Despite a disastrous year in 2010, local residents are trying to revive the Magnolia Farmers Market.
Members of the Magnolia Farmers Market Steering Committee have sent a letter to the group that manages the farmers market, stating that they are working to find a new venue for the market, sponsors to subsidize it, and volunteers to help run it.
Last November, the Neighborhood Farmers Market Alliance (NFMA) announced the Magnolia Market, which it owns and operates, would have to shut down unless it became self-sufficient.
NFMA Executive Director Chris Curtis said that Magnolia’s gross income and vendor sales dropped by 25 percent in 2010, forcing some vendors to leave the village market.
Julian O’Reilley, Operations manager for the NFMA, said Magnolia has been a unique case. Since its inception in 2003, the market hasn’t caught on as fast as other community markets and never became the success that the NFMA had expected.
“Usually, you give markets three to five years to hit their stride,” O’Reilley said. “And we thought 2008 might be the year. But then the recession hit and increased competition from other farmers markets didn’t allow Magnolia to hit its high point.”
The result was that the Magnolia suffered more of a revenue drop in 2009 than other markets. But 2010 saw a precipitous decline in revenue.
Nancy Gellos and other members of the Magnolia steering committee know all about the problems, but they still believe they can make the market a success. “The market faces some challenges if it is to remain a vital part of our community,” the steering committee wrote in a document to the NFMA. “However, our committee firmly believes these challenges can be successfully overcome and we are committed to partnering with the (NFMA) to insure the market is sustainable in the coming years. In fact, our goal is to become a model for other similarly situated communities.”
To help improve the market, The Magnolia Chamber of Commerce and the steering committee want to move the market to the heart of Magnolia Village. The committee has requested input into the vendor mix and that vendors will uphold their commitments.
The biggest problem facing the market is money. Since its inception in 2003, the Magnolia market has been subsidized by the NFMA’s more profitable markets. Now the NFMA needs farmers markets need to make money or be closed and it remains unclear whether the Magnolia market can break even this year.
To stay open as it is, in the parking lot of the Magnolia Community Center and Catharine Blaine K-8, the market would need a financial commitment of $20,000 from the community. That would ensure an average of 32 vendors a week, weekly programming and special events (kid’s events, chef’s demos, music, etc), staffing, coordination, permits, insurance, promotion and outreach.
Another option is to relocate the market to 33rd Avenue West, which would bring the market closer to the business core, but require a street permit and necessitate the employ of street security.
This option, according to Curtis, would require a financial commitment of at least $35,000 from the community. It wasn't known if the steering committee had found that level of backing. commitment yet.
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