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Date: 4/6/2021
BLANDFORD - During a public zoom informational meeting on March 26, Pudding Hill Farm owners Thomas Fielding and Scott O’Connor introduced their proposed indoor cannabis micro cultivation business.
Their plan is to grow 30 to 40 plants annually in a 250 square-foot corner of the barn on the 14-acre farm at 1 Julius Hall Rd., which they purchased in September, 2019.
Fielding and O’Connor previously ran a restaurant, Lindbergh’s Corner in Portsmouth, NH, for 12 years, and then a wine and cheese shop on Cape Cod for 12 years. Although cannabis is a new crop for them, they said they have been growing fruits and vegetables for decades. The partners have a three-year contract with Mike Grasso of Grasso Development, who has helped to set up cannabis cultivation businesses in Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, Orange and Hull.
The cannabis will be in a secure room in the newer section of the barn built in 2004, leaving the original barn as-is. They will have state-of-the-art odor mitigators and 24-hour security cameras, alarm system and security door, per the guidelines of the Cannabis Control Commission (CCC). They said the plants will be all organic, with no pesticides or herbicides used.
O’Connor said there will be no nuisance with the business that will affect the community; no foot traffic and no car traffic, as they will hand deliver the “flower” – the harvested cannabis plants – they sell from the plants to dispensaries across the state. No minors will be permitted in the space, and they will be the primary and sole employees.
“We live right here. We’ll be getting up in the morning, tending to plants,” O’Connor said, calling themselves “semi-retired, gentlemen farmers.”
A Host Community Agreement (HCA) was signed with the town a few weeks ago, which gives the town a percentage of the gross sales for maintenance and upkeep of the roads. They said the town has been very supportive of the venture.
“It’s a wonderful thing for smaller towns – extra cash to help with budgets,” O’Connor said, who added that for them it’s a way to augment social security. With the HCA signed, they will now start the process with the CCC.
Also at the meeting were neighbors Greg and Terri Garfield,who spoke in support of the proposal.
“Terri and I think they are the best neighbors we ever had,” Garfield said.
O’Connor said they have a roster of local people helping them with construction, as well as local electricians and plumbers.
“In having the store and the restaurant, we have always cherished our place in the community, because we know it’s essential to contribute to the community. Living in Blandford is a dream,” O’Connor said.