HARRISBURG, Pa. — The Broad Street Market in Harrisburg is one step closer to reopening its second building in its temporary tent location, and its first building will now be open longer.
The Broad Street Market board voted Wednesday to extend the hours of its “stone” building to 6 p.m. on Saturdays in an effort to alleviate the financial burden on its vendors.
That burden has grown since the July fire which severely damaged the market’s brick building, which hasn’t opened since. The board discussed other financial burdens, including a $26,000 price tag for grease traps at the temporary venue.
“The vendors at the market have been through a lot in the last year,” said board member Eric Hagarty when asked about the grease traps. “So our ability to help cover this cost for them for the first year is important to the board. And we'll work with the vendors over the next year to figure out how to pay the ongoing maintenance costs moving forward.”
Another question will be the name of the temporary tent, which is directly next to the market complex. Hagarty says the community will have its say on what it’s called.
“I think 'Temporary Structure' is not the best name for this thing,” Hagerty said. “We are going to hold a competition and allow the community to vote on what we want to call the tent. And we'll have more to share about that soon. But it's a community asset, so we want the community to pick the name.”
The exact date of the tent’s opening is not official yet, but it is expected to come in late April or early May, and Hagarty says there is real optimism for the market’s future.
“Vendors are starting to move their equipment in and get set up,” Hagerty said. “So it's getting to be a great time for the market. I really believe the market's brightest days are ahead.”