Farmers market moving to the pier

Eron Ben-Yehuda

Starting in January, the weekly farmers market and craft fair will move

on a trial basis off Main Street and onto Pier Plaza, the City Council

decided Monday.

The council voted 5-2 for the move. City Councilmen Tom Harman and Dave

Sullivan dissented. The new location will be tested for three months,

after which the council will decide whether to make the change permanent.

Downtown merchants complain that they lose customers when streets close

every Friday from the afternoon until sunset to make room for the outdoor

booths, which sell everything from fruits and flowers to handcrafted

merchandise.

The event requires blocking off vehicular traffic on the second block of

Main Street as well as parts of Walnut and 5th streets.

While a majority of the council agreed that relocating to Pier Plaza was

worth a try, Sullivan said the move will endanger the safety of residents

who must cross Pacific Coast Highway to shop. “Personally, it makes

absolutely no sense to me.”

Harman worried that the market and fair would create a “carnival

atmosphere” at Pier Plaza, which he prefers as a place of “quiet

solitude.”