History of animals and Eby Farm

The Eby Farmstead was named after the Eby Family who actively farmed the land until 1890 when they sold the land to the “Town of Waterloo” for the purpose of constructing a public park. Eby Farm has been a beloved part of Waterloo Park since the late 1960s when it was gifted to the City’s parks board of management from the Waterloo Lions Club as a Centennial project. The original project was promoted as a “zoo” (live animal display) but later became known as the Eby Farmstead. The live animal display started out with deer and then grew into having wild animals including black bears, cougars, and timber wolves. In 1990 due to safety concerns for the animals and staff the live animal display transitioned to exhibiting domestic animals.

Some of today’s challenges of the Farmstead are based on changing societal trends and the changing demographics of park visitors. There is a societal shift away from the display of animals for entertainment that needs to be considered as the City explores options for the Eby Farmstead. Visitors to Waterloo Park are less likely to be familiar with agricultural practices that are representative of the animal care at Eby Farmstead. The model of caring for the “livestock” as “livestock” is not acceptable to all visitors.

Past Eby Farm Studies

The 1989 Waterloo Park Plan acknowledged the attraction and popularity of the live animal display and recommended improvements to the area, as does the 2009 WPP.

In 1992 the City commissioned the “Eby Farm Study a program definition and implementation plan”. The study was undertaken to provide staff with a concept and implementation strategy for the development of Eby Farm.

The 1992 study set a mandate to preserve the agricultural heritage of the Waterloo area. The goals and objectives of the study were to make improvements to the animal display that promote the traditional values of respect and care towards animals and an understanding of the historically based working relationship. This was to be accomplished through year-round free educational opportunities and programming in a rural landscape feel.

In 2009, the City undertook the development of the Waterloo Park Plan. Within the Plan there are a number of recommendations, design considerations and a preferred conceptual design for the Farmstead area. The WPP preferred design carried forward some of the design considerations from the 1992 Implementation Plan. The 2009 WPP acknowledges the requirement for improvements and upgrades to the Farmstead area.

The recommendations within the 2009 WPP for Eby Farmstead have not been implemented, however in 2016, an updated vision for the area emerged through the Functional Study of the Central Promenade through Waterloo Park. Although the project focus was towards the Central Promenade, the consultants studied relationships between the promenade and adjacent spaces. Aligned with the current WPP direction to retain and reconfigure the live animal displays, the study identified the Eby Farmstead area as a place that may accommodate programming possibilities of a major urban park such as flexible spaces, inclusion of a central pavilion (covered shelter, wash/change rooms), a central plaza and a natural amphitheatre that offers all-season interest and attractions.

In 2025 the City will be engaging Council, the Public and Staff in a comprehensive review and update to the Waterloo Park Plan. A conscious decision was made to address the Eby Farmstead ahead of the Park Plan renewal to ensure that the correct amount of time, resources and discussion was spent to decide on the role that live animals will play in Waterloo Park. The Eby Farmstead has been studied for the past 35 years with extensive plans and reports documenting the need for improvements, staff feel including this discussion into another Park Plan may not result in change.

In June of 2023 staff met with the Waterloo Park Advisory Committee, a committee of Council, to discuss the future of the Eby Farmstead. Committee members discussed the current operation of the Eby Farmstead and concluded that the public should be engaged before an alternative use for the space is proposed.