Does your city have a great public market?
 

I'm looking for ideas to help my city improve our public market. I'd be interested to know of other cities which have really vibrant and/or renovated public markets. What makes them tick? Who goes there and when? What else is there to do besides buy produce?

Thanks for your help.

wliwl, just for clarification, do you mean an outdoor farmer's market? I have never hearf of the concept of a public market. Please explain further, thanks!

hearf = heard....I need coffee!

Here's one for DC:

http://www.easternmarket.net

Portland, Maine
http://www.portlandmarket.com/main/home.html

We always take out-of-town visitors to The Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia. Visitors love it as much as the locals do:

http://www.readingterminalmarket.org/

~Liz

Our little farmer's market is only open on Saturdays with limited items. Everyone got very excited when they talked about wine and cheese selections coming from the local areas - but really very, very limitied. The one in Portland is fabulous - open everyday and offers more than produce. I would definately want to visit it.

Yes, I mean an outdoor farmer's market. Thanks.

I don't know which city you are in, but even in our small village it was necessary to hire a "manager" for the market. This person opens up the market, tends to the needs/problems of the vendors and works with the village to create community events.

For Portland, ME http://www.portlandmarket.com/main/home.html

Raleigh NC: http://www.ncagr.com/markets/facilit/farmark/raleigh/

Sorry, posted too quickly. Answers to your questions:

The Raleigh market, like Phila's Reading Market and many, many others, has a restaurant (or 2?) on the premises. This seems to be a big draw (after all, looking at all that food makes one hungry). In addition, if there are booths with things like homemade cheeses, preserves, etc. and even homemade (more or less) baked goods on certain days, it's a serious draw.

For slightly more local markets: Since a lot of people like to bring dogs with them to outdoor markets (on leashes, of course), an area devoted to them -- e.g., selling dog-related things like homemade dogbiscuits, etc., and a dog-watering facility, even a "dog-wash", seems to be a good idea.

I've also seen booths/tables with things like trinkets, jewelry, etc. at local markets, but that seems mostly to appeal to younger folk -- a different crowd from those buying produce, cheeses, pies, for their families.

Local musicians playing on Sat. mornings always add a lot to the atmosphere.

San Antonio has a great public produce market downtown. Its is called, or near El Marcado. Cooperation and civic envolvement on every level is the key to success.

As for my hometown we got stuck with a Wal-Mart and not too many people seem to care.

In downtown Buffalo, there is an outdoor farmer's market every Tue & Thu that runs from May - Oct. In addition to produce, there are companies selling flowers/plants, fresh sausage (big Italian population in Buffalo), baked goods, honey etc. One local company, Butterwoods, is a huge favorite and sells whole cakes and tarts.

There is also the Broadway market in Cheektowaga, NY which is an indoor market. It caters to the community with Polish sausage, pierogies and chrusciki, as well as Crystal Beach candy, meats/seafood etc.

We have the French Market all year round, plus the Crescent City Farmers Market which moves daily to places around the area. The CCFM is more produce and food items while the French Market is more touristy-oriented.

http://www.loyno.edu/~ecoinst/ccfm/

More updated website for the New Orleans market:

http://www.crescentcityfarmersmarket.com/

For Los Angeles County:

http://www.lacfb.org/markets.html

The most famous is probably the one in downtown Santa Monica. One of the very best in the country, Wednesdays and Saturdays year-round. Right now the asparagus, artichokes and strawberries are gorgeous.

You asked about what makes a farmer's market tick. The good ones here in California bring together discerning customers and the freshest-possible local produce and foodstuffs available-- often harvested the night before. At 9 AM, you'll find sous-chefs from the top-end restaurants in the area shopping for that evening's specials. By lunchtime, everyone's there-- executives from surrounding office buildings, bodybuilders looking for organic salad fixings, leaflet distributers (Jews for Jesus are a fixture at the Santa Monica market), eccentric hippies, tourists wishing they had one of these in their town all year round, etc., etc., etc. Everyone goes there. And the surrounding restaurants, shops, etc. love the bump in foot traffic they get these days.

We have fish and seafood trucks, cheese, olives, herbs, decorative plants, flowers, knife sharpeners, food kiosks (Border Grill runs one once a month), bakeries, etc.

Given we have a high percentage of days with good weather, our farmer's markets are pleasant places to go year-round. They're outside and you get to walk around in the sun, taking in the produce and the people. It's just really cool. I have the SM Farmer's Market during the week and two markets near my house in Long Beach on the weekends (one in our east Marina), so I can't imagine living somewhere without year-round farmer's markets.

San Luis Obispo has the best in this area of central California. Every Thursday night the downtown streets are blocked off, stores are open extended hours and the freshest produce, flowers and food is sold.

A real treat for tourists and locals alike.

We go fairly regularly and our kids enjoy the musicians and the "dancing in the streets."

Thanks everybody! I have some homework to do now. My city (Rochester NY) has a farmer's market that is very popular, but has some major deficiencies. I have this idea that instead of spending economic development money on some of the stupid things they plan (they are currently getting ready to spend a fortune to build an underground bus station and an underground museum/shopping area - that in a city which has way too much stuff above ground boarded up!) they should build on things that are already working. Thanks again for your ideas. Now I'll try to get them put together and presented.

There is a larger city farmer's market 25 min. from us (Alexandria, Va.) but I never go there because is it open Sat. from like 5:30 a.m. til 10 a.m. and I can never get there by 10. They close too early.

