A local apartment is decked out in flowers, but the welcoming atmosphere doesn’t end at the front door.
In a neighbourhood home to many of New Westminster’s lowrise rental buildings, Libby Manor sets itself apart from the others with the flower baskets that adorn its Eighth Street frontage each spring and summer.
“We are well known for doing this,” says building manager Dave Hay. “I get compliments wherever I go. People talk to you as they walk by – ‘Oh, how nice the building looks.’”
A former tenant of Libby Manor started the patio gardens years ago, a tradition that Hay and Christina Leong have carried on.
“We have been doing it for years and years. Mary thought she would get some flowers growing. The couple next door thought that was cool and they got some planters going,” Hay recalls. “Before you knew it, we got the whole front going.”
Each spring, Hay scrubs down the white planters that line the first-floor patios of the building and gets to work planting assorted annuals to brighten up the building.
“This year, we spent $1,200 on it. Last year it was $1,000,” he says about the flowers and soil purchased each year. “Why do we do it? Just the joy of doing it.”
But that’s just the beginning, as the flowers require daily watering and deadheading to keep them looking spiffy all summer long.
“We try and keep it really multi-coloured,” Hay says. “This year, we spent a bit more because we tried some flowers we didn’t have before. They were really beautiful.”
Libby Manor’s planter boxes have made it a bit of a landmark in the Brow of the Hill neighbourhood, with people often stopping by to comment on the flowers and others
using it as a point of reference when giving directions in the area.
While the Brow of the Hill and adjacent Moody Park neighbourhoods have an abundance of rental buildings, Libby Manor’s planters have enticed tenants to move in.
“That’s a big draw,” he says. “Many people have moved in because of the way the building looks.”
D.D. Desrocher had just moved into a nearby highrise and went for a walk through the neighbourhood to get her bearings, when she spotted Libby Manor.
Seeing the flowers, she instantly wanted to move in – and she did as soon as her lease was up and a unit became available.
“It’s a jewel, just a little jewel,” she says.
The flower planters, however, are just a hint of the welcoming vibe Hay has tried to create inside the Libby Manor. The lobby features several sofas, an artificial fireplace, tables and a stereo playing music – and seasonal decorations for Easter, Halloween, Valentine’s Day and Christmas.
“It’s just lovely,” Hay says. “It’s like home here. They really enjoy it here.”
Tenants often meet in the lobby for tea and treats around 3 p.m., but they gather en masse for the annual Christmas party.
“To know we are in the right place, it’s a good feeling,” says tenant Violet Szabo. “We feel at home here. Any time we come here, we are home.”
