Owners announce sale of Whiteland Orchard

Forty-five years ago, nothing but farm fields and country roads surrounded the Whiteland Orchard.

Glenn and Becky Haveman purchased the property in 1975, and ever since, they’ve offered an agritourism experience with apples, pumpkins, cider and other products that countless people cherished.

But the area is shifting, with development around them accelerating. So, it is time for a change, the Havemans said.

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The Havemans Wednesday night announced on Facebook the sale of Whiteland Orchard, a staple in the small Johnson County community. They are ready for retirement, and as warehouses and other development pop up all around them, this seemed like the right time to do that.

“We’re ready for retirement (and) they were ready to buy, so we sold. It’s been a good life,” Becky Haveman said. “But we want to do the things we want to do, the fun things. We haven’t been on a vacation for years. It’s a 24/7 operation.”

The orchard sits in the midst of an expansive development boom that has started and is planned west of Interstate 65 and north of Whiteland Road, including a 996,000-square-foot warehouse under construction for Cooper Tire, which the orchard butts up to, and another project by Mohr Capital that calls for four buildings ranging in size from 330,720 square feet to 800,000 square feet for a total of 2.3 million square feet.

Mohr last month announced a scaled-down version of its plan, much to area residents’ surprise. The project was expected to span about 475 acres total, west of Interstate 65 and north of Whiteland Road, and cost $325 million.

The Whiteland Town Council was poised to rezone a 154.5-acre property owned by Bright Farms in addition to rezoning a 184-acre property owned jointly by Zella Haveman, Eighth Generation and O’Brien Properties. But Mohr announced they were hitting pause — for now — on development of the smaller property.

Now, Mohr’s project will stretch from Tracy Road to the north, Whiteland Road to the south, Interstate 65 to the east and County Road 225 East to the west. The area, currently farmland with a few residential properties, was rezoned to I-1, light industrial. Whiteland Orchard is on the far west side of the planned development.

The orchard encompasses about 30 acres, with three greenhouses and a farm store. People would come out to pick up bags of Jonathan, Honeycrisp, Red Delicious and September Wonder Fuji apples, among a range of other varieties. The orchard’s fresh-pressed cider was one of its most popular products — it was not pasteurized and was only available from September through December.

During the spring, people would buy vegetable plants and flowers to stock their own gardens. Summer brought the bounty of fresh-grown Indiana produce such as zucchini, green beans, okra and tomatoes. Generations of families came to the pumpkin patch to pick out that perfect Halloween gourd.

In the farm store, customers could buy local honey, apple butter, jellies, preserves and other products.

The orchard’s first trees were planted in 1933 by Edgar Brown, the original owner of the land. Brown sold the orchard to Carl and Irene Johnson, who tended to it until the Havemans purchased it.

Glenn and Becky Haveman both attended the Ohio State University and studied agronomy and nursing in college. Their vision was to one day own a farm, so buying the Whiteland Orchard seemed like a dream come true.

“We’ve been here for 45 years, we’ve raised five kids and had 10 grandkids out here. It’s been good to us,” Becky Haveman said.

But with I-65 so close to their property, the Havemans knew that development was a possibility.

“We knew sometime down the line there would be development, but it’s just grown so much,” Becky Haveman said.

Part of the charm of Whiteland Orchard is coming out to the country, experiencing the farm life that most people never see anymore, she said. The more development that surrounds the property, the more the atmosphere is diminished.

“You come out and see the apple trees, the pumpkin patch, you’re out in the country around the cornfields. Now, that’s not going to be there,” Becky Haveman said. “The whole thing is changing. It’s not peaceful and quiet anymore.”

The coronavirus pandemic also played a part in the decision. Safety restrictions and precautions to keep themselves and their customers safe grew increasingly complicated, and the pandemic hurt sales on the products.

“With our age, we’re in that high-risk area for COVID. When you start thinking with the COVID how many couples, both of them died, and they didn’t get to say goodbye,” Becky Haveman said.

The Whiteland Orchard farm store will remain open until Nov. 14. The Havemans have already heard from dozens and dozens of customers who shared how much the orchard has meant to them over the years.

The Havemans will continue to hold onto the memories of the hard work and time spent building up their farm. Being able to raise their children around the orchard, then helping their grandchildren learn about agriculture and growing, has been incredibly fulfilling, Becky Haveman said.

“We get to telling stories, telling them things and teaching them things,” she said. “It’s been a good life, but this chapter is going to close.”

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Whiteland Orchard

What: Owners Glenn and Becky Haveman have announced the sale of their orchard, a beloved agritourism site for 45 years

When was it founded: 1933, by Edgar Brown; the Havemans purchased it in 1975

How big: 30+ acres, with three greenhouses and a farm store

When will it close: Nov. 14

Information: whitelandorchard.com

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