I really enjoy our more local market
in Burke, Va. It is open Sat. from May 1 til end of Oct., 8 a.m. til noon in a commuter's railway parking lot. What makes it so great is the variety of items (produce from MD and W VA as well as VA), a flower market and several plant stands to buy yard plants, an herb garden stand, plus a great community "green thumb" table where you can bring your gardening problems, problems plant samples, etc. and they help you, several great bread stands, preserves and honeys, and more). Even more important is the sense of community there. Everyone is nice and positive and since I shop there every Sat. we know each other. They have alot of samples which the kids really like. The booth where I buy preserves is also the booth where I buy 4 cases of preserves at the end of Oct. to use as Christmas presents, and the incredible flavored bread lady (pumpkin, lemon blueberry, choclate zucchini, etc.) sells me bags of her bread mixes to go along w/all those Christmas preserves. It is a wonderful sense of community after a week of living and working in one of the most densely populated areas of the U.S.
No music or pony rides, but I wouldn't miss don't miss that Sat. market unless there is a really good reason.

Hey wliwl

Of places I've been, Baltimore has some of the most interesting indoor markets I've seen anywhere. Lexington Market, Cross Street Market are among the most vibrant (although there are others too with similar idea but on a smaller scale such as Broadway and Northeast Market); they have a working-class uniquely Bawlmer vibe. There's a seafood bar there; on Saturdays, there's entertainment in the central plaza of Lexington Market... I saw some great Caribbean tin-drum players there once.

Reading Terminal Market Philadelphia as mentioned before is exceptional as well; I find more upscale than its Baltimore sisters, but again unique with Amish stands.

If you had investigated these, it might be interesting to cross the border and see a different model of market at the Marché Jean Talon in Montréal; more French (and I'm talking France here) in style, it's redolent with flowers and odors of locally-grown fruits and vegetables. A marked difference from the U.S. markets I mentioned is that the relative absence of "heavy-greasy fast-food" options and is instead largely the domain of fresh fruit, vegetables, herbs, spices, meat.

I think it would be fascinating to take a road trip and see all the fantastic diversity there is in North American markets.

DAN

wliwl, I like your style, I share your passion for outdoor markets and you're asking the right questions. I've visited these markets all over the place; from Europe to South America and Asia. The question of what makes them tick is a really important one to try to answer and I don't think there is a single template that can be applied universally.

A really good resource as a starting point is the Project for Public Spaces website:

http://www.pps.org/PublicMarkets/

They offer a book entitled "Public Markets and Community Revitalization" that was prepared in cooperation with the Urban Land Institute that I think you'll find helpful.

There is a two-day course that PPS has helped put on in cooperation with the NeighborWorks organization. I took it a couple of summers ago in New Orleans and it's great. The course isn't offered at all of the Neighborworks training institutes, but you can gain a little more insight into that group at their website:

www.nw.org

Drill into the training portion of the site to view upcoming opportunities. Feel free to contact me at the following "disguised" e-mail address (trying to prevent dataminers/spam):

Standby4321 ---> @ <---- yahoo.com

We launched one modestly last year and I can send you some info on what was involved, etc. A very good market in a northern climate that is well-integrated into its downtown surroundings is the Byward Market in Ottawa, ON which is probably not TOOOO far from you.

Good luck on a very worthwhile project!

While a solid public market will not negate the need to do many others things right in the area of community economic development, it can help build an environment and synergy in your community that will help other efforts succeed, too.

Daniel, your description of the Marché Jean Talon sounds exactly like our farmer's markets here in California. No vendors selling funnel cakes and corn dogs-- although we do have a crêpe stand every couple of weeks--; the air smells of fresh-cut flowers, cilantro, basil, and right now seasonal produce like strawberries, green garlic, etc. On a sunny day, there isn't anywhere better on earth.

Of the four best I've spent time in, I'd rank them:
1) Pike Place, Seattle -- no contest on seafood and location.
2) Lexington in Balto.
3) Reading in Philadelphia.
4) Eastern in DC.

I live in Seattle and during the summer you can visit a farmers market almost every day. Different neighborhoods host them on certain days of the week. http://www.seattlefarmersmarkets.org/
Then small towns out of the city have them as well.
http://www.wafarmersmarkets.com/
This is my favorite thing in the summer. There is produce, organic meat/seafood, flowers, baked goods, and sometimes crafts depending on the market. As to who goes I see all kinds. It's a great outing. My favorite is the Ballard one on Sundays. I grab a crepe and coffee and shop all the wonderful produce!
Good luck with yours.

Vancouver B.C. has a terrific public
market on Granville Island - near the
centre of the city.

http://www.granvilleisland.com/en/publicmarket

llamalady, I couldn't agree more. Granville Island is among the best.

Since you are in Rochester, NY, maybe an indoor market would work better. It could be year round and not just seasonal.

If it were made to be a very vibrant place, like the Ferry Building in San Francisco, it could be every day, all day, all year round. The Ferry Building also has an outdoor market on certain days, and, recently, there was a special trinkets, drawings, etc. - ie, non-food items - outdoor market.

It could become the social place for the town, the way the old village square used to be, especially in Europe. (Maybe you could even put a fountain in the middle of the building - just kidding. :) )

Detroit, Michigan also has a fantastic Farmer's Market (Eastern Market) that is open year round, every day except for Sundays (I think). Saturday mornings are the biggest, and have many of the "draws" others were talking about: a couple of great breakfast joints, tons of produce, eggs, honey, dairy, spices, mushrooms, and tons of flowers and plants. As a child, I remember going and begging for a rabbit...it was years later that my father finally explained those rabbits weren't pets...they were for eating. Still surprised I'm a meat eater to this day.