Summer farmers market moving to Graham Park
The Rochester Farmers Markets is slated to have a new location when it opens for the summer season.
The market’s vendors voted Tuesday to pursue a plan from Olmsted County to move the Saturday outdoor market to Graham Park. In past years, the market had been held in a parking lot on the southeast edge of downtown.
“Graham Park has given us a great offer for a long-term solution for the farmers market,” said Paul Schmidt, chair of the market’s location committee. “This move meets our objectives of offering a year-round, consistent place for locals and visitors to find high quality farm products.”
Related: Farmers market wants to establish a permanent home in Rochester
The planned site is adjacent to the current winter and Wednesday markets, which the organization says will offer a number of benefits, including improved accessibility, along with “simpler and safer parking.”
The market’s leadership plans to meet with county officials and other stakeholders in the coming weeks to iron out the details. Already, some of the basic requirements, such as electrical hook-ups, have been installed on-site in preparation for the first scheduled outdoor market on May 2.
Mike Schmitt, president of Friends of the Farmers Market, said the market and county have also enlisted an architecture firm to begin drawing up plans for a potential indoor/outdoor venue at Graham Park.
In the meantime, there are still a half dozen winter markets still to come. Those are scheduled for February 8 and 22, March 7 and 21, April 4 and 18; all go from 9 a.m. to noon at Graham Park Building 35 (Industrial Hall).
Sean Baker is a Rochester journalist and the founder of Med City Beat.
Cover photo courtesy Rochester Farmers Markets
