The story of how a cozy little Northern Westchester town has transformed into an annual destination, this year featuring Grammy-nominated Blues Traveler.
Pound Ridge only has a little over 5,000 residents, but they somehow manage to lure big musical acts to their annual Harvest Festival. The event is put on by The Pound Ridge Partnership – a non-profit community-based organization whose mission is to bring residents, business owners, landlords and community leaders together to support and improve the Pound Ridge Business District. Over the years, they’ve had everyone from The Spin Doctors and Soul Asylum to Toad the Wet Sprocket and Edwin McCain grace their stage. They’ve perfected the art of the local festival, so we wanted to know how it all began and what the future holds.
In 2011, Pound Ridge residents Kevin Long and Steve Bensusan grabbed a drink at North Star after the Pound Ridge Pride Festival (now called the Proud Festival). They started to discuss the possibility of adding live music to that event. As the conversation continued, their vision transformed: it should be a street fair with live music, food and drinks.
I’ve Still Got This Dream I Just Can’t Shake
The men knew they were on to something, and as Pound Ridge Partnership board members, they knew they could make it happen. They presented their idea to the other board members. Everyone loved it; they started to plan. By that October, they had a fully fleshed out, up-and-running festival with Edwin McCain as the headliner. In the beginning, Long, who is now an advisor for The Partnership, said everyone was nervous. “The night before, we weren’t even sure if anyone was going to show up,” Long remembers. But they did. And so did McCain. In fact, as Long, Bensusan and several volunteers gathered to set up, McCain’s tour bus pulled up. McCain, who drove the bus, walked out and approached the group. He introduced himself and just wanted to hang. Then, he volunteered to help them set up. They told him to relax – they’ve got it. A bit later, Katonah resident John Praino got up on the first ever Harvest Fest stage and opened the show.
Nobody Thinks or Expects Too Much
Initially, Harvest Fest was modeled after traditional Oktoberfest celebrations – there were tables where people could eat, a few tents selling drinks and some good music, all within the confines of Westchester Avenue. But after four years, the festival outgrew Westchester Avenue and moved to the town park. The
larger venue allowed The Partnership to offer more family-friendly activities, support a bigger stage and hire food trucks. They’ve grown almost every year since, adding new vendors and activities annually. “Last year we doubled our previous capacity and about 6,000 people came to Harvest Fest,” says Long. “It was a huge undertaking and kind of a shock. After taking a year off and then pausing for COVID-19, it was the perfect storm – everyone craved live music.” “Even the weather was nice that day,” Bensusan adds.
