Most of the views on this farm are familiar. Last year’s running all over the farm fencing in all kinds of animals afforded me some bucolic gems—the view of 2013’s vegetable field from the triangle of weeds where we grazed the horses in desperate drought-induced ingenuity, the whole farm view from the top of Beef Hill, the eastern side of the barnyard seen over a stretch of clover, the back pasture.
So a few days ago, when Matt and I were flipping through daily photos on his smart phone, I was struck by this picture:
So a few days ago, when Matt and I were flipping through daily photos on his smart phone, I was struck by this picture:
I had never seen this view before, and I was confused. The next picture, though, cleared it all up:
The picture that confused me is the view from the scaffold where Matt was putting up siding on the new building, a view I haven’t seen.
The building he is working on is the hope of Greyrock Farm. I try not to think in absolutes, and also try not to place all my eggs in one basket nor count chickens before they hatch, but it’s hard not to think of this building as a real game-changer for the farm.
In its prior incarnation, this was the old machine shop on the farm. It was crowded with tools, lengths of hose, a complete glass pipeline for a dairy, broken things and old things. The dark, crumbling basement was where we wintered pigs.
In September, Matt started clearing the whole thing out, and in October, Dale Rodgers and Erik Wardle came from Vermont to get the project moving. It has been a wild experience, not without its hardships. In the toughest moments, I tell myself that this is all in the service of learning, of experience.
But with the siding up, with walk-in coolers framed out and waiting for insulation, this feels like it could actually be real.
The center of the building, the old machine shop, will be our new distribution space. Instead of shivering and watching vegetables freeze in our current set-up in the old dairy barn, we’ll have a comfortable, heated space for CSA members and Farmstand customers. We’re hoping that in time, this space will become an aggregation point where restaurants and eaters can find food from a range of local producers.
The south wing holds three walk-in coolers, which will allow us to store our produce, as well as produce from other growers. We also have space for a walk-in freezer, which is a dream for another day. The north wing will have a food-processing kitchen where we can preserve food on a commercial scale. It will also be where the farm crew cooks and eats meals, which is a huge improvement over the cramped kitchen where we currently eat. The new basement, with its slick, radiant heated floors, will have a shower, some storage, housing for visitors, and probably an office and hangout space for farmers. A friend dropped a combination foosball-air hockey table off last week, so that could make its way in.
It’s a promising new view. In our best hopes for the farm and for this new project, the building becomes a community space for movies, lectures, and meetings. We’re adding our part to the growing food movement in our area, making it easier for our neighbors to find the food they want to eat and for farmers to get it to them. Now and then, of course, we’d also like to have a rowdy barn dance.
You can learn some more about this project—also about donating to help fund it—over at the “Barn Renovation Project” tab on our website.
Gillian
The building he is working on is the hope of Greyrock Farm. I try not to think in absolutes, and also try not to place all my eggs in one basket nor count chickens before they hatch, but it’s hard not to think of this building as a real game-changer for the farm.
In its prior incarnation, this was the old machine shop on the farm. It was crowded with tools, lengths of hose, a complete glass pipeline for a dairy, broken things and old things. The dark, crumbling basement was where we wintered pigs.
In September, Matt started clearing the whole thing out, and in October, Dale Rodgers and Erik Wardle came from Vermont to get the project moving. It has been a wild experience, not without its hardships. In the toughest moments, I tell myself that this is all in the service of learning, of experience.
But with the siding up, with walk-in coolers framed out and waiting for insulation, this feels like it could actually be real.
The center of the building, the old machine shop, will be our new distribution space. Instead of shivering and watching vegetables freeze in our current set-up in the old dairy barn, we’ll have a comfortable, heated space for CSA members and Farmstand customers. We’re hoping that in time, this space will become an aggregation point where restaurants and eaters can find food from a range of local producers.
The south wing holds three walk-in coolers, which will allow us to store our produce, as well as produce from other growers. We also have space for a walk-in freezer, which is a dream for another day. The north wing will have a food-processing kitchen where we can preserve food on a commercial scale. It will also be where the farm crew cooks and eats meals, which is a huge improvement over the cramped kitchen where we currently eat. The new basement, with its slick, radiant heated floors, will have a shower, some storage, housing for visitors, and probably an office and hangout space for farmers. A friend dropped a combination foosball-air hockey table off last week, so that could make its way in.
It’s a promising new view. In our best hopes for the farm and for this new project, the building becomes a community space for movies, lectures, and meetings. We’re adding our part to the growing food movement in our area, making it easier for our neighbors to find the food they want to eat and for farmers to get it to them. Now and then, of course, we’d also like to have a rowdy barn dance.
You can learn some more about this project—also about donating to help fund it—over at the “Barn Renovation Project” tab on our website.
Gillian
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