A very generous decision will now preserve an important aspect of history both for Kelowna and B.C.
That is how Kelowna historian Sharron Simpson described the announcement made Thursday (Oct. 3) that the Bennett family will donate their historic landmark family home to the Central Okanagan Heritage Society.
Cousins Steve Bennett, Mary-Jean Bennett and Allen Tozer stood under the archway separating the living room and dining room to make the announcement, in the home of their grandparents May and former B.C. premier W.A.C. Bennett and where their parents Bill, R.J. and Anita Bennett grew up.
"An old house without a use is just an old house," said Tozer, quoting his uncle R.J. Bennett's view of the family manor and the thought process that led the current generations of the Bennett family to come to a unanimous decision.
"You have to give back sometimes in life and I think our grandparents would have liked what we are doing here," added Steve Bennett, the son of former premier Bill Bennett.
The property was impacted more than 20 years ago with the development of a residential complex, the Bennett Estate on Bowes Street.
An agreement was reached with the strata council to oversee the home and for residents to use, but more than a year ago the strata council wanted to opt out of that agreement, saying the upkeep maintenance was becoming an issue.
After further attempts to reach an agreement failed, the Bennetts decided to put the house on the market, with an asking price of just under $3 million.
In the year since, Steve Bennett said while some businesses and other investors looked at the property, they never received a solid offer on paper to act on, while some suggestions from interested buyers of renovating the home to serve specific purposes did not sit well with the family.
"We just couldn't seem to find the right fit with a buyer...and our kids were not interested in doing anything with the house. They just wanted us to deal with it," he said.
"So about two weeks ago we came together and decided to donate it to the heritage society. It is exciting for us to have the opportunity to do this and we are at peace that under the society the house will be well looked after."
Janice Henry, chair of the Central Okanagan Heritage Society board, said she was "over the moon" upon hearing of the Bennett family's planned donation.
Henry said their hope was someone would buy the home and work out an arrangement with the society to preserve its history, so having it donated directly to their society was beyond their wildest dreams.
She said the society has talked with Kelowna Museums, Royal Museum of B.C., Okanagan College and UBC Okanagan about how to proceed, and will strike a committee to investigate further how the manor can best serve the community.
"We have to be mindful that we are part of a residential neighbourhood and be respectful of that," Henry said.
She said the initial thoughts of the society are to set up their administrative staff offices in the house, use the bedrooms to display and store Bennett family history memorabilia and open the house up to tours by local students and the public on a limited basis.
"We are also talking about using the house for weddings, anniversaries and smaller events, involving smaller groups similar to what we do with the Benvoulin Church grounds," Henry said.
Hosting events at the house would be a fitting use, Bennett added, as his grandparents enjoyed playing host to the community visiting their home during Christmas event celebrations and the annual strawberry tea events held every summer that attracted up to 15,000 people.
Simpson, a passionate advocate for preserving Kelowna's history, says Kelowna has grown to the point where a majority of residents don't realize or know the significance of the history of B.C. and of Kelowna that is attached to the Bennett home.
"In a city where we seem to always want to bulldoze over our history, I think for their grandparents W.A.C. and May Bennett this an appropriate legacy for them," Simpson said.
"After all we are all riding on the coattails of the generations in our families that came before us. This sets another standard for preserving the heritage of our city."
The local house landmark has actually been home to two prominent Kelowna families.
The 4,900-square-foot house was built by Francis DeHart, a land developer and important fruit industry leader in Kelowna's early years. He began building the large 2.5-storey Tudor Revival house on the seven-acre property in 1912.
The home encompassed many Tudor Revival style features such as steeply pitched hipped roofs, projecting bays, half-timbering on the upper part of the house, tall chimneys, multi-paned windows, stone foundations and stucco siding.
Many original and early interior details and elements remain in excellent condition today, from the intricate cherry-finished woodwork along the walls, various portions of original wallpaper, chandeliers and the grand staircase.
DeHart was also a talented horticulturalist, as he hybridized peonies with many of the varieties still in the gardens around the property today.
It was finished in 1914 and tagged with the name Brookside Manor.
Shortly after DeHart's death in 1935, the house was sold to W.A.C. and May Bennett, who had recently moved from Edmonton to the Okanagan and purchased David Leckie's hardware store on Bernard Avenue.
Bennett was first elected as B.C.'s premier in 1952, serving for just over 20 years in office, the longest tenure of any B.C. premier, until his Social Credit Party government was defeated by the NDP in 1972. He remained an MLA until his retirement from politics in 1973.
His son Bill then took on the Social Credit Party leadership mantle, winning the election in 1975 and continuing to serve as premier until he stepped down in August 1986.
