GREENFIELD — In place of the Great Falls Festival, formerly known as Pumpkinfest, held each year in downtown Turners Falls, one of the founders and lead organizers Mike Nelson has plans for a new, COVID-19-safe event for families looking for a way to celebrate Halloween.
“I realized that I could potentially do some sort of different event, on a smaller scale … that brings some excitement to the community,” said Nelson, who also happens to be president of the Franklin County Agricultural Society, which oversees the Franklin County Fairgrounds.
So, from 4 to 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 23 to Oct. 25, the Roundhouse at the Franklin County Fairgrounds will be transformed into a “Spooky Roundhouse” — decorated with spooky decorations and hundreds of carved pumpkins. Trick-or-treating stops will be set up along the designated, one-way path.
“Going in the Roundhouse is always kind of cool anyway,” Nelson said. “And nobody coming in is going to have seen it in the capacity it’s going to look like, so I think people will appreciate it.
In accordance with COVID-19 safety guidance from the state, all guests must register in advance for a 15-minute time slot to ensure there are no more than 25 people in the building at once. Masks will be required and social distancing will be observed.
“We’re really trying to do our part to keep things safe for folks,” he said.
Although the plan is for Nelson and other board members to carve and display the pumpkins, he is encouraging the community to get involved, too. Anyone who is interested in carving pumpkins to be displayed at the Spooky Roundhouse should drop them off at the fairgrounds on Thursday, Oct. 22, between 4 and 7 p.m.
“I think it’s going to be a really exciting event,” Nelson said. “The entire community is really struggling to find ways to have Halloween have some sort of normalcy, and I think this event will help us have that bit of normalcy and also bring some new excitement.”
The suggested donation is $2, and tickets can be reserved at gff.ticketleap.com/roundhouse. All proceeds will support cleanup efforts following the Oct. 7 storm that uprooted several trees and caused damage throughout the fairgrounds.
Mary Byrne can be reached at mbyrne@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Twitter: @MaryEByrne