Acorn board shifting gears; considering farmers’ market for summer

The Manchester Farmers’ Market may once again be held in Chi-Bro Park on Thursday afternoons during the summer months!

by Marsha Chartrand

At the Tuesday, January 17, meeting of the Manchester Village Council, Acorn Farmers’ Market Board Chair Theresa Herron made a presentation to discuss re-starting the Farmers’ Market at a new location since closing their operation at the Manchester Market in November.

“It was just too much,“ Herron explained of the need to maintain extended hours to match the Super Perky Pantry’s hours, to pay an expanded staff and a director, and to uphold the business model they had established when the business was still open just two or three days a week at 327 W Main St (and primarily staffed by volunteers).

“But — we are not gone; we are not dissolved; we are not bankrupt,“ she continued. “We are moving forward. We would like to re-start the farmers’ market, because we continue to believe that providing fresh food, farm to table, is still very important to the community. And studies have shown that a farmers’ market is a desirable amenity in a small town — or a larger one.“

Dana Turner-Queen, who is a familiar face to those who frequented Acorn over the years, plans to head up the market and has been recruiting vendors. The market will likely be held from 3pm to 7pm on Thursday afternoons from May through October. She intends to start with 10 vendors and build from there. While there will be proposed vendor fees of $10 per week, or $200 per season, to help finance the farmers’ market, the board also will also be looking for sponsorship options to help pay for the costs of the market — from the village, 5 Healthy Towns, and private donors.

“There are numerous benefits (of a farmers market) to the community,“ Turner-Queen explained in a document to which Herron referred several times at Tuesday’s meeting. “Young families and new residents become connected with the community while finding high-quality food. A farmers’ market draws not only people from in town and in the townships but from outside communities. A reliable weekly event creates a bridge between visitors and existing  businesses. When customers return time and again, they typically will ‘try out‘ some other options in town (ie. gas, dinner, etc). ‘Micro entrepreneurs‘ build a customer base in their farmers’ market and may want to put down roots in brick-and-mortar stores in Manchester. Finally, a farmers’ market is as near to a ‘barrier free‘ opportunity for area residents to empower themselves in entrepreneurship.”

Herron specifically noted that the vendors who have been surveyed would prefer a location in Chi-Bro Park, which had been successful for several years before Acorn started up. In years previous to that, vendors had set up on Adrian Street, but there were a few drawbacks to that location, in particular the heat and standing on concrete or asphalt for several hours. At Chi-Bro, there is plenty of shade, grass, and space to spread out for vendors and customers alike.

“Vendors liked the location — they liked the shade, the ease of loading and unloading, the convenient parking, and the crowds were good at Chi-Bro,“ she said. “And we feel like we need to take their needs into consideration, because without vendors, we don’t have a farmers’ market, right?“

One of the advantages of having an outdoor farmers’ market without attachment to an established food service location is that the vendors can include “cottage industry“ cooks and bakers who make items such as jams, breads, and other home-produced goods that are acceptable in a farmers’ market because they’re selling it themselves not as part of a store. The allowable products list is based on the food-safety risk level associated with certain types of food, according to The Cottage Food Law.

So the project is building steam and things are getting ready to happen. Entertainment and activities are being planned to supplement the food vendors’ offerings and keep the younger set interested while their parents spend time shopping. The Acorn board still has some money from the sale of their coolers and other store fixtures that will help them pay Dana from now to the opening of the market in mid May.

A brief survey about your food shopping habits at Acorn Farmers’ Market & Café and what you might like to see in a new, outdoor farmers’ market space this summer can be found at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdQwRY_g6Gb2E03RnTmK5lTMQCX1LqCtQIM2shpJiBMrvcxIQ/viewform. Please take time to click on the link and fill out the survey so the board can continue to serve you better and bring you what you need in the way you need it most.

The food landscape has changed enormously in Manchester in the four years since we last had a farmers’ market in the park. And that is a good thing. Now Manchester has a new good thing on the horizon. Keep watching this space to see what’s coming next!

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.