Words Jo Barnes
Photos Sarah Hartley Photography
For years, people at this site have been taking a swing towards flag markers to improve their golf game.
Now, at Island View Farm & Mini Golf, the owners and their team are enthusiastically taking a swing towards regenerative farming and restoration of the land.
“Ten years ago, the driving range closed,” relates Ashton Simon, farm manager. “There have been several attempts at restoration. A farmer grew grain crops here, and there was also a market garden here at one point.”
The ten-acre site off Central Saanich Road is a very familiar site to any passerby driving along the Pat Bay Highway. General manager and co-owner, Shawn Smith, says: “As we learned about the opportunity on this property, the vision started to coalesce around a beautiful place to create living soils, healthy food and deep community, all in a way that could sustain itself financially.”
Siblings Wilf, Dagmar and Karin Wanke are the primary owners who purchased the property in August 2024. While a beautiful family mini golf area still remains, the long-neglected driving range area is being transformed into a thriving agricultural space. Shawn outlines the dramatic changes which have taken place. “We’ve added six acres of perimeter fencing, acres of drip irrigation, a 2,000-square-foot greenhouse, processing facilities, plans for an acre of market garden, 1,000 apple trees for a future cidery, a farm store, mountains of organic compost to build up the soil from prior golf uses, nine goats, some ducks and 40 chickens and all the related infrastructure for animal care.”
It has been a massive undertaking, as the property initially presented many challenges. “The land is about four feet higher than surrounding areas because fill was brought in when it was developed into a golfing business. There were chunks of rock and even cement slabs in the ground, and also a lot of golf balls,” says Ashton, adding emphatically: “We’re still digging them up!”
Ashton designs and manages the day-to-day farm activity and runs all programming and product lines. There are two part-time staff, others who work both farm and mini golf, and summer student staff. Overall, it’s very much a family venture. “We were looking for a meaningful project as an extended family,” relates Shawn. “Karin is my mom, and my cousins, Dagmar and Wilf’s daughters respectively, are also part of the governance. So, its intergenerational and cross family collaboration.”
Regenerative practices including organic compost and cover cropping to enhance the soil structure, avoidance of sprays and pesticides, and the use of organic approved fertilizers are resulting in healthy soil and bountiful crops. The half-acre market garden planted last year, which generated a delicious abundance of produce, inspired the team to raise the bar. “In 2026, we are increasing the market garden to a full acre,” shares Ashton. “The goal is to have as diverse a market garden as possible.”
In addition, produce grown is sold in the onsite farm store which also offers pickles, jams and jellies, tea blends made from the produce and artisan goods made by locals and staff including macrame, jewellry, pottery and greeting cards.
This year the farm kicked off its first CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) box program. “Customers subscribing to the 20-week CSA will receive a ‘culinary box to inspire the inner chef’. In it will be a mix of produce items curated for taste and visual excitement,” relates Ashton. “There will be bonuses too in each box like samples, tea blends and plant starts.”
Shawn relates how this project is positively resonating with the local community: “We just heard from someone whose grandparents used to farm here before it was sold and converted to golfing use. They are participating in our new CSA program as a way of supporting its return to healthy food production.”
Community residents and visitors can still enjoy the fun of a round of mini golf, but now the greater landscape around them is being tended and sustained for the future and for local food security. “The biggest goal this year is for people to come check out the farm store, produce, seedlings, seeds and more on offer, as these all directly support the farm,” says Shawn.
“It’s a very special place and important work we are doing here,” shares Ashton. “It is really important to restore the farm land and secure the future of our ecosystem. We need to pay attention to this as it is the foundation to growing good food.”
It’s still a place to enjoy fun and friendship, but now visitors not only can appreciate the efforts being made to enhance the land, but they can also support the creation of a resilient food system. Island View Farm and Mini Golf is successfully aiming at an invaluable target on the green, that of reaching “par” in environmental sustainability. It’s a case not of “fore” but moving “forward.”
www.islandviewfarm.ca
