FAYETTEVILLE — The Fayetteville Farmers’ Market could close all four streets on the downtown square Saturday mornings if aldermen approve an ordinance in the weeks ahead.
Matthew Petty, Ward 2 alderman, penned proposed policy changes to allow the market to expand.
“The market is bursting at the seams, and it needs to grow,” Petty said during a tour of the square Monday.
The market would be allowed to add space for vendor booths, nonprofit groups and food trucks on 25 parking spaces along the outer rim of Block Avenue and Center Street. Customers could buy produce standing in the middle of Block and Center as well as from the interior sidewalk around the old post office building.
At A Glance
Council Action
Fayetteville’s City met Tuesday and approved:
• Opposing a large hog farm along a tributary to the Buffalo National River
• A construction management contract with Rogers-based Baldwin & Shell Construction Co. for a downtown parking deck
• Adding several projects, including Old Wire Road and Zion Road widening, regional park access and College Avenue enhancement, to the Transportation Improvement Bond Program
• Appointing Bobby Ferrell and Hannah Withers to the Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission
• Naming the Fayetteville District Court courtroom the “Fayetteville District Judge Rudy Moore Courtroom.”
Source: Staff Report
Lori Boatright, market manager, said the market would look at closing Block Avenue this year if the ordinance is approved. Center Street could be closed in the future.
Mountain Street and East Avenue would remain closed to traffic. Drivers would be able to make right turns at each corner of the square.
Petty said his proposal seeks to keep the ratio of vendor space to space for nonprofit and advocacy groups. Closing Center Street and Block Avenue would increase space by about 37 percent for both types of groups, according to Petty’s calculations. An expanded market would also provide more room for face painters, weavers, musicians and performance troupes, he added.
It would be up to market management to determine where each group would be located. The market would have to submit a map to the city each March showing where vendors and nonprofit groups would go. Market management would also have to file a report each year detailing overall revenue and expenditures.
Nonprofit and advocacy groups could sign up for space on the square on a first-come, first-served basis.
Petty said his proposal keeps the interests of businesses on the square in mind.
No vehicles could be parked in front of storefronts, and tents would have to be raised high enough to preserve sight lines from the street. No prepared food could be sold in front of restaurants. And brick-and-mortar businesses would be allowed to set up sidewalk sales on the outer edge of the sidewalk.
Liz Fulton, the owner of Town and Country Shop, a women’s apparel and accessories store on the west side of the square for more than 52 years, said Tuesday she was OK with the proposed changes.
Fulton said her business tends to get more exposure when the market is open.
“I’m always very supportive of anything that adds activity and visibility to the square as long as it doesn’t block our store,” she added.
Petty’s proposal would allow leashed and socialized dogs during the market, but dog owners would be required to carry a plastic bag with them and clean up after their pets.
Aldermen are scheduled to consider the ordinance May 7.