Cabot Creamery and Jasper Hill Farm are the first confirmed tenants in the multimillion-dollar Hardwick Yellow Barn project, which is pegged to bring more than 105 new jobs and 110 people to the area within the next five years.
The retrofit of the historical yellow building on Route 15, and the plan for a new industrial facility next door, are expected to cost $8.6 million.
The project has been two years in the making, and the partners behind it — the town of Hardwick and the Center for an Agricultural Economy — want more potential tenants to apply.
“Our intent is to get somebody either starting out or taking it to the next level,” Hardwick Town Manager Shaun Fielder said. Proposals are due Dec. 31.
Planners aim to grow the town’s existing agricultural economy.
“It’s another phase where we’re seeing a big demand for industrial space like this,” Fielder said.
If funding falls into place, construction will begin in June 2020, and the site will open the following summer, the town manager said.
Between Cabot and Jasper Hill, 70% of the town-owned site’s space is already booked. Cabot will take over the barn and turn it into a shop for local products, and Jasper Hill plans to occupy part of the new building, Fielder said.
The remaining space, he said, will be customized for its tenants.
“We’re not going to pre-build it,” he said. “We want to see what comes, and as we go through the design phase, we’re adapting to the needs.”
Jasper Hill is expected to bring between 40 and 50 full-time jobs, while Cabot is expected to hire four full-time workers and six employees at 30 hours a week, according to planners.
Mateo Kehler, co-owner of Jasper Hill, said the company’s cheese cellars have reached capacity, and some of the cheese-ripening process will be moved to the Yellow Barn site. That would open up more space at the cellars, too.
“If we’re going to be able to continue developing the market for higher-value dairy and agricultural products, we need more capacity and more space,” Kehler said. “We’re taking this opportunity to really reimagine how our logistics and the flow of cheese within our supply chain works.”
Having Jasper Hill and Cabot as Yellow Barn anchor tenants will also bring “some stability that allows for some of the mission-based work” of the project Kehler said, such as empowering local farmers and foodmakers feeling the squeeze of globalization.
The move will see Jasper Hill increasing cheese production by 350,000 pounds per year, planners said.
Cabot’s store will offer products from the cooperative and from local ventures.
“We want it to be the best of the Northeast Kingdom,” said Roberta MacDonald, head of Cabot marketing. “Especially foods and crafts and woodworkers. It’s a showcase for the region.”
MacDonald said Cabot wants to offer store hours that suit employees’ needs, too.
“In Hardwick and in some of the areas of the state that have not a lot of employment options, part of the difficulty with employment is keeping a schedule that doesn’t conform to family needs,” MacDonald said.
Opening the shop would also create another avenue for visitors to try Cabot cheese, which could expand the company’s sales opportunities in other regions. When visitors return to their communities, they may ask for it in local stores, she said.
More than $665,000 has been invested in the project so far, and Fielder said planners are waiting to hear about three funding opportunities that would yield $6 million more.
Along with jobs and population growth, the effort’s architects believe it will boost annual personal income in the Hardwick area by $8.1 million in the next five years.
Those involved believe the Yellow Barn project will attract more tourists to Vermont and uplift the Kingdom.
“It isn’t just about our town. We’re helping to advance the cause in other communities,” Fielder said.
