A year-round farmer’s market could open in Madison as early as summer 2015 to give nearby food and craft producers an opportunity to sell their goods at a new indoor facility.
The Local Food Committee is spearheading the Madison Public Market project and presented feedback at its meeting Wednesday from a survey it recently conducted to gauge regional interest in the proposal.
Farmers from across the state participated in the survey and 65 percent of the 166 respondents said they are “very interested” in the possibility of a year-round farmer’s market.
The discussion Wednesday revolved around the market’s design. The committee is drawing inspiration from other successful public markets in the Midwest, such as the flourishing Detroit Eastern Market.
Madison Food and Alcohol Policy Coordinator Mark Woulf said the city is bringing in Dan Carmody, president of the Detroit Eastern Market, as a consultant on the project because of his farmer’s market acumen.
“There is a very unique concentration in Michigan to try to buy produce from Michigan and the Eastern Market really capitalizes on that,” Woulf said.
City Office of Business Resources Manager Matthew Mikolajewski said community support of Dane County’s Market on the Square indicates a similar, if not greater, demand for a stronger local food network in Wisconsin than in Michigan.
Mikolajewski also said if the project moves “full speed ahead,” the new public market could open in summer 2015.
Committee member Topf Wells said the next step should be involving future consumers by sharing the results of the survey as well as holding listening sessions to inform the public and ask for feedback.
