Putnam - Southbridge Evening News

A10 • Friday, September 03, 2010
PUTNAM VILLAGER
An a-maze-ing treat
FORT HILL FARMS CORN MAZE AIMS TO EDUCATE
BY RICH HOSFORD
VILLAGER STAFF WRITER
THOMPSON — Everyone is
invited to come and get lost in the
Fort Hill Farms Corn Maze, and
then, once they find their way out,
to enjoy some locally produced ice
cream and, this Saturday only, listen
to stories from around the area.
The 9th annual Fort Hill Farms
Corn Maze is now open and ready
for adventurous spirits to come and
try and find their way through, all
while learning something about
agriculture and the history of ice
cream as they do so.
The maze is open Sunday
through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 5
p.m. and on Friday and Saturday
from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. The maze
will be open through Sunday, Nov.
7. The price of entry into the main
maze is $12 for adults and $10 for
children under 12 years of age.
There is also a smaller maze that is
only $7 per person. Fort Hill Farms
is located at 260 Quaddick Road,
Thompson.
The theme of this year’s corn
maze is the “History of Ice Cream.”
The farm recently started selling
“Farmer’s Cow” super premium
ice cream. The treat, made in
Manchester, is made with milk
from Fort Hill Farms. Farm owner
Kristin Orr said she wanted the
maze to be focused on ice cream to
highlight what a local farm can
produce.
“We wanted to do something
with what we make,” she said.
“The milk is local, and you can
meet the family that feeds and
milks the cows. When you buy
local, you are one step from the producer.
You can get to know and
trust them.”
The Farmer’s Cow Ice Cream is
also more natural than most massproduced
brands, Orr said. There
are no dyes or colorings, which
means that the mint chocolate chip
flavor, for example, is white instead
of the familiar green. It is different
than what most expect, but is better
because it is free of chemicals, Orr
explained.
There are two corn mazes at the
Fort Hill Farms. The main maze
covers seven acres and has about
three miles of trail. Orr said that if
someone undertakes the maze and
tries to find all of the clues, the
entire experience can last about 90
minutes.
There is also a smaller maze for
people who do not wish to walk the
length of the larger one. This maze
only takes about 30 minutes to complete.
In each maze, both children and
adults will feel the potential of getting
lost. Orr said the corn has
grown up to 10 feet high, or “as
high as an elephant’s eye,” sufficiently
high to let everyone jump
into the maze experience.
Orr said the maze is supposed to
be educational. Before entering the
maze each person is given a twopage
workbook filled with questions
and spaces for clues. As a person
moves through the maze, he or
she can find clues that answer the
questions and find pictures to copy
to unveil a hidden message. As one
does so, a person will learn about
the history of ice cream and some
fun facts about farming.
“The maze is not about speed,
about getting through in a certain
amount of time,” Orr said. “We
want people to do the game sheet
and learn about farming and the
history of ice cream. We want them
to come out of the maze with a better
understanding of agriculture.”
What the maze is not, Orr said, is
a Halloween theme. She said there
are many Halloween corn mazes in
the area and at Fort Hill Farms she
wanted to focus on agriculture and
life on a modern farm rather than
ghouls and ghosts.
“We want people to have an agricultural
experience without having
to wait until the fall,” she said. “In
summer there are not many farmrelated
activities so we wanted to
show that a farm can be fun at anytime.
We want people to get a bigger
picture — that beauty is part of
the farm experience.”
Also, on Saturday, Sept. 4, the
farm will host an “A-Maze-Ing
Story Slam,” hosted by professional
storyteller Carolyn Stearn.
People are invited to come and tell
a five to seven minute story on the
Courtesy photo
An aerial shot of the Fort Hill Farm Corn Maze in Thompson. The maze will be open
until Sunday, Nov. 7, at Fort Hill Farms at 260 Quaddick Road, Thompson.
theme “In A Quiet Corner.” The
slam will begin at 1 p.m.
“The story can be a personal
reflection, about a visit to a place in
the Quiet Corner or just have the
area be a backdrop,” Strean said. “I
wanted to make the them as broad
as possible so people can interpret
it as they see fit.”
The person that tells the best
story will win a Hot Air Balloon
flight by Brighter Skies
Ballooning, in South Woodstock.
“When you need a break from the
crowds at the Woodstock Fair this
weekend, come out and listen to
some stories in a beautiful and
peaceful farm,” Stearn said. “This
has the same spirit as the county
fairs — getting back to life on the
farm.”
For an example of a story about
life in the Quiet Corner, call (617)
499-9662 to hear “A Homecoming,”
told by Stearns.
Rich Hosford can be reached by
phone at (860) 928-1818 or by e-mail
at rich@villagernewspapers.com.
‘Visioning’ sessions shaping the future of downtown
FUTURE
continued from page A1
Initiated last May and facilitated by the
Putnam Economic and Community
Development Office and CME Associates, a
civil engineering firm from Woodstock, the
visioning sessions have held several meetings
with Putnam residents, engaging them
to talk about the strengths and weaknesses of
downtown.
Since the early meetings, a list of action
items have been created that the workshop
continues to debate and revise. Some of the
primary concerns for action are Putnam’s
streets and sidewalks, aesthetics and welcome,
planning and zoning and economy and
business.
The Zoning Commission has held workshops
over the last two years to revise and
update the Putnam zoning manual. It aims to
schedule public hearings in the near future
so all proposed updates can be discussed by
residents. Ultimately, the updated regulations
would have to go to a town meeting for
voter approval.
Patricia Hedenberg, chairperson of the
commission, said they plan to look at the
revised zoning regulations and thoroughly
compare them to the existing regulations and
make their decision on whether to move forward
with the public hearings.
“Our goal is to meet twice a month on top
of the regular meeting to work on these regulations,”
she said.
Filchak noted that whatever changes come
from the update, they would be folded into
the recently updated Plan of Conservation
and Development for Putnam. Updated every
10 years and submitted to NECCOG, which is
then submitted to the state, the plan serves as
a guiding document for municipal land use
boards when deliberating future development,
recreation and preservation.
“It’s always important to keep that document
current for the people,” he said.
Some residents told Filchak they would
like to lessen the density of specific residential
zones, which would make those properties
non-conforming.
“That’s not advisable,” he said. “I think we
have to make it more flexible to encourage
investment in those areas and the upkeep of
those properties. We should make it more
advantageous for home ownership than renting.
Usually properties get taken care of better.”
Filchak said areas along Route 44,
Providence Street and Kennedy Drive will
become mixed use zones, and the buildings
along those roads will be kept to scale for the
district’s development.
“It would present more opportunity for
small business,” he said. “On the ground
floor, they would have a business opportunity,
if they desire, that doesn’t exist now.”
Through the work of the Zoning
Commission and feedback from the visioning
sessions, Filchak said the hope is to create a
theme that is consistent with downtown
Putnam.
“We need to make the core downtown one
universal zone,” he said.
Resident Norm Perron said he appreciated
Filchak’s work on the aspects of zoning.
“It’s continuing to grow,” he said about the
visioning sessions. “There’s a lot of good people
involved. And about the redevelopment of
downtown, parking is an ongoing issue, and
the sidewalks. There are a lot of concerned
people, but I think they’re on the right track.”
Perron is the town’s fire marshal.
Resident Michael Morrill asked that if the
town is going to get redeveloped, would the
same need be present for various town services?
He said that it has been stated that 18 percent
of Putnam is low-income housing.
“The Connecticut guideline wants communities
to get to 10 percent,” he said. “That reason
is because research shows that’s a sustainable
number. When you get a lot over that
number, it starts to
create issues that
become more complicated
for that town to
deal with.”
Morrill cited that
the needs for a police
force, remedial
preschool resources
and family resource
centers may become
stressed by the town’s
redistricting of zones,
and wants to know
how that change will
affect the town.
“How does zoning
and planning and districting,
how is it
formed by what
Putnam would like to
become?” he asked. “If
we have an overrepresentation
of lowincome
housing in
Putnam, that creates
challenges in our
school district in our
town.”
Morrill said
Putnam’s need for a
full police force is necessary.
“I think [Police
Chief Ricky Hayes]
and his folks do an
amazing job, and their
stats tell us that we
need the police we
have,” he said. “We
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Sun., September 12, 2010
10am - 3pm
need every member. My question is, is that
the way we want it to be? That much need?”
Morrill said that the neighboring rural
towns of Thompson and Woodstock are similar
in population size, yet do not have a police
force. He asked if the need for police in those
towns is as apparent with Putnam.
Morrill serves as the chairman of the
Putnam Board of Education.
Economic and Community Development
Director Delpha Very said the visioning conversation
is widening beyond the scope of
downtown.
“Filchak’s presentation was to combine
some of the zones to make them more
streamlined,” he said. “For instance, you an
walk two blocks on Main Street and you’ve
walked through three commercial zones. So,
it makes it difficult for any business owner to
be able to grow their business.”
Very said continuing to hold the sessions
and tweaking the design guidelines will help
define what Putnam will look like.
“And when developers come into communities,
they are looking for guidance,” she
said. “They stress the importance of design
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elements to be cohesive with what the area
looks like.”
Very added that the group will be working
with the chief of police on some of the current
traffic flow issues in Putnam, and bring
it to the attention of the Special Services
District. Defining parking will be another
topic, too, she said.
She encouraged more members of
Putnam’s boards and commissions to attend
the future visioning sessions to provide feedback
to the group. Dates of the next meetings
are yet to be scheduled.
The 2020 visioning sessions are partially
funded by a grant from Connecticut Main
Street Center and the Preservation of Place
Program, in cooperation with the
Commission on Culture and Tourism. Funds
have also been used from the Community
Investment Act of Connecticut for the workshops.
Matt Sanderson may be reached at (860) 928-
1818 ext. 110, or by e-mail at matt@villagernewspapers.com.
Congregation B’nai Shalom
Hebrew School
begins
Sunday, September 19th!
Ages 3 through 13 welcome.
125 Church Street, Putnam, CT
For more information or to register,
please contact our director,
Sharon Coleman at 401-647-5323 or
cozycoleman@hotmail.com