After its season was cut short last year, the Mason Village Market has found a new home this year, starting back up once a month at the Mason Hollow Nursery at 47 Scripps Lane.
The Mason Village Market was held on the common last year, but the last two sessions of the season were canceled after the organizers and the Select Board clashed over how the event should be run. A post on the town website stated that selectmen, the Mason Recreation Committee and Mason Village Market agreed to suspend activities due to “administrative and membership issues.”
This year, the event is back, with space at Mason Hollow Nursery on Scripps Lane. Nursery co-owner Chuck Andersen said that the business holds an open house each year, usually with some simple food like hot dogs and ice cream. This year, they were introduced to a possible new food vendor, Wandering Thistles, that offers gourmet-style street food.
Wandering Thistles, he said, was up for doing the open house, in part because they’d lost their spot at the Mason farmers market. Andersen said the event was very successful for Mason Hollow, drawing in new customers that knew Wandering Thistles.
“Neighbors that had never been here for 30 years visited, and next thing you know, 20 minutes later, they’re also spending $200 on plants. It worked for us; it worked for them,” Andersen said.
While the opening event was usually the only time he sold food, Andersen said he was open to having Wandering Thistles back a few days in the summer. It was then he was asked, what if not just Wandering Thistles, but the now-homeless Mason Village Market used the property?
Andersen agreed to give it a shot, and in July, the Mason Village Market held its first market of the season, with 11 vendors from Mason and surrounding towns and live music.
Andersen said that first day was successful not only for the vendors, but also for his business. He said it was a boom day, despite July and August historically being slow months for nursery sales.
The upcoming dates for the market are Saturday, Aug. 23, and Saturday, Sept. 20. Markets run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., hosted at the Mason Hollow Nursery. Field parking is available, including for people with disabilities. To apply to be a vendor at the market, contact martin.garay@gmail.com.