Across Pleasant Hill Road from the Saturday tents, the ground at Dionne Farm has been opened up for parking areas since August. Shoppers walking from the car to Mere Point Oyster's table can see the market's next home from where they stand. The Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust began work at 262 Pleasant Hill Road that month and expects construction to continue into spring 2027. The market's move is planned for sometime during the 2027 season. That makes this fall the last full stretch of Saturdays on the ground the market has used for more than 25 years.
The distance is small. The change in what the market is meant to be is larger. The land trust's own plans describe a move from a crowded Saturday lot to a site built for gatherings beyond the market morning. The proposed new name follows from that shift.
The move is about parking, mud and a road
The land trust's explanation is practical. On its Dionne Farm page, it says the market has "outgrown the parking lot." It also says traffic flow is strained, and that vendors and shoppers "met weekly challenges during the recent extended spring mud seasons." The market draws about 1,500 people each Saturday and has more than 40 vendors.
Pleasant Hill Road is the specific friction. In the Times Record's August coverage, the land trust said the first phase of construction covers seasonal and year-round parking. That parking is meant to move cars off Pleasant Hill Road, "where parking can be dangerous." Mainebiz described the same goal: a parking plan designed to keep vehicles off the road.
According to the land trust, Phase One at Dionne Farm includes:
- A market green and a multi-season, open-air pavilion
- About 140 parking spaces, roughly one-third paved and two-thirds turf
- Separate access for shoppers, vendors and bicycles
- Ten more vendor booths than the current site holds
The pavilion is where the plan reaches beyond Saturday mornings. The land trust says it is meant for market activities, classes and community events, plus possible off-season uses. It also says later phases could add workshops, education space, offices or classrooms, and trail connections. The future uses of the existing farm buildings are still being worked out. Mere Point Oyster's catering and events manager, Kelly Punch, told the Times Record that vendors are thrilled about the move, which will create a "safer, more communal vibe." She called the new parking areas a much-appreciated improvement.
The farm across the road has its own history
Dionne Farm has a long agricultural history of its own. Physician Maurice Dionne bought the historic farm in 1941. A 1943 newspaper report said the purchase revitalized its dairy production, and the 347-acre farm kept dairying through the 20th century. The 25 acres at 262 Pleasant Hill Road were described in 2024 as the missing piece of that historic property. The house, barn and surrounding land had been bought earlier that winter. The land trust then had two years to raise money for the acquisition and the renovations it needed. In September 2025, the land trust announced it had raised $2 million from more than 75 donors to secure the farm's preservation.
The land trust plans to use native planting and landscape design to keep the property's rural character. A ceremonial groundbreaking took place on Sept. 24, after construction had already started, according to a Portland Press Herald column published Sept. 30.
A name built for one field
The market's official name names its location. As the land trust's market name survey puts it:
Until now, its official name has been the "Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust Saturday Farmers Market at Crystal Spring Farm". While this name communicates a lot, it's also a mouthful! And a whole lot of words to put on signs, website pages, tote bags, etc.
Once the market moves to 262 Pleasant Hill Road, "at Crystal Spring Farm" will no longer describe where it is. The land trust is using the move to look for a name that is "shorter, clearer, easier to find, and ready to grow with the Market into the future." The survey closes at midnight on Nov. 7, and the land trust's board will consider the responses when it decides. Anyone who wants a say in what goes on the new signs has until that night.
The Saturdays left at Crystal Spring
The land trust's sources disagree on when the season ends. Its main farmers market page lists the season as May 2 through Oct. 31. The name survey calls Nov. 7 the last market day of 2026, and the vendor schedule lists several vendors for Nov. 7. The market page lists hours of 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The Times Record's August article gave 8:30 a.m. to noon. Check with the land trust before planning a trip around the last date or the last half hour.
Several vendors alternate weeks, so who you'll find depends on the Saturday. Here is the land trust's alternating-vendor schedule for the remaining dates:
| Saturday | Alternating vendors listed |
|---|---|
| Oct. 10 | Clayton's Crustaceans, Gunnar's Icelandic Hot Dogs, Midcoast Vegan, Upper Farm |
| Oct. 17 | Battambang Bistro, Pumpkin Vine Family Farm, The Whole Almond, Wicked Sharp Knives |
| Oct. 24 | Clayton's Crustaceans, Gunnar's Icelandic Hot Dogs, Kimchi Beyond Compare, Midcoast Vegan |
| Oct. 31 | Battambang Bistro, Pumpkin Vine Family Farm, The Whole Almond, Wicked Sharp Knives |
| Nov. 7 | Clayton's Crustaceans, Gunnar's Icelandic Hot Dogs, Midcoast Vegan |
Oct. 10 is Upper Farm's last listed date of the season. Oct. 24 is Kimchi Beyond Compare's last date. Battambang Bistro, Pumpkin Vine Family Farm, The Whole Almond and Wicked Sharp Knives are each listed for Oct. 31 as their final date, so if Nov. 7 does happen, they won't be on the schedule.
Mere Point Oyster Co. is on the land trust's 2026 vendor roster, selling locally grown shellfish. "We go every week, rain or shine," Punch told the Times Record in August. Shoppers who have followed this fall's algal bloom in Maquoit and Middle bays may want to read the town's Oct. 1 bloom update. It reports severe soft-shell clam mortality in some local areas. It also reports that oysters and quahogs generally showed fewer visible effects, and that legally harvested Maine seafood remains safe to eat. The update doesn't name any market vendor.
After the last Saturday
Brunswick still has a Saturday market after the land trust's season ends. The separate Brunswick Winter Market opens Saturday, Nov. 14, at the Fort Andross Mill Complex, 14 Maine St., with hours from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. A local calendar listing shows it running through April 24, 2027.
The weekend before that is busy on its own. Brunswick Parks & Recreation holds its 59th annual Ski and Skate Sale on Sunday, Nov. 8, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Brunswick Recreation Center. You can buy used skis, skates, snowboards and boots there, or sell your own gear through the town's intake process. The Recreation Center switched to fall and winter hours on Oct. 4. It's now open 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays.
The land trust also opened something new this fall. On Sept. 28 it announced the Trident Trail at Neptune Woods, a new connection built by volunteers organized by the Six Rivers chapter of the New England Mountain Bike Association. The trail adds a loop and a 30-foot bridge across Mere Brook, joining two single-track trails. It's open to walkers, runners and mountain bikers. Six Rivers designed and built the existing trail system at Neptune Woods after the Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority transferred the property to the land trust in 2018. The Neptune Woods trail map shows the new loop.
The land trust has invited shoppers to stop by on any market Saturday to ask staff about the Dionne Farm project and see the site plans. The plans are at the tents for the rest of the season.
At Legacy Sotheby's Intl Realty, we keep track of how changes like this one affect daily life along Pleasant Hill Road and across Brunswick. If you'd like to talk about this part of town, or about a property near the farm, we're glad to help.
