Uncertainty over the future of 200-year-old farmers market

Yahoo

01-05-2025

MADISON COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — The future of the Madison County Farmers Market is in jeopardy, but county officials said it could be saved.
After the Ayers anchor store, which provided stability and continuity to the market, left earlier this year, county commissioners have been scrambling to find a replacement and revive an institution of the county many know and love.
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'I think buying local is the greatest thing you can do to support your local economy,' Dean Sharp, a Huntsville resident, said.
Sharp has been going to the market since he was a little boy, along with his father who owned a local produce shop at the time. When he heard about the anchor store leaving and putting the market in limbo, he was heartbroken.
'An end of an era, you know,' Sharp said.
Madison County Farmers Market started in 1814, over two centuries ago, in the courthouse basement. It is one of the only institutions still in business from that time. While it has called many other places around the county home since then, people truly consider it a historical landmark.
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A vendor who has sold at the market for several years said they have heard little to nothing from county commissioners since that news. The vendor, wishing to remain anonymous, said they even tried to call the market's number to get information. When the call went unanswered, they could not even leave a voicemail.
'The communication, well, there wasn't any, which was a big problem,' the vendor said. 'And then I found an email and was able to contact somebody that way. And they pretty much at the time said they were working on it.'
The vendor is worried about those who rely on markets like these for their income.
'There's no clear path to me that any of the vendors, the farmers, can get prepared for it,' the vendor said.
County Commissioner Phil Vandiver said that could all change very soon, adding that they have been working hard to find a business to fill that spot.
'When you're a government agency, you have to follow requirements,' Vandiver said. 'We had to put out a bid to find somebody to go in. Now we're having to hire somebody to run the market for us.'
Vandiver said it costs the county $25,000-$50,000 a year to operate the market. He said anchor stores are pivotal to help cover those costs, find additional produce and attract customers.
He said one bid for the spot is appealing.
'We're still working through some of the details of the bid,' Vandiver said. 'I think our financial department is working with the ones that gave us the high bid and making sure they got all their paperwork turned in and all like that.'
Once that paperwork clears, the county commission said it can disclose more details about the bid.
Vandiver said the commission has every intention of opening the market in late May. Even though the intended date quickly approaches, the vendor said they still have not heard anything.
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