Due to the construction project for the farmers market site which will begin in August, and is expected to take approximately six months to complete, the Englewood Farmers Market will cancel the Fall 2021 – Spring 2022 season. With less than two months before the projected opening, the Board of Directors voted to dissolve the Englewood Farmers Market and cease all operations.
The market was to be displaced this season due to the county’s planned construction of a band shell and other amenities in the Pioneer Plaza. While other locations were explored, no suitable option was found.
A spokesperson for the board said “Unfortunately, two alternate location options that we may have considered are no longer available to us. In addition, two other suggested options in the downtown area do not have sufficient linear footage for the vendor tents or a large enough square-footage footprint for pedestrian traffic and vendor vehicular and trailer parking. None of the alternate sites we have considered have the necessary infrastructure such as electricity, restrooms, or potable water, that are required to support our market operations and the significant seasonal attendance volume of approximately 200,000 customers. It has taken many hours of discussion and difficult consideration by the EFM Board of Directors before coming to this decision.”
“Our customers will be notified via social media, along with e-mail and voicemail. All of our Englewood community SNAP customers will be able to continue using their benefits and any remaining tokens at our Venice Farmers Market which is open on Saturday mornings year around.”