Hopkinton News : Gould Hill Orchard

Orchard gets new management

Goffstown Editor — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 18:44:00 GMT

The fruits growing at Gould Hill Farm and Orchards won’t be the only things new this fall.

After previously being run by the Leadbeater family, Erick and Susan Leadbeater announced a local family has leased the Hopkinton property and has already begun to work toward this season’s opening.

Amy and Tim Bassett, who live in Hopkinton with their three children, have been working closely with the Leadbeaters in order to get acclimated to the day-to-day operations while eyeing an Aug. 14 kickoff.

The farm, which harvests peaches, plums, nectarines, pumpkins and more than 80 varieties of apples each year, is scheduled to remain open until around Christmas.

“We are happy that we were able to find a young family to continue to run the farm,” said Erick Leadbeater.

For the last 10 years the Bassett family has lived in Hopkinton, and part of the motivation for leasing the farm came from Tim Bassett’s upbringing on a dairy farm.

“My husband grew up on a dairy farm in Vermont, and he loved the experience of being close to his family,” said Amy Bassett. “He wanted to give that back to our three children so they could have the experience of us being around.”

Each year, Bassett said, she has brought her children to Gould Hill Orchard, taking in the view while picking apples.

Work on the orchard started for the Bassett family several months ago, and the couple is planning renovations and changes in the layout, including a bigger retail store and the inclusion of ice cream, doughnuts and baked goods for visitors.

“We intend to grow the business and the experience,” said Amy. “We want to eventually make it a year-round experience where guests can pick apples in the fall, pumpkins late in the season and continue through Christmas and maple sugaring. We want a hands-on experience.”

She said she is most looking forward to interacting with community members and visitors who come from long distances to visit the Contoocook mainstay.

Though the operators of the orchard have changed, the staff remains the same this year, and the Leadbeaters have been certain to make the transition as smooth as possible.

“They want to see us succeed,” said Amy Bassett. “We couldn’t have done it without their willingness to help. We’re going into it blind. Having them be part of it, it means everything. It means we will be successful.”

Science museum opens

Bow Editor — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 18:46:00 GMT

BY MATT SCHOOLEY

It may not yet be apple season, but visitors will soon be returning to Contoocook’s Gould Hill Orchard as the Little Nature Museum will be opening for the season.

The museum, run completely by volunteers, gives visitors a chance to learn about science with a hands-on focus.

“We started with a bunch of collections, and that can be pretty boring,” said Little Nature Museum Director Sandra Martin. “I like to remove things from the collections and have something to engage the visitor, instead of just reading the label.”

Although the museum is closed from the end of fall to the beginning of spring, Martin keeps busy planning the season’s programs.

One thing Martin hopes to improve for this season is to get more visitors to visit the museum before late summer.

“What I’d love to have is more visitors come earlier in the season. They all come during the apple-picking season, and they don’t get the most out of their visit,” Martin said. “That type of individual one-on-one experience is more likely to happen earlier in the season.”

Martin became interested in science while at the Museum of Science in Boston, where she learned to convey her passion for the subject.

“The Museum of Science is what got me inspired, and it was a hands-on experience. It got me to want to go into the field of science, and to start my own nature center,” she said. “The hands-on experience that I’ve had stayed with me all my life.”

Hopkinton’s Little Nature Museum may be smaller than some of the other area museums, but Martin said she would put the experience at her venue up against any other in the state.

“There aren’t too many places where you can get the experience that you can get here,” she said. “I don’t like the idea of having a one-size-fits-all museum.”

The status of Gould Hill Orchard is somewhat up in the air, Martin said she hopes the Rotary’s plan to sell shares could lead to one of the busiest summers the museum has seen.

“This year is going to be different. We’re trying to get a number of organizations to have different set ups for our Naturefest (in the fall). I hope by that time, the Rotary will be in the process of selling shares,” said Martin. “The number of visitors may surpass anything we’ve had in the past, maybe just out of curiosity.”

Until new programs begin, children can learn all about archeology on Saturday, April 19, from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m., when the Hopkinton Library hosts “Dig into the Past: The Mystery of the Sites.”

Sheila Charles, historic and archaeological research consultant and Strawbery Banke archeologist, will present a hands-on children’s program.

In addition, the museum is taking part in “Discover Wild New Hampshire,” at Fish and Game on Hazen Drive, Concord, on Saturday, April 26, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

For more information, visit www.littlenaturemuseum.org or call 746-6121.

Shareholders wanted for Hopkinton's Gould Orchard

Bow Editor — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 20:51:00 GMT

BY MATT SCHOOLEY

Hopkinton’s Rotary Club is making strides in purchasing Gould Hill Orchard, with hopes of owning the property by spring 2009.

After orchard owner Erick Leadbeater was unable to strike a deal with the town to purchase the land, he put the 58 acres on the market for $2.2 million.

In November, the Rotary Club developed a plan to purchase the land by selling shares for $1,000 each.

