The Lane County Farmers Market officially expanded to Springfield on Sunday with thousands of people attending the opening day at the Springfield Public Library.
“A lot of constituents have been wanting a market in Springfield for a very long time, and we were able to make it happen this year,” said Poppy Marin, operations manager for the Lane County Farmers Market.
“We really need something like this here in Springfield,” said Springfield resident Debbie McClary. “If I lived close to the Eugene one, that would be part of my routine, but it’s just something I don’t find myself getting to, so this will be great to do every weekend.”
Organizers say the growing popularity of the Saturday and Tuesday markets in Eugene inspired the expansion to Springfield.
“I’m loving it,” said Springfield resident Cindy Manke. “I went to Eugene yesterday to the Saturday market, and I’m hoping that we’ll be able to have something like this here.”
The debut featured roughly 25 local vendors, but organizers say they have a total of 50 vendors from throughout the Willamette Valley who will be added in the coming weeks.
“I live and farm in Springfield, so I’m very excited to be set up here at the new market,” said Christina Bentrup, owner of Bee Loved Farm. “I love feeding my neighbors and community.”
Organizers say the turnout was significantly higher than anticipated, with an estimated 3,000 people attending. Many vendors sold out of their products relatively early on Sunday, and say they’ll bring more inventory to meet the demand for the market next week.
“Right when we opened at 9 o’clock, there was like a flood of people coming in, which was really exciting,” Marin said. “We were obviously a little bit nervous with the first market of the season, but overall a very positive response.”
The market is also part of the statewide Double Up Food Bucks program, which matches up to $20 in SNAP or EBT benefits spent on fresh produce.
“It’s doubling their spending power that they wouldn’t regularly get in just like a shopping area,” Marin said. “And it’s directly funding our farmers and what they can be bringing and expanding to market.”
The Springfield Sunday Market will run every Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. through Oct. 25th.
Source: KEZI (Eli Kuhn)