The year-round Downtown Farmers Market has been a staple of Sarasota for 30 years. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee, flowers and candles perfumes the air and combines with the flavor of spicy sausage, egg wraps and, of course, perfectly plump tomatoes and produce, to dominate the streets of downtown each Saturday, while neighbors greet one another, dogs touch noses and children search for the biggest orange of the bunch.
When it originated in 1979, only six vendors lined the block between North Main and First Street. Now, there are 56 vendors and a 100-person waiting list to set up a vendor spot in the market, which will celebrate its 30th anniversary Saturday, March 21.
"Twenty-nine years ago in front of The Gator Club, I had one little spot - I set up annual plants I grew at home," says Adrian deLancellotti, owner of Plants by Adrian and one of the original six vendors. "If we sold $75 worth on Saturday, that would have cashed me out.
"Peter Burkhardt, of Nature's Partner, has also seen the market grow."I've been there since it started," Burkhardt said. "I was growing vegetables and berries and didn't have an outlet for it other than word of mouth, so I jumped right in. There weren't assigned spots, either; we had squatters' rights."
Initially, the market was intended to help revitalize the downtown area, which was suffering because malls were springing up and becoming trendy places to shop. The were pulling people away from traditional, small businesses on Main Street.
"Sarasota was a semi-ghost town then," Burkhardt said. "But the Downtown Association, now the Downtown Partnership, came up with the idea for the farmers market. It's repeated around the country that farmers markets have this effect, and it's another milestone for Sarasota that is certainly worth commemorating."
For the past year-and-a-half, Phil Pagano, owner of The Natural Rug Company, has worked as the market's manager. He says the Sarasota market has lasted so long because of the quality of its vendors and the fact that they are "mom and pop" small businesses.
Pagano has a theory on the market's 30 years of success. "People here are doom and gloom all year long," Pangano said. "But they get up Saturday morning, don't see the news, the sun is out, and they take a trip to the market. They think, 'Why not spend some money'? It's been successful with the downturn of the ecomomy. It's a great thing for Sarasota."
The Downtown Farmers Market will celebrate its 30th anniversary at 11:00 AM, Saturday March 21, 2009 with a small ceremony and a 30-foot-long cake made by one of the vendors, Wired Wisk.
"I think it's pretty monumental that it's been here for 30 years," Pagano said. "we're still getting 25 people each week who want to be vendors. the way I see it, it's like a mall, because all of the stores are filled."
