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Farmers’ markets sprouting for season

5/31/2012 - South Side Leader
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By Kathleen Folkerth

Shoppers check out the Green Farmers Market during one of its market days last year. The market opens June 19 this year.
Photo courtesy of Green Parks and Recreation
GREATER AKRON — Farmers’ markets are planned again this year in Green and throughout the Akron area.

Green Parks and Recreation is again coordinating the Farmers’ Market there. It will be held on Tuesdays, starting June 19, on the Summa/Green YMCA campus at 3838 Massillon Road.

Through Aug. 28, the market will be up and running from 3 to 7 p.m. After Labor Day, Sept 4 through Oct. 9, the hours will be 3:30 to 6:30 p.m.

Market Manager Kim Goodhart said the market has evolved from its beginnings at Boettler Park three years ago.

“Boettler Park is a beautiful place for it, but there wasn’t the customer base we wanted, so we moved it to the Summa parking lot,” she said. “It has grown.”

At the first market, the following vendors are expected to attend, according to city officials: Bittnerbees (honey products); Brenckle Farms (vegetables); Earth Fare (natural foods market); Hattie’s Café & Gifts (baked goods, salsa and canned items); Hawk Natural Meats (grain-fed beef and pork and free-range chicken); Kendee Candles; May’s Produce; Mazzocca Greenhouse (potted plants); Noon Sharpening (knife sharpening); Orange Wood Bake Shop (Baked goods); Our Daily Bread (baked goods); Rainbow Gardens (produce); The Pierogie Lady; and Walnut Drive Gardens.

“With the warm spring we have had, our first market is already packed with vendors,” said Goodhart. “We usually don’t see this many vendors until after the Fourth of July.”

Other vendors confirmed for later in the summer are Marvin’s Gardens, Master Gardeners of Summit County and Snyder’s Orchard.

Matt Kress, who also manages the market, said between 20 and 25 vendors will be at the market when the growing season is at its peak later this summer.

The market also will feature entertainment, with musical acts scheduled from 4 to 6 p.m., Goodhart said.

Kress said the market is a great way for the city and its residents to support local farmers and vendors and find locally produced items.

“It’s important to know where your food comes from,” he said.

In other parts of Summit County, some farm markets are up and running while others will begin in the coming weeks. Here’s a rundown of other local markets:

• Countryside Farmers’ Market at Howe Meadow, 4040 Riverview Road in Cuyahoga Falls, is open on Saturdays through Oct. 27 from 9 a.m. to noon. The market features music each week and chef demonstrations. For more information, call 330-657-2542 or go to www.cvcountryside.org.

• Countryside Farmers’ Market at Highland Square in Akron is operating on Thursdays through Oct. 4 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the intersection of West Market Street and Conger Avenue. This is the second year for the market at this site. For more information, call 330-657-2542 or go to www.cvcountryside.org.

• The Richfield Village Farmers’ Market begins June 6 and will run on Wednesdays through Oct. 10 from 3 to 6:30 p.m. at the corner of state Routes 303 and 176. For more information, call 330-659-5818.

• Akron General Health and Wellness Center — West, 4125 Medina Road in Bath, will operate a market again on Tuesdays starting June 19 through Sept. 18 from 3 to 6 p.m. For more information, call 330-665-8000.

• The city of Cuyahoga Falls will host a market on Fridays from July 6 to Sept. 28 from 3 to 6:30 p.m. The new location for this year’s market is the corner of Oakwood and Third streets.

• The Peninsula Farmers’ Market will take place Wednesdays at Heritage Farms, 6050 Riverview Road, starting June 20 from 4 to 6:30 p.m. There also will be a new Sunday market starting July 15 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. For more information, call 330-760-0403.

• The Market at Lock 3 will take place at the Downtown Akron park, 200 S. Main St., from July 13 to Sept. 28 on Fridays from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The outdoor, producers-only market will offer fresh produce, handmade cheeses, baked goods and other items. For more information, call 330-374-7676 or go to www.downtownakron.com.

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