Farmers Market Building Reopens

Since the fire, the affected vendors had to close temporarily or relocate.

A cause for the fire has not been determined.

According to Charles Edwards, manager of the State Farmers Market, three new sellers have joined the list of vendors: a baked goods shop, a lamb shop and a shop for organic products.

Today, shoppers were able to find homemade pies, peas, string beans, butterbeans, lemons, hot pepper vinegar for collard greens, candy, jams and jellies.

Charles Cole has had a booth at the market for 25 years. He lost about $50,000 due to the fire. Today, it was business as usual, except that Cole says he has added "a lot more new stuff."

Another vendor, Nan Holder, was glad to reopen. She said the interim space was not large enough for her to display all her wares, and that also affected her bottom line.

The Market Exchange Building is but one of the heavily visited selling areas at the farmers market, and offers a wide range of products. Fruit baskets, birdhouses, manufactured foodstuffs and candy had been sold in the building prior to the fire.

Nearby at the market is a farmer's area that offers seasonal produce, flowers and plants. Also at the farmers market are two restaurants and a wholesale area.

For many Triangle families and tourists, the State Farmers Market is a fun place to visit. They will welcome the reopening of this section.

And, since every cloud must have a silver lining, the vendors who just moved back found an upgrade awaiting them. Their revamped quarters now have heat, electricity and water in each unit.

And, maybe even more important, a sprinkler system has also been installed.

The revamped sales area is open Monday - Saturday from 8 a.m. - 6 p.m.