Vero Beach council draws flak for booting Farmers Market Oceanside out of parking lot

Colleen Wixon | Treasure Coast Newspapers

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VERO BEACH — For almost 10 years, vendors at the Farmers Market Oceanside have sold their wares from the city-owned parking lot on Ocean Drive.

But now, the City Council wants them out of the parking lot.

It was in the midst of discussing beachside parking issues that the council decided to kick the farmers market out of the parking lot, limiting it to the sidewalk near Humiston Park or the park itself.

"Until they pack every inch of (the sidewalk and park area), we do not want them back in the parking lot," Councilman Dr. Val Zudans said at last week's meeting. "It isn't fair to the people who are trying to use (the lot)."

Mayor Harry Howle said the market could use the northern beachside parking lot adjacent to Humiston Park.

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The farmers market has a permit to use the Ocean Drive parking lot and sidewalk across the street, City Manager Jim O'Connor said. Now, however, that permit would be revoked when it comes up for renewal in October and reissued to eliminate use of the parking lot.

The council's directive has outraged vendors, market visitors and the Oceanside Business Association, which sponsors the Saturday-morning event.

More than 3,000 people have signed an online petition aimed at "saving the farmers market." Al Benkert, treasure and vice president of events of the Oceanside Business Association, said a group plans to ask the council at its Sept. 4 meeting to reconsider.

The market routinely moves to the sidewalk during the summers, when vendor participation and visitors to the farmers market decline, Benkert said. It customarily returns to the parking lot in October as season begins.

About four times as many people visit the market from October through the winter visitor season, he said. The market typically has about 60 vendors during season, about 22 more than in the summer, he said.

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"It sounds like a good idea, except we couldn't put 22 (more) vendors in the park. There's no way to get vehicles in the park. People would have to hand-carry (their items)," he said.

The sidewalk would be unable to handle the large crowds, he said. Setting up in the parking lot allows for wider aisles, making it easier for visitors to see vendors, he said.

Parking in the oceanside business district has been an ongoing issue. The city has alternated between two- and three-hour parking limits in the district, trying to address complaints.

The council is trying to find a solution that's best for everyone, Howle said.

"Unless you try it, how do you know (whether it will work)?" Howle said. If the new plan is unmanageable during season, the city could revisit the use of the parking lot, he said.

For months, some business owners have questioned the location of the farmers market, held 8 a.m. to noon Saturdays. Business owners have told the council the market takes up customer parking spaces.

When Zudans visited the market earlier this month, he said, he saw only half the allotted space was utilized.

"It's actually a better experience," Zudans said. "Instead of walking in a circle in a parking lot, you're kind of just walking on the sidewalk."

But vendors such as Ethan Hudson, who works at his family's Poinsettia Groves citrus stand, said the roominess of the parking lot allows vendors to talk individually with customers.

"There's a lot of space (in the parking lot)," said Hudson, 16. "It really creates a personal atmosphere."

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