The news about the Country Creemee near the Turners Falls Municipal Airport has gone from sour to sweet.
People in town and around the area who were shocked and disappointed to learn this popular roadside establishment’s future was ending after 23 years on Millers Falls Road can now breathe a little easier.
The business owners plan to relocate to the Crocker building on Avenue A in Turners Falls. While there may some hurdles ahead, it looks like fans of the creemee’s soft-serve ice cream, shakes, hot dogs, grinders, cold drinks and other such food won’t have to go looking for a new venue to frequent.
Yes, it will be different. One of the reasons that the old location, on property owned by Hillside Plastics, was popular was its nearness to the airport. Thus if you were lucky while sitting at one of the picnic tables, you might get to see an airplane landing or taking off just across the road.
But even if there wasn’t any activity at the airport, the creemee was a popular landing place for ice cream enthusiasts or people simply out for a drive on a beautiful day.
Now the creemee will be at a different location. Admittedly, the new place on Avenue A does not offer the same view. But like ice cream flavors, it’s possible to like a new one after years of ordering the same. The Turners location offers a chance to be near the Discovery Center, for example, or to take a walk on the bridge that crosses the Connecticut River. And the Crocker building site is a short walk away from Unity Park.
These sights are different but they will all provide people a pleasant atmosphere while enjoying an ice cream cone or something else.
Meanwhile, it is important that Country Creemee fans follow the business to its new location. A business in its new home is going to be important for the eatery to establish solid footing.
As for the old location, the Country Creemee has to move because the plastic manufacturer is building a 30,000-square-foot addition, an expansion of its business that holds the promise of more jobs and money pumped into the local economy. It’s the kind of financial news that should help remove any bitter taste that the initial move caused.
We encourage people to help the business take off at its new location.