Sunflower Farm continues to bring outdoor experiences to the public

John Roberts and Bren Frisch, owners of Sunflower Farm, bought the property in South Longmont back in 2000 and have been inviting members of the public out to enjoy the farm for over a decade.

“We wanted to create a rural experience for our own family,” Roberts said. “And then over the first couple years, with all [our kids’] friends, people began to notice the farm and we began to notice the importance the farm made to kids and families.”

The couple officially opened the farm up to the public in 2003 and ventured into unknown areas surrounding the role nature played with children. Roberts and Frisch felt kids were missing this important element that isn’t taught in school and wanted to provide them with outdoor experience.

“At the time when we started this, this whole importance of nature and agriculture experiences, to children in particular, was just unknown,” Roberts explained. “We were the pioneers in Boulder County on this stuff.”

They believed it was important for kids to learn where their food came from and what farm animals are, and eventually they started summer day camp programs and their Sprout House program for preschoolers.

Roberts and Frisch were wading into new waters with their new business and didn’t have many guides or tools at the county level.

“At that time there was really nothing within the local land use code that referenced what we were doing,” Roberts said. “So over the years the institutions, as they are, are kind of catching up, and they’re catching up with the regulations and new code writing.”

Boulder County started voicing its concerns a couple years ago about the safety and well-being of children at Sunflower Farm’s programs, which prompted Roberts and Frisch to make some big changes.

In May of 2015, they submitted a building permit to the county for public restrooms, per the request of the State of Colorado, which was necessary for the summer camps. Boulder County came out and inspected the farm, and told Roberts and Frisch they needed building permits for each of the small animal structures located throughout the 51 acres of land.

The county also said they needed commercial building permits for the larger buildings that were being used as classrooms. Although Roberts and Frisch were unaware of the permits they needed, they are looking forward to making the changes necessary.

“We’re kind of excited now that we’re getting into it,” Frisch said. “We’re excited about partnering with the county, and really taking care of our families, and addressing the regulations and looking at that more deeply.”

For a few months last summer, Sunflower Farm had to shut down all its programs and even public visits due to its lack of documented permits and public restrooms. After speaking with Boulder County though, they were able to bring in porta-potties so they could open to the public again.

“We told them they were taking away our revenue stream and we would be bankrupt within months,” Roberts said.

He explained that over the last nine months, they have spent over $100,000 in engineering and architecture, and getting the required permits. It hasn’t been an easy road for the owners but they’re focusing on the positive outcome they hope the situation will bring.

“We’re kind of trying to move beyond it and shift our language, and come out on the other side,” Frisch explained. “I’m working on that myself… but I’m saying we want to partner with [the county]. It’s been a hard year understanding how that looks; what it means to partner with them. It’s been a lot of internal processing to work through.”

Roberts and Frisch will be submitting for a limited impact review soon, which will most likely lead to a hearing with Boulder County later this summer. They’re hoping to gain more support from the community throughout the process.

“We really do need support, community support, for this limited impact special use review,” Frisch said. “That’s not just a slam dunk. It’s very imperative that the community comes forth and supports us.”

Roberts and Frisch never intended for the farm to grow to the size that it has and be as popular with the community as it is, and they don’t want to see that change anytime soon.

“It’s the community’s call that created this, not us,” Frisch said of the farm. “There should be a hundred Sunflower [farms], not just one, because there’s too much demand for it.”

For Frisch this process hasn’t been entirely easy, but she’s ready and willing to work with the county on making these changes so they can resume their kid’s programs. She hopes the community will join her.

“People probably think I don’t enjoy any bit of this restructuring, but it has to happen,” Frisch stated. “And I’m the first one to say, ‘let’s do it together.’ I’m asking people to partner with me. I’m asking my families to partner with me, to support me; to partner with the county and eventually the state.”

Frisch noted they won’t address the issues with the state until everything is resolved with Boulder County, including the permits and bathrooms. They plan to revisit the state’s requirements sometime next year.

Roberts added their goal is to have the new public restrooms and building permits completed by the beginning of next summer so they can get their kids’ programs back up and running. For now, the farm will remain open to the public until November when it closes down for the winter.

“It’s just a very simple invitation to the public to come and be outside with your kids, and leave your phones in the car,” Frisch said. “And it happens—it’s happening. We feel really proud to be apart of that.”

Sunflower Farm is open throughout the summer months of June, July and August on Wednesday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., tickets are $13 per person; and Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., tickets are $15 per person.

For more information on Sunflower Farm or to volunteer, visit their website at sunflowerfarminfo.com or call them at 303-774-8001.