Description of Historic Place

Pierrefonds Gardens is a small, rectangular, formal sunken garden situated adjacent to the Minoru Chapel in the southwestern portion of Minoru Park, a large urban park, established in 1909 and the site of the former Minoru Racetrack, in the centre of the City of Richmond.

Heritage Value

Designated by the City of Richmond in 1979, the historic significance of Pierrefonds Gardens is contained in the symbolism of the garden as a monument to the twinning of the City of Richmond with Pierrefonds, Quebec. Originally conceived in the Minoru Park master plan as a formal garden to complement the Minoru Chapel, it is also associated with the celebration of the Canadian centennial in 1967.

The garden has design attributes loosely based on French formal gardens of the Renaissance, including symmetry, axial geometry, and concept as an extension of the adjacent Chapel architecture. The garden follows the original design intent of Desmond Muirhead Landscape Architects.

Source: City of Richmond Clerk's Department File #4200-02.

Character-Defining Elements

Character-defining elements of Pierrefonds Gardens include:
- The formal design of the garden, which is rectangular and arranged around a pair of cross axes, with a diamond shaped paved area and formal monument, which commemorates the twinning of the City of Richmond with Pierrefonds, Quebec, in the centre
- The inclusion of design features of traditional western formal or French Classical gardens including symmetry, axial geometry, the garden seen as an extension of the house or structure, the division into quadrants, and its surrounding hedge
- The character of the plant material which includes clipped shrubbery, and L-shaped rose garden at the outside of each corner, and a lawn area with star-shaped planting beds containing topiary and annual planting reminiscent of a parterre broiderie
- The location of the garden below the grade of the surrounding park