Jim Zeppieri, heading the Rotary’s project, said the group is now completing the paperwork so it can go forward with selling shares. With each share comes one vote to elect the board of directors that would hire a professional to run the day-to-day operations of the orchard.

“We tried to structure it so just about anyone can participate. We don’t want to limit it to just a few people who can afford a share. We’re hoping that kids at the schools may even come together and that way they can own a share,” said Zeppieri.

After attending public meetings on the plan and speaking with members of town, Zeppieri said he is optimistic.

“We’ve done a lot of outreach, and we haven’t really gotten any negative feedback,” said Zeppieri. “Some people don’t want to see town money spent on this, which is understandable. Regardless of the way people feel about that, everyone thinks our idea is a good idea. In general, the idea has been well received.”

In addition to what Zeppieri calls the “tangibles” of the orchard – the land – the group needs to purchase the development rights for what he expects to be no more than $2 million.

To fund the $2 million, Rotarians will turn to multiple sources. Zeppieri does not expect the town to pay more than $600,000 out of a $5 million fund set aside for land.

The group can get up to $500,000 from the Land and Community Heritage Investment Program, some funding from the Federal Farm and Ranch Land Protection Program, and another portion from private foundations and public donations, he said.

Those five groups would cover the development rights, and selling the shares would cover the remainder of the cost.

Zeppieri expects to begin selling shares in late spring or early summer, once documents are submitted to the state.

“We’re hoping once the orchard opens for business again, we’ll be able to sell some more shares as well. And by around Thanksgiving, we hope to have raised all the money we need, and we can actually purchase the property,” said Zeppieri.

If the property is purchased by fall, Zeppieri expects to have the land running under Rotary and shareholder ownership by spring 2009.

Selectman George Langwasser said he hasn’t received enough feedback from residents yet to gauge interest in town.

“I don’t know if the town will buy into it, I have no idea. I haven’t had a bunch of folks call me one way or another to say whether they do or do not like it. I heard (the Rotary’s) presentation and it does make sense if things do come together,” said Langwasser.

Selectmen need to develop a plan of action one way or another, and work with the Open Space Committee to determine how much the town could invest in the property.

Gould Hill Orchard has been in the Leadbeater family since his father purchased the land in 1939. The 58-acre section for sale on the 80-acre property includes buildings, storage, the barn and orchards.

“It’s a working farm, and you hate to see those kinds of things just fade into the twilight. A lot of people come and visit the orchard in the fall,” said Langwasser. “It’s been a mainstay in town for a good number of years. Something like that is part of New Hampshire heritage and you hate to see it go by the wayside.”

Buy a share in the farm

Bow Editor — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 21:10:00 GMT

BY MATT SCHOOLEY

Though the apple trees of Gould Hill Orchard are surrounded by snow, interest in purchasing 58 acres of the Contoocook property is finally heating up.

The Hopkinton Rotary Club has put together a proposal to purchase the land and will hold a public informational meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 29, at Hopkinton Town Hall to share their plan for preserving the property.

Rotarian Jim Zeppieri has been working with Howard Moffett of Concord’s Orr and Reno law firm to find a way to raise money to purchase the land, which is currently listed by LandVest for $2.2 million.

After the town couldn’t come up with a plan to purchase the land, Gould Hill Orchard owner Erick Leadbeater still hasn’t received interest from any potential buyers.

Although the Rotary Club is sponsoring the effort to purchase the farm, no direct funding from the club is being sought. The money would be raised by selling $1,000 shares to residents across the state.

Purchasing a share in the orchard would entitle the buyer to one vote in the cooperative, and shareholders would be responsible for electing a board of directors. The board of directors would hire a professional to manage the day-to-day operations.

“The orchard is one of the crown jewels of the town and we need to preserve it. It’s been a family tradition to go there and I hate to see that lost,” said Zeppieri.

“Our plan has been very well received so far, and we also have some non-Rotarians volunteering and helping with it.”

Moffett, the lawyer Zeppieri is teaming up with on the project, worked previously on a similar effort involving the Canterbury Community Market.

“I’ve never done anything exactly like this. I’ve done some big projects, but nothing this ambitious. The fact that he’s done this before means I’m getting a lot of good advice on how to proceed,” said Zeppieri. “It’s the aspect of coming together as a community to preserve something.

By being a shareholder you have a long-term stake in it. You get to give input on how it’ll be run in the future. It’s more compelling than just giving a donation.”

Zeppieri said there is a possibility the final sales price could be “substantially lower,” and that he has been consulting with Leadbeater to learn more about the orchard.

Leadbeater said he is excited to have interest in the property stirred up.

“I don’t know much about it yet. Hopefully, I can get to the meeting and talk to the framers of this. I’m encouraged that there is some interest,” he said. “I look forward to talking to folks more about it.”

Although the process will be complicated, Zeppieri is looking forward to pushing forward with the effort.

“We’re having discussions with the Leadbeater family and trying to figure out as much as we can,” he said. “If we go the cooperative route and try to purchase it, it will be a challenging fundraising effort.”