WILLOW CREEK — The Willow Creek Farmers Market, a Saturday-morning staple that has operated in the town hall parking lot since 2007, is launching a targeted outreach initiative this season aimed at turning vegetable shoppers into overnight visitors.
The “Come for the Vegetables, Stay for the Town” program includes a new visitor information booth at the market entrance, a printed map showing downtown businesses within walking distance, and a “market passport” that rewards visitors who collect stamps from at least five market vendors with a 10 percent discount coupon at the Dry Dock.
Market manager Henry Farr — better known as the town’s last dairy farmer — said the initiative grew out of observations from last season.
“We had people from Massachusetts and Connecticut buying cheese and maple syrup at my stall and asking me what else there was to do in town,” Farr said. “They came for the produce but they stayed for the day. I want them to stay for the weekend.”
The market runs Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon, June through October, in the town hall parking lot on Main Street. Typical vendors include O’Flaherty’s Maple, two produce farmers from neighboring towns, a baker from Houlton, a beekeeper and a potter from Lincoln, and Farr himself, who sells raw milk, cream and aged cheddar.
Niall O’Flaherty, who staffs his family’s maple syrup stall at the market, said the tourist outreach has already changed the feel of the market.
“Last year it was mostly locals buying groceries,” O’Flaherty said. “This year, every third customer asks me where they can buy a kayak rental or how to get to the river trail. They’re not here to shop. They’re here to explore, and the market is their starting point.”
The tourism committee contributed $1,200 for the passport program and printed materials. The market will also host three Saturday cooking demonstrations by Dean Moreau of the Dry Dock, who will prepare seasonal dishes using market ingredients.
The first passport stamp event is scheduled for June 7.