Reno squeezes some vendors out of Hamilton Farmers’ Market
Emma Reilly
http://www.thespec.com/news/local/ar...farmers-market
Market vendors feel squeeze Shane Coleman, front, and brother Ben Coleman are upset the city won't let their Dilly's organic produce stall back into the Hamilton Farmers Market following renovation.
Barry Gray/The Hamilton Spectator
Two dozen longtime stallholders are losing their spots at the newly renovated Hamilton Farmers’ Market.
The vendors say they’re outraged that people who have been doing business at the market for years — sometimes decades — have been given two months’ notice that they will no longer have a place to sell their products when vendors return to the space at York and MacNab streets, near the library, in January.
“The way they’re doing things is deplorable,” said Gord Williams, a farmer and vendor. “You don’t just throw people out on the street after 50, 60 years. This is how they build the downtown core? Throw people out on the street?”
But the city says building code requirements mean there are fewer stalls available and a new vision for the market means diversifying the products and emphasizing local food. It also says seniority doesn’t mean a vendor is selling high-quality goods.
“It’s getting back to not having significant number of people not selling the exact same thing. It’s not just about bringing everybody back — it’s about changing the dynamic,” said Anna Bradford, the city’s director of culture. “Seniority does not equate to quality.”
Before the renovations, the city’s market held 172 stalls. However, during the renovations the city added more washrooms — a building code requirement — and a community kitchen for classes and workshops. Now, there’s only space for 146 stalls.
To determine who would make the cut, the city asked all current vendors to fill out an application and invited applications from the community. Forty-eight vendors were selected: nine new vendors and 39 current stallholders. Twenty-three current stallholders were not selected to return. Letters were sent out on Friday alerting vendors of the city’s decision, and most stallholders received their letters on Monday.
The selection process was made through a points system, Bradford said. Representatives from several agencies, including the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Farmers’ Markets Ontario and local food organizations were asked to rate the applications based on several categories. Among the categories were local farming, worth 30 points; previous market experience, worth 5 points; and a completed application, worth 25 points.
The process has drawn ire from vendors such as Charlie Chiarelli, whose family has been running a market stand for 45 years. He buys produce from the Ontario Food Terminal for his stand and was not accepted ace. He says he’s planning to appeal the city’s decision.
“I’m going to fight right to the end,” he said.
Shane and Dilly Coleman’s family has had a stall in the market since the 1830s. With the help of other family members, the father-son team runs two stands, one selling organic Ontario produce and the other selling dried food. The dried food stand was accepted into the new market space; the produce stand wasn’t.
Shane Coleman, a recent city council candidate and president of the stallholders association, says he’s calling a general meeting for all vendors Friday. He says the vendors aren’t allowed to see their scores and weren’t consulted during the process. He’s now considering launching a class-action lawsuit against the city.
“We’re uniting the stallholders to work together as a group to say what the city’s proposing is unacceptable,” he said.
But not all vendors are outraged. Ron Jepson, who runs Jepson’s Fresh Meats, says though he disagrees with longtime vendors losing their spots, some of the changes are for the better.
“There are some people in here selling below-quality items. That hurts us all. Through this change, they’re going to eliminate that,” he said. “I like to look at the positive side.”
Bradford says it’s not correct that scores are being kept secret and stresses that all vendors are “more than welcome” to make an appointment with city staff to review the decision. She argues the city has also held a myriad of meetings since the renovation process began in 2006.
She points out the market loses an average of $300,000 a year, and vendors pay between $5,000 and $6,000 in rent.
“Over the years, there were many vendors selling the exact same things — and a lot of it was coming through the Ontario food terminal,” she said. “What we’re trying to do is make decisions that are based on the customer. Lots of variety, lots diversity of fresh products, and valuing local farmers and food producers.”
Prev
Linear Mode
