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Outdoor
market under construction Construction workers will be working for the next month to finish transforming an old, abandoned building in downtown Fort Worth into a new attraction for residents around the city.
The Fort Worth Public Market is scheduled to open May 25 and will be located along Jones Street in the Convention Center District, inside the historic Santa Fe Warehouse, said Angie Rawie, market manager. Over $2.3 million in federal, local and private funds were used to complete the construction of the Santa Fe Warehouse built in 1937, Rawie said. According to the Fort Worth Public Market Web site, the market will be split into two parts including an indoor six-day-a-week venue inside the Santa Fe Warehouse where fresh food vendors will operate. There will also be an covered outdoor market next to the warehouse where farmers will sell their produce on weekends at Fort Worth’s Intermodal Transportation Center. The Fort Worth Public Market has leases with eight small businesses including Seafoodville (fresh and prepared fish), Santa Fe Produce, The Plant Source (plants and fresh cut flowers), Frost Bites (Italian ice cream), Coffee Haus (gourmet coffee, desserts and prepared foods), Hot Damn Tamales (Mexican prepared foods), GO Texas (a Texas store that sells Texas gifts) and Lone Star Wines, according to the Web site. The outdoor market will emphasize retailing fresh food to its consumers, hoping to expand the opportunities for local agriculture and food processing and firmly establishing a link between urban and rural economies, Rawie said. The outdoor Farmer’s Market that will be open Saturdays from May 25 to September 21 will showcase locally grown produce, crafts and entertainment. The Farmer’s Market will be held under three large canopies totaling over 23,000 square feet, Rawie said. “Vendors at the Fort Worth Public Market will be small, independent, family-owned businesses which will have a special relationship with their customers because they will serve them regularly, personally and consistently,” Rawie said. “This is a different model than the suburban grocery store environment,” she said. “But we think H-E-B Central Market will be a big competitor for us.” Representatives from H-E-B Central Market declined to comment on any potential competition from the Fort Worth Public Market. The Fort Worth Public Market developed because of a partnership between Downtown Fort Forth, Inc., the Downtown Tax Increment Financing District, the City of Fort Worth and the Fort Worth Transportation Authority, Rawie said. “We are following the European tradition of open-air markets which promote direct interaction between customers and small businesses,” Rawie said. Rawie said Downtown Fort Worth, Inc. looked at Seattle’s successful Pike Place Market in particular when planning the Fort Worth Public Market. Katy Jo Reinmiller, a junior economics major from Seattle, said she is excited about the market opening in Fort Worth. “Pike Place Market is a really neat thing in Seattle and I think it’s great that Fort Worth will now have something similar,” Reinmiller said. The market will be open six days a week, excluding Mondays, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. The outdoor Farmer’s Market will operate 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturdays from May 25 to September 21. For more information contact Downtown Fort Worth, Inc. at (817) 870-1692. Anthony
Kirchner |
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