The Durango Farmers Market will return to Main Avenue in the spring after a pilot program called Second Saturdays on Main proved to be a roaring success, according to market organizers.
The last Second Saturday was held Saturday despite chilly temