Sunset Valley Farmers Market prepares for move

By Eric Pulsifer Wednesday, 16 December 2009

Market relocating north of previous location, applying for nonprofit status

AUSTIN — The Sunset Valley Farmers Market, one of the largest in the state, will move just north from its previous location at the Toney Burger Center to an area owned by the City of Sunset Valley. The move will take place in early 2010 once the final details of the lease are worked out with the city.

The new property backs up to the market’s current location, which was leased from the Austin Independent School District. Though the lease ends Jan. 1 and will not be renewed, the school district will allow the market to continue using the Toney Burger Center parking lot until the new site is ready.

“This change should be completely seamless,” Market Director Ruth Wilmore said. “The farmers depend on this for their livelihood. Their product can’t wait for the next week.”

Wilmore said the new space, a 50,000 sq. ft. piece of grassy land just south of Hwy. 290, will offer many improvements over the 35,000 sq. ft. section of parking lot the market has been operating from for the past six years.

“For one, it will be bigger than our current area,” she said. “It’s also a more natural setting. The grass will allow for easier set up of tents, with vendors being able to put tie-downs in the ground rather than using weights.”

Vendor Don Miller and his wife, Cathy, operate one of the largest tents at the market and sell about two pickup truck loads of produce every week in Sunset Valley. Miller has been with the market for seven years, since it was located in Westlake, and will help construct a path on the property parallel with Hwy. 290, allowing vendors easy access for setting up their booths. This is one of many improvements market organizers are looking to make under city supervision.

“I think it’s going to work better there,” he said. “Standing on dirt or grass is a heck of a lot more comfortable than pavement.”

Wilmore said the move is mutually beneficial for the market and AISD, as extracurricular events scheduled at the same time as the market often cause headaches for both parties.

“We won’t have all the scheduling conflicts that we had with AISD,” she said. “They’re managing a sports complex, they’re not a landlord, and that’s OK.”

The new location may be used by other groups on weekdays and Sundays, but will allow the market to include some permanent fixtures impossible to add beforehand, such as a stage for performers and a possible storage facility on-site.

Wilmore said the city has worked quickly to help keep the market going and has started repairing nearby fences and making other minor upgrades to the new property.

“We’re going to start out like this and then go from there,” she said. “The city has been incredibly supportive and is definitely pro the market. They help us as much as they possibly can. They’re 100 percent behind us.”

A humble beginning

The farmers market now known as the Sunset Valley Farmers Market began in 1998 outside of the Whole Foods in downtown Austin. As the market grew, it moved to Westlake before finally ending up in Sunset Valley.

“It was just tiny when it started,” former Market Director Salila Travers said. “We started with just farmers and then we added artisans and prepared food. Then we made it like agritourism; we made it into something that people really want to come to.”

The market is held every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. It typically has anywhere from 70 to more than 100 vendors—most vendors live within 50 miles of Austin—and between 3,000 and 5,000 patrons on any given day, though turnout varies by season and weather.

“We have a really excellent group of farmers and vendors,” Wilmore said. “Many of our people have been with the market since the beginning. Farmers markets, by nature, are constantly changing, but the core group here has persevered through a lot of different changes.”

Travers said the quality of the locally grown produce and food has helped the market expand to where it is today.

“We really pick the vendors with great care, and we pick the best artisans we can find, the best prepared food we can find,” she said. “The meat, the chicken and the eggs are local, and most of the vegetables and produce are organic. The key is that the food is incredible.”

Miller said out of the markets he has seen, none are bigger than Sunset Valley.

“Locally, with all the little farmers markets around, there are none that compare to Sunset Valley,” he said. “There’s really no comparison in the Austin area. The Houston ones don’t compare either.”

Miller attributes part of that success to accessibility.

“In Westlake, it got so big and the parking was so limited that they had to have someone directing traffic. [In Sunset Valley], you’ve got all the parking in the world.”

Despite the move, that abundance of parking should remain, as AISD is expected to enter into agreement with the City of Sunset Valley to allot parking spaces at the Toney Burger Center to be used by patrons and vendors at the market.

The market’s future

Miller started at the farmers market selling produce from his sister-in-law’s farm outside of Houston. As business grew, he opened a farm in Elgin.

“Without the farmers market, we wouldn’t even be doing what we’re doing,” he said.

Travers said she hopes the market can support local growers further by switching to a nonprofit model. Market organizers applied for 501(c)4 nonprofit designation in December. Travers said she would like for the market to be able to offer benefits for farmers and create relief funds to help support their businesses.

“We’re trying to create a better future for everybody by giving small farmers a chance,” she said. “I think having small farmers is vital. What we want to do is make sure there is a place for these farmers and that we can do our best to protect them.”

Sunset Valley Farmers Market future site

The Sunset Valley Farmers Market will move from the parking lot of AISD’s Toney Burger Center to a piece of land owned by the City of Sunset Valley just north of the market’s previous location. The Austin school district has worked out an agreement with the city to allow farmers market guests to continue parking in the Toney Burger Center’s parking lot on Saturdays. A permeable road giving vendors access to set up their tents will be added along the north perimeter of the property, and the city will make other minor improvements.

What’s in season?

• Fall
  • Apples, beets, cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, figs, greens, lettuce, okra, pears, peas, peppers, pumpkins, squashes, tomatoes, turnips
• Winter
  • Arugula, avocados, beets, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, celery, chard, grapefruits, kale, lemons, mustards, collards, oranges, spinach, turnips
• Spring
  • Asparagus, blackberries, carrots, garlic, green beans, greens, new potatoes, onions, spinach, squashes, strawberries
• Summer
  • Black-eyed peas, blueberries, cantaloupes, cucumbers, eggplant, figs, garlic, grapes, musk melons, okra, peaches, peppers, potatoes, squashes, tomatoes, watermelon
• Sold year round
  • Baked goods, beef, bison, breads, cheeses, chicken, chocolates, herbs, honey, jams, jellies, lamb, lettuce, mushrooms, pastries, pecans, pestos, plants, pork, prepared foods, shrimp