 200 years," said Surovell. "And now this board, full of a bunch of outsiders who don't live around here, from outside this state, have come in and decided they want to try and use it as a real estate development opportunity. We're not going to put up with that."

Update On River Farm Purchase Offer From Northern Virginia Conservation Trust

Storck said the AHS board has indicated it was working toward a "win-win-win" solution benefiting AHS, its members, neighbors and Fairfax County. He believes AHS accepting the purchase offer from the Northern Virginia Conservation Trust is a way to achieve that goal.

The Northern Virginia Conservation Trust (NVCT) made an offer for River Farm based on appraisal values, according to NVCT executive director Alan Rowsome. After months of not hearing back, the Northern Virginia Conservation Trust learned through a news release that AHS rejected that first offer, Rowsome said. Since then, NVCT made a second offer between $14 million and $16 million.

"In our view, it's a really good market-based offer that should be accepted," Rowsome said. "It's an opportunity for Fairfax County, for my organization, for NOVA Parks to run this property well, to take away that financial burden that AHS says is really saddling them, and to reopen these gates again which so badly need to be during this beautiful springtime when everybody wants to be out on the property."

AHS listed River Farm on the real estate market for $32.9 million. Surovell noted the tax assessed value of River Farm is just below $17 million.