The St. Albert Farmers’ Market will open as planned this June, but it will be smaller, split, and at Servus Place.
St. Albert Chamber of Commerce officials announced late May 8 that the St. Albert Farmers’ Market would this year be held at Servus Credit Union Place (400 Campbell Rd.).
The market is usually held downtown on Saturdays during the summer, where it draws up to 20,000 people.
That’s not feasible this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, said St. Albert Chamber of Commerce president Jennifer McCurdy. Alberta Health Services has asked market organizers to control the number of people in a farmers' market at any one time to ensure guests can stay the recommended two meters apart, and they couldn't do that downtown where people come and go from all directions.
Split market
McCurdy said the City of St. Albert has agreed to move the market to Servus Place, where it will operate out of the small parking lots north and northeast of the Red Willow Community Church. (Servus Place itself is closed due to the pandemic.)
“We’re going to have two different markets in two different parking lots,” she said, with vendors split between the two locations.
Access will be by Campbell Road to the main Servus parking lot, which has about 1,000 stalls, McCurdy said. Market officials might run a shuttle bus to the site later this summer if there’s demand.
“We’ve actually heard from a lot of people who live up in that area that they’re excited because they’re going to be able to walk to the market,” McCurdy said.
Guests will line up along Servus Place, sanitize their hands and enter the east or west market. Each market will be fenced with one entrance and exit, one-way only, and capped at about 160 customers at a time. McCurdy said market staffers would post lists of which vendor is in which market so guests could plan their trips, and might set up an express lane for people who need to visit both markets. There will also be a pickup zone for guests that pre-order their products.
Guests will see up to 165 vendors split between the two markets – down from the 270 the market usually hosts. McCurdy said they had less vendor space this year, as the province’s COVID-19 guidelines require a half-booth of space between each booth. Stalls will be limited to two customers at a time, with customers encouraged to “shop with purpose” to get in and out quickly.
Due to provincial health regulations, McCurdy said there won’t be buskers, seating, food samples, public washrooms or children’s activities at this year’s market. The market should have both food and non-food vendors if the province implements Stage 1 of its relaunch strategy as planned on May 14. She wasn’t yet sure if reusable bags or containers would be allowed at the market.
McCurdy said she hopes to move the market back downtown once the province lifts its cap on public gatherings.
Good sign, says vendor
St. Albert Farmers’ Market vendor Dieter Kuhlmann gave kudos to the Chamber for running the market despite this year’s challenges. Guests at his stall should expect to see workers wearing disposable gloves, sanitizing surfaces, handing out pre-bagged produce and making sales behind Plexiglas shields.
McCurdy said she isn’t sure how many people would come to the market this year, but said many are excited it's still on.
“It’s important for us to support our local producers,” she said, and she encourages anyone who isn’t sick to visit the market.
Kuhlmann predicted this year’s attendance would depend on Mother Nature.
“If we have really good weather, people will come and they will shop.”
The market runs Saturdays 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. from June 6 to Oct. 10. Visit www.stalbertchamber.com/farmers-market/ for details.
