Update: November 2019
November 12th – the demo team came in to take down the mustard-colored house at 82 Ridge St. This building had been abandoned and vacant for decades. Originally, when the farm started thinking about creating a kitchen/classroom space, the house was looked at as a remodel option. However, this house was too far gone, moldy, and completely the wrong layout for the farm’s dream. It made more sense to start anew. So, here’s to new beginnings!
Please note that the farm parking lot at 82 Ridge St. will be inaccessible during construction.
Update: October 2019
Update: July 2019
After our successful Green Match Challenge, we’ve been working diligently to figure out the rest of the equation.
So far we’ve raised $2.35 Million of our $3 Million Goal.
We’ve been in close discussion with the town and our architects, builders, and sustainability advisors to figure out all the details. We have updated schematics of the latest layouts. This most recent plan is smaller than our original plan. We are really happy with this change as it has preserved all the important pieces of the project that will be needed for farm programming, while simplifying the overall construction and building envelope – thus bringing our the overall price down.
Update: June 2019
Background of the All Seasons Barn
Over the last 10 years, our dedicated staff, hundreds of committed volunteers, and countless generous donors have turned this raspberry-patch into a thriving sustainable farm that nourishes, educates, and connects our community. The outpouring of support, participation, and demand for what we offer has been truly humbling. It is obvious that our community is hungry for the opportunities the farm can provide. However, our ability to meet this current demand and to continue to grow and extend our reach is now limited by the constraints of our facilities.
The All Seasons Barn will serve to:
Educate leaders and educators of tomorrow with internships, classes, job opportunities, and conferences for youth and adults hungry to learn. A year-round facility allows us to collaborate with schools and universities on an academic year schedule and build more efficient, long-lasting partnerships.
Provide cooking and nutrition education with a teaching kitchen to better serve our existing community, collaborate with hospitals, patient groups, and other local food and social-justice organizations. Improve accessibility for special needs groups and those with mobility challenges so even more people can enjoy the Farm.
Provide twice the capacity for programming and the ability to hold year-round programs. We won’t have to turn away interested school groups or cancel community events for lack of a safe retreat from bad weather.
Sustain and steward the Farm for generations to come. This building will foster sustainability on multiple fronts: year-round programming will stabilize our financial model and the building will be a key element in working towards becoming a Net Zero operation.
NOW is the time for the All Seasons Barn!
- We are limited by the constraints of our facilities
- Our education programs and events are at full capacity in terms of facilities and staff
- We lack heated indoor space, so our operations cease for five months out of the year
- We have no commercial kitchen on premises for teaching or fully utilizing the crops in our fields
- Demands on our staff are high, we need the resources to employ full-time year-round staff to accommodate the growing interest in our farm
- We rely on donations for the maintenance of our irreplaceable historic buildings
It Takes a Community to Raise a Barn!
Interested in making a pledge, or getting involved in our campaign?
Contact Executive Director, Archie McIntyre:
Email: amcintyre@wlfarm.org
Phone: 781-760-1017
