Gardeners face 'big shock' of Sunnyside Greenhouses suddenly closing this week

Sunnyside Greenhouses Ltd. is closing Thursday after 100 years of selling flowers and shrubs to loyal Calgary customers.

For many, a visit to the popular garden centre at 3439 69th Street N.W. was a ritual to mark the start of spring.

The owners, Grant and Warren Jensen, announced back in March that they had sold the Bowness site to a developer, but at the time said they would stay open for the 2018 gardening season.

Customers were surprised when they started seeing signs marking May 31 as the final day. Its large warehouse-style rooms are empty except for shelves, a few leftover flowers and office furniture for sale.

"It's quite a shock, big shock. That's really sad, actually very sad," said Sue Campbell, who's shopped there for 12 years. "It's convenient, it's terrific. Now I'm going to have to drive way far to something like this."

There are other garden centres in the city but she worries the plants will suffer in her hot car on the drive back. She used to visit Sunnyside six to seven times a season.

Don Stinton was casing the centre for whatever was left on Wednesday evening. He has been a customer for the past four decades, and lives just up the hill.

"I'll miss it. I'll miss the convenience and the good products," he said. "I thought they were open all summer but I missed the memo they were closing the end of the month."

He says he can understand families can't keep their businesses open indefinitely, and younger generations may wish to pursue a different field.

The owners declined to do an interview.

The greenhouse closure is a sign the neighbourhood is moving in a new direction, said longtime Bowness resident Suzanne Van Elsander, who used the store as a landmark when giving directions.

"Everyone knows where Sunnyside is," she said.

"I hate to see it go. I love Bowness. It's been a small town, and it just seems to be changing from what it was."

The garden centre site will be used for a mixed-use building, the owners have said.

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