Spokane7
46°
March 31, 2010 in City
Downtown Spokane farmers market moving
New grassy site just a few blocks away
The downtown farmers market is moving off the pavement to an open field a few blocks away.
The Spokane Farmers’ Market Association announced this month that it will relocate from its parking lot at First Covenant Church near Division and Second to the former marching band practice field for Lewis and Clark High School at 5th and Browne.
“It’s going to be nice on hot, hot summer days,” said market manager Diane Reuter. “Instead of standing on black asphalt, we’ll have grass under our feet.”
The nonprofit association decided to move because of the reconstruction of Second Avenue, which is scheduled over the next two years. The lot the group had been using also recently lost access from Third Avenue because of the stalled hotel construction on the land directly south, said Timothy Pellow, an association board member.
“We were basically going to be a landlocked island,” said Pellow, a farmer at Tolstoy Farm in Davenport.
The field was bought a few years ago for future expansion by Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center. The hospital agreed to lease the land to the association for two years for $1 annually and half the cost of property taxes, Pellow said.
Pellow said the group will pay about $3,200 in property taxes this year. That’s $600 less than the association’s property tax bill in 2009 for the church property.
The hospital land was suggested by city officials, who helped broker the deal.
“In allowing the farmer’s market to use this property we’re supporting our community in a way that supports local food production and healthy food choices,” said Philip Kercher, Sacred Heart’s facilities manager.
Reuter said there’s plenty of parking on the street and at a city-owned lot under Interstate 90 that’s accessible from Third Avenue. She said the hospital also will allow parking in an adjacent lot on Saturdays.
Meanwhile, Reuter said the association, which has 50 members, is working with the city on creating a permanent location for the market. She said options include at a city park or perhaps on a closed city block.
“We’ve outgrown our old location,” she said.
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spokanecougar on March 31 at 6:48 p.m.
It would be nice to find a permanent location in Riverfront Park. Great cities always have their farmers markets in or near famous parks or areas in the city center. Portland has theirs in the parks near PSU, San Francisco has theirs at the Ferry Building, and of course Seattle has the landmark Pike Place Market. I know events are held in the park throughout the year, but I find it very hard to think the city cannot come up with a place for the Market in Riverfront Park to use every weekend.
While I don’t mind the YMCA Building being turned down, I feel we missed a big chance to turn that place into a market like Pike Place in Seattle that could stay open year around. Could have remodeled the building to make it more open air for the summer….what a way to spend a nice summer day down by the river in Riverfront Park and strolling through the open air farmers market right near the falls getting the best fruits and vegetables this area has to offer. To bad we do not have enough people in the city to think outside the box and willing to take a few risks every now and then.
mdriftmeyer on March 31 at 8:32 p.m.
The next time someone builds a Pike Place Market adjacent to the Flour Mill I’m sure they’d be willing to sell their wears.
sandraflatt on April 08 at 1:11 p.m.
Maybe the Farmers Market could partner with the Public Market who is considering a permanent location at the old Roses and More building on State and 2nd Ave (just across the the street from their current… former location).