Center City to host special community market with Route 66 theme as part of festivities
Center City Amarillo will host its 8th annual Community Market beginning Saturday, June 10, from 8 a.m. to noon at the Historic Bivins Home, located at 1000 S. Polk St.
Following the kickoff, Center City will host the community market each Saturday through Sept. 9.
According to Center City's Executive Director Beth Duke, the community market should be held rain or shine; they just ask the public to be mindful of the weather before attending. Should extreme weather occur, a notification of cancellation will be posted on their social media channels.
On Saturday, the market will have a Route 66 theme as part of a full day of Route 66 celebrations being held throughout the city. Andy Chase will perform from 10 a.m. to noon. Sabrina Meck Perez will lead Zumba starting at 9 a.m.
"Our theme is Route 66, and we begin the festivities because part of the historic Route 66 goes through downtown on 6th Avenue. We will have special favors we will be giving out to kids. ... After our market closes at noon, there will be the Route 66 Avenue festival and then a concert at Starlight Ranch that evening. So, we start off the whole day of festivities, and we would love for people to come join us in celebration," Duke said.
In addition, KGNC Radio will sponsor the opening market day to celebrate their 101st anniversary and will be handing out birthday cupcakes at the event.
This year's market season is set to include as many as 75 booths, including items such as fresh produce, soaps, jewelry, dog treats and much more. Duke did state that with the current rain conditions, some crops and fresh produce items will not be harvested in time for the first few community markets, but vendors will attend as they become available.
"We are expecting at this first market to have between 45 to 50 vendors. Some of the vendors who applied are produce vendors, and some of their crops have not yet come in. We have heard from some producers that some of their fields are just a little too wet to harvest," Duke said.
For the 2023 season, CarpetTech will once again sponsor live entertainment each week. Market hours for 2023 are 8:30 a.m. to noon. Admission is free, and parking is free in neighboring parking lots.
"Amarillo Community Market is unique because all the vendors are within a 150-mile radius and that those that attend get to talk to the person that grew it, baked it, cooked it, or created it. Another thing that sets us apart is that it is a community market that includes arts and crafts, pottery, photography, jewelry, lots of different things, in addition to some things that you would find at a traditional farmers' market," Duke said.
The Amarillo Community Market provides an economic opportunity for local farmers, gardeners, craft food producers, food trucks, artists and other creatives. The market strives to incubate micro businesses, showcase local talent, and provide fun, healthy activities ranging from fitness and nutrition to arts and crafts.
For more information or to stay up to date on the Community Market, follow Center City of Facebook or visit them online at https://centercity.org/
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Community market's 8th season kicks off with Route 66 festivities
