Farmers Market will be on Maple Street near City Park, as of 5/3

By Cathy DeDe, Chronicle Managing Editor

The Glens Falls Farmers Market will move to Maple Street, adjacent to City Park in downtown Glens Falls for its outdoor market, starting Saturday, May 3.

Farmers Market president Tom Wells tells The Chronicle they’ll be there potentially for most of the summer at least.

The Farmers Market is envisioned at the Market Center being built for the City on South Street.

It is not expected to be done until mid-May, with a ribbon cutting set for May 16.

But even then, Mr. Wells said, he doesn’t expect to use the new building “until it’s safe enough for our customers and people to get to the farmers market.”

“There’s quite a bunch of construction going on, on South Street, which is great,” said Mr. Wells. “I’m happy for the City of Glens Falls, but it just makes it a little bit difficult for the farmers market to move into the event building, with everything being blocked off over there.”

He said he was told Elm Street between the former Sandy’s Clam Bar and the former Hotshots will likely remain closed for construction into the Fall.

“We’re just very concerned about our customers being able to get to the event building,” as well as the vendors themselves and their trucks.

On Saturdays for Farmers Market days, Maple Street will be closed to traffic. It will operate 8 a.m. to noon, with added time needed for set-up and break down.

“We want to make it sort of a carnival atmosphere,” Mr. Wells said.

“Being spread out so far, it’ll be kind of nice. I think we’ve got room for the band, and hopefully we’ll have a place for a food court or whatever.

“These are all plans we’re working on, to make it user friendly for everybody, and just enjoy our customers.”

Queensbury Hotel owner “Ed Moore has been gracious enough” to allow customers to use the hotel restrooms, Mr. Wells said, also noting the public rest-rooms in Crandall Public Library.

On Saturdays of big City Park events like LARAC’s June Arts Festival and Zonta’s Arts, Crafts and Curiosities Fair on Mother’s Day weekend, Mr. Moore is allowing the Farmers Market to shift onto the TD Bank lot he now owns next to the hotel, Mr. Wells said.

“I love the outside market,” Mr. Wells said. “This is just a logistical thing to get used to. People aren’t used to change, and unfortunately this year, it’s just a lot of changes going on.”

When the Market Center debuts on May 16, Mr. Well said, “I’ve been trying to get as many vendors as I can to go to the ribbon cutting, to really walk around, get a vision of where we can put vendors and things like that, so it’s more of an easier transition to go from Maple Street into the event building.”

The Market Center will not initially have restroom facilities, which are part of the “incubator” building rebuild under way next store. It will have a market and restrooms on the first floor.

Under then, Mr. Wells says the City aims initially to provide porta-potties for Market Center events.

Mr. Wells also Glens Falls is changing its fee structure to charge each vendor $100 individually for the year, to operate anywhere in the City.

Previously, the Farmers Market paid $1,000 a year for all its vendors to use the Pavilion in the South Street parking lot
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That lot is now closed while Bonacio Development readies Phase 2 of its projects on South and Elm Streets.

With 40-plus vendors expected for the outdoor market, Mr. Wells sees the new system as fair. It will generate more income for the city and it’s better practice for the City to have direct certification from each vendor, he said.

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