Dan McManus and Tess Parker, co-owners of Common Hands Farm, started the Upstreet Market.
By Jamie Larson With wide smiles, good intentions and dirt under their fingernails, the next generation of Columbia County farmers just, casually, reinvented the farmers market— by moving from Saturday morning to Wednesday evenings and out of the municipal lot and into the public park. But it isn’t just the day and location; everything about the Upstreet Farmers' Market, which kicked off July 30 in Hudson's beautiful, if a little gritty, 7th Street Park, feels different. It’s cool on the grass, under the trees. There’s art and music and craft booths, lots of pedestrians and a working-class party atmosphere you don’t see on a Saturday morning. The entrepreneurial spirit at Upstreet, started by Dan McManus and Tess Parker, of Common Hands Farm, and Lori Weaver of Diamond Hills Farm, feels a little fresher, a little less polished and more youthful. At the nucleus of the market are a handful of farms founded and run by hard-working millennials quietly redefining what a successful local farm can look like.
Lori Weaver, owner of Diamond Hills Farm, is a co-founder of the market.
"The catalyzing point was last fall. We’ve been wanting to vend in Hudson and to give people a way to pick up during the week." said Parker, who, like many new farmers, hasn’t been able to get coveted booth space at the long-established Sunday Hudson Farmer’s Market. “We quickly saw there was a need," McManus said, adding that the central location, day and time (4 to 7 p.m.) were really important to him. “It’s a different crowd than Hudson on the weekends. People who work in town are getting off, they’re tired and they need something to eat. We are setting a mood for a gathering place in the park where people can relax and eat or pick something up." Part of the mission of the Upstreet Market, which will operate until November 19 and has about 15 booths, is to allow all aspects of life in the area to share the space. They are looking for more farms who want join them, but also artists of all kinds who want a different kind of venue to share their work. While available space does fill up, McManus says there will always be a rotating guest booth so there is a spot for a new farm or craftsperson to get exposure every week.
Cleo Post tends the booth for Highland Farm.
“Open air anything is much more pleasurable," said mixed-media artist Mary Brueckmann, standing next to her display of broken glass portraits. “You have all types. The vibe here makes a huge difference." Sitting on a shady bench taking in the fountain, Linda Mussmann, owner of the Time and Space Limited theater and art center said it’s nice to see some action in town off the main business district of Warren Street. “It’s a perfect place and a great atmosphere," she said. “It definitely suits these young farmers. It’s inviting." “It’s so nice to have something mid-week. It’s not competing with the weekend market and there are a lot of things that are different," added Jennifer Stockmeier, who’s been to the market each week since it opened. “I personally like to know the people I’m buying from and this is so local." The laid-back atmosphere is undoubtedly a byproduct of youth in the booths. Common Hands, Diamond Hills, Ten Barn, and Green Mead (all represented at the market) are just a few of the growing number of farms started and run by earnest, hard-working folks still in the summer of their lives. “Everyone is working really hard so being able to get together at the market creates a community of peers," said Parker, adding that this new generation of farmers, which has been popping up over the past few years, seems a bit more flexible and willing to take risks.
The 7th Street Park in Hudson, once home to the city's more nefarious trades, is now the site of Upstreet's more wholesome activities.
“We are trying to find our niche and we’re using multiple [marketing] strategies," she said. “[Being new] means you specialize more but you also don’t want to try and do too much and spread yourself too thin. I make good money on edible flowers and herbs. I didn’t expect that." The farmers at Upstreet are humble about their early success and acknowledge that the Hudson Valley and Berkshires are very supportive regions for their goods and agricultural ethos. But they still need places to get their name and high quality product in the public eye, and that’s why Upstreet has been so welcome. “There’s a lot of walk through-traffic here. People who might not know the market, or know our farm, just stop by," said Lori Weaver, of Diamond Hills Farm, whose table is a photo gallery of cute animals. “This is a really good opportunity for newer farms coming up."
Dan Wall deftly picks his banjo at the Upstreet Farmers' Market.
“I don’t know if it’s as easy elsewhere" for young people to start a farm, Parker said. “I think our generation is drawn to farming because it’s a noble cause. And it’s a backlash against the idea of having all this debt and meaningless jobs our parents generation worked." Upstreet Market4-7 p.m. Wednesdays until November 19, reopening May 2015. 7th Street Park Hudson NY
