P’ville Farmers Market Raring to Get Started for the Summer

Coming off a successful first indoor winter farmers market, Pleasantville is all set to welcome back its patrons and vendors to the great outdoors this weekend.

The summer market will make its 2013 debut this Saturday morning on Memorial Plaza, just two weeks after finishing its four-month run at Pleasantville Middle School.

Peter Rogovin, chairman of Foodchester, the nonprofit organization that took over operations of the Pleasantville market at the start of the year, said he is hopeful the decision to go year-round will help sustain momentum that would have dropped off once the outdoor market closed for the winter.

With an average weekly attendance of 900 visitors from January through May 11, according to Foodchester surveys, that bodes well for the new season, Rogovin said. Communities that have winter and summer markets generally draw about 30 percent of the crowds in winter that are attracted in the summer.

“Being able to keep the market in Pleasantville is really good for summer,” Rogovin said.

Over the coming weeks, visitors will recognize many of the vendors but there will also be some changes, most of which were requested in surveys, he said. In all, there are about 50 vendors who have confirmed they will be part of the market as of last week, some of whom will be on a rotation.

This year, customers will be able to buy cold drinks, prepared foods and falafel. Other requests from the public that are being made available are gelato, cut flowers and baked goods. Beer was another request from patrons, so Captain Lawrence Brewery will be at the market. For the first time there will be a knife sharpening service.

There will also be the return of Hudson Valley Duck, which left the market last year.

“It’s so exciting for Foodchester and for our vendors and what I think is going to be really exciting for our town,” Rogovin said. “For three years you’ve been telling us what you want and in our first summer of running the market it’s like check, check, check…”

About a dozen vendors have remained from the indoor market while another 12 to 14 vendors are entirely new to Pleasantville, he said. Ragoo Farms is one of the new vendors, offering goat, lamb, duck and chicken parts.

There has also been a portion of another aisle added to accommodate more vendor space, Rogovin added. In a full week, there could be between 38 and 43 vendors, he said.

There will also be a greater variety of music and more events this year. Each week until mid October, except for the day of the July 13 Pleasantville Music Festival, there will be entertainment. The village’s own Nannyhagen Creek will open the market this week but there will also be jazz, classical, opera, country and a variety of eclectic sounds, Rogovin said.

“I think we’re a major destination market because of the variety, because of the scale and because we have a good parking situation,” he said.

While Pleasantville has been often criticized for lack of parking, organizers have a new arrangement with vendors this year. The village has arranged with a property owner to have vendors park on a private parcel, freeing up about 35 metered spots on Memorial Plaza. There are also about 400 parking spaces within a four-block walk of the market, including five parking lots that are free, Rogovin said.

Moving forward, Rogovin said organizers are trying to arrange for vendors to donate excess product to a local food pantry to combat hunger in the community. Visitors should also look for posted guidelines for bringing dogs to the market.

Rogovin said the efforts to focus on regional farms and fresh product will make the market special.

“We are trying to put farm back in farmers market,” he said.

The Pleasantville Farmer Market is open 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. each Saturday through Nov. 23. For more information, visit www.pleasantvillefarmersmarket.org.