I, as well as other supporters of the Malibu Farmers Market, were in attendance at the City of Malibu Planning Commission meeting on Feb. 29, 2016, when the LA County representative made the statement that the Santa Monica College is required to accommodate the Farmers Market, and that it wouldn’t take away the land amount of square footage during construction, and that the market would continue operating “as usual” during the Santa Monica College Satellite construction period, which would mean no loss of present vendor space. Now that the groundbreaking ceremony has taken place with plans to commence construction sometime in October, there is understandable concern among market supporters that the county could and would reduce the number of vendor spaces. This would result in a loss of jobs and income to vendors and benefits to the community of having a fully-operational local market without having to drive elsewhere, and thereby significantly reducing the use of fossil fuels.
Our community is proud of having its own farmers market, which offers farm fresh produce and a wide variety of non-GMO/organic products such as exotic cheeses, tasty and unusual spreads, and my favorite chicken pot pie, and as a social gathering place to meet friends, as well as being of economic benefit to the city.
The city has recently purchased the former Chili Cook-Off property adjacent to the market, and it would be of considerable help if the market were allowed to operate there on those few Sundays that space might not be available due to construction.
This issue must be resolved.
Denny Melle