Farmers market to spruce up with a new name and new look
By Kathleen Gray Free Press Staff Writer
Oakland County’s Farmers Market is on the verge of becoming simply the Oakland Market in June when management of the popular Waterford site is transferred to the county Parks and Recreation Department.
The transfer has been in the works for two years, and the Oakland County Board of Commissioners is expected to approve the change in several committee meetings this week.
The Parks and Recreation Department is a separate entity funded by its own millage, meaning the county won’t have the nearly $200,000 cost of operating and maintaining the property on its books. It also means that some improvements might be in store for the 57-year old market, which depends on regional vendors and farmers for produce, flowers, a variety of home-baked products and crafts.
The parks department is looking at making the 14-acre site, which attracts 300,000 visitors a year, a part of the Water-ford Oaks Park and hopes to eventually create a trail between the two sites.
“We’re looking at some cross-marketing opportunities and making people aware of other parks in the county,” said Dan Stencil, the department’s executive director. “But our biggest and first priority is going to be customer service and enhancing the experience for patrons.”
Toward that end, there will be parking attendants at the market to help unsnarl traffic on busy summer Saturdays. And Stencil said he’s also working with community organizations, such as the Boy and Girl Scouts, to earn community service awards — and maybe a little extra cash — by helping patrons cart their goods to their cars.
The parks department also plans to spruce up the place with a fresh coat of paint and some colorful banners to more clearly identify the market’s attributes.
! CONTACT KATHLEEN GRAY: 313-223-4407 OR KGRAY99@FREEPRESS.COM
2010 PHOTO BY ROB WIDDIS/SPECIAL TO THE FREE PRESS
The Oakland County Farmers Market is to become the Oakland Market when county Parks and Recreation takes over operations.
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