Former top planner says Saskatoon Farmers' Market's proposed new spot is 'obscure'

Saskatoon's former director of planning and development says the Saskatoon Farmers' Market's proposed new location will offer challenges, including being difficult to find.

"It's a very obscure location," said Alan Wallace, who is now a private consultant. "It has no synergy with its surroundings at all."

On Saturday, 72 per cent of vendors from the farmer's market voted in favour of moving to a new location at 2612 Koyl Avenue, near the city's airport. The decision came after an extensive city-wide search for a new location that began when the River Landing lease was terminated earlier this year.

The Saskatoon Farmers' Market Co-op said in a news release that the new location "will serve well toward the co-operative's goals."

Parking woes

Ian Parentau has had a lot of success at the market's city centre location with his Parenteau Brothers Meadworks.

His vendor's fee will rise to $200 a month from $140. It's not prohibitive for him, but he said it might be behind some of the "no" votes on the move.

He said one of the reasons he voted "yes" is an increase in parking. Many of his customers cite parking fees and congestion as one of the reasons they don't frequent the River Landing location more.

"A typical story goes, 'We used to go to the market all the time, but the last time we went we couldn't find parking, or we parked and got a ticket from the city,'" he said.

"A big majority of our customers drive."

The new location boasts about 250 parking spots in a lot next door.

Accessibility questioned

Both Parenteau and Wallace agreed that downtown-dwellers aren't going to like the move.

"The people who walk and cycle from the core neighbourhoods are very disappointed that it's moving away from the downtown area," said Parenteau.

On the other hand, he argued that it's a relatively short distance from downtown to the airport. He predicts the bus ride would take 18 minutes, with a few minutes of walking tacked onto the end.