Popular Verrill Farm stand destroyed in Concord blaze

Community rallies around owners

Justine Hunt/Globe StaffFirefighters put out a blaze at the 3,000-square-foot produce stand at Verrill Farm on Wheeler Road in Concord yesterday. (Justine Hunt/Globe Staff)

CONCORD - A popular family farm stand that has fed generations and that was among the first to link with some of the area's top restaurants burned to the ground yesterday, in an apparent electrical fire that left stunned customers wondering where they would find home-grown goods and the owner vowing to rebuild.

The 3,000-square-foot produce stand at Verrill Farm on Wheeler Road was destroyed, said Concord Fire Captain David Curran. "There's not much left," he said by phone yesterday.

The four-alarm fire broke out about 5 p.m. and took firefighters about four hours to put out. Fire officials said a 911 call came in as "electrical sparking" in the building, but officials could not confirm the cause last night.

At least five employees and several customers fled the premises as it burned, and Curran said no one was injured. One firefighter was treated for heat exhaustion at Emerson Hospital and released.

The farm's owners said they were at a family wedding in Boylston when they were called about the fire.

"Obviously, it's a shock," said Stephen Verrill, one of the owners, who rushed to the scene last evening and was greeted by hugs and words of consolation from customers who came to see the damage. "There's a sense of loss. We've gotten a lot of great support, and we're hoping to get the store going again."

Standing near her father, Verrill's daughter, Jennifer Verrill Faddoul, added that they were "completely shell-shocked. This is what we do. This is where we spent our whole lives."

She recalled sitting on tractors and working in the fields as a child.

Robert Robichaud, 45, of Lincoln, is a regular customer. He was there when the fire broke out and noticed smoke rising from the roof. He said it was a sad sight to see.

"If there's one place that everybody knows, it's Verrill Farm," Robichaud said. "My wife comes here two to three times a week." He's particularly fond of Verrill's fresh-baked pies, for which the farm is renowned.

The farm is also a supplier of fresh produce to some top Boston-area restaurants.

"We buy from there regularly," said Steve Johnson, chef and owner of Rendezvous, a Western Mediterranean restaurant in Cambridge. "In fact, today we had a delivery. Great quality. [Verrill] has been a leader in the local farm community."

Johnson said he has known Stephen Verrill for many years.

"He was one of the first farmers to really connect with area restaurants and sell directly," Johnson said last night by phone. "He is responsible for the great quality of food in the restaurants of Boston."

Jason Bond, the executive chef at Beacon Hill Hotel & Bistro in Boston, was also shaken by the fire.

"We've bought from Verrill for the last 10 years or so, so we know a lot of those people pretty well," he said.

Bond said that local restaurateurs might organize a fund-raiser for the Verrill family and farm.

"We'll do what we can to help them out," he said. "If they do want some help and need some help, we're definitely going to do that for them. A lot of us here in Boston use them and consider them one of our staple farms."

Verrill Farm was opened in 1918 by Verrill's father, Floyd, and grew into a key part of the state's agricultural community, a seminal piece of Concord's history and economy. In 1990, the farm ended its dairy operation and expanded its produce and retail business.

"It's very important," said Greg Howes, chairman of the Concord Board of Selectmen, in a telephone interview. "Our farms and agriculture are part of the history of the community."

Selectmen described Stephen Verrill as a leader in the community who is on the town's Natural Resources Commission.

According to the farm's website, it consists of about 200 acres in Concord and Sudbury, half farmland and half wildlife habitat, woodlands, and wetlands.

In 1982, the land was placed under a permanent Agriculture Preservation Restriction, protecting it from development, according to the farm's website.

The farm "is a real anchor for that part of town," said Virginia McIntyre, a Concord selectwoman. "A lot of people come to shop there. It is a treasure. Steve Verrill is a treasure . . . it's a great loss."

McIntyre said she saw a cloud of smoke as she drove into town after a trip to Connecticut.

"There was an anvil cloud. It was a perfectly clear blue sky and this cloud. It's tragic," she said.

Coincidentally, the fire occurred as a Farm Aid festival - held to promote survival of family farms - was winding down in Mansfield.

Fire Chief Ken Willette estimated the damage to the two-story wood frame building in the "high hundreds of thousands of dollars."

Firefighters assisted from eight communities - Lexington, Sudbury, Wayland, Bedford, Stow, Carlisle, Acton, and Maynard - as well as the Hanscom Air Force Base Fire Department.

Fire units from Littleton and Chelmsford responded to cover Concord's fire station.

"It can be rebuilt," McIntyre said. "The land is beautiful. . . . The heart of the community is aching."

Globe correspondent Caitlin Castello contributed to this report. John Guilfoil can be reached at jguilfoil@globe.com.