I wasn't aware that we were trying to clone a large urban market as you describe - or to aim at a permanent, year-=long structure. That's a deliciously ambitious project, surely worth considering for the long haul - especially in light of the urgent need to become more self-sufficient for food security.
You'll see above that I'm copying this to Vicki Taylor. I applaud her efforts for the immediate future, and hope that ST-ers will get behind her vision. --- On Tue, 10/14/08, George Frantz <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > From: George Frantz <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] Farmers markets & the Commons > To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv" > <[email protected]> > Date: Tuesday, October 14, 2008, 5:20 PM > While I would love top see a central market downtown I'm > not sure it would be a workable, or good idea. > > The Lancaster Central Market building covers an area about > the size of the Tompkins County Library, and Reading > Terminal Market is about twice that size (albeit underneath > a convention center.) Both are enclosed buildings that > operate year. > > Whereas Wegmans can rely on tractor trailers to deliver > large quantities of goods, a central market needs to > accommodate many, many small delivery vehicles to supply > the individual vendors that would be housed > there. Although they would likely be arriving before 6:00 > AM, introducing large numbers of such vehicles to downtown > Ithaca could be problematic. > > The other issue is the customer traffic that would be > generated. At any given time on any Saturday at the > Farmers' Market there are as many as 300-350 cars parked > in the parking lot and along the various streets as far back > toward Route 13 as Carpenter Drive. (versus 25-30 parked > bikes) A successful central market would generate that > amount of parking demand or more in terms of parking demand, > in a downtown area that is already near or over capacity > with regard to parking. > > Because Lancaster is a compactly built, colonial era city, > it has a population density of about 2.5 times that of > Ithaca (the city). That puts some 20,000-25,000 residents > within a ten minute walk of Central Market and as a result > it generates little in the way of automobile traffic. On > the other hand in Ithaca there is only in the range of > 5,000-7,000 residents within a ten minute walk of downtown > and a potential market. (Yes, density, density, density...) > > My sense is that a location close to Route 13 on the > Northside, West End or Southwest areas would work better > than a downtown location. > > Finally, it should indeed be a publcily owned market. > Parking garages after all can be publicly owned and > subsidized, so why not a central market? > > This doesn't mean that an outdoor farmer's market > should not be pursued for the Commons, but I personally > hesitate at the thought of a permanent structure with 100+ > vendors open 3 or more days per week in the downtown area. > > George Frantz > > > > --- > > > > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins > County area, please visit: > http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > [email protected] > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org _______________________________________________ For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: [email protected] http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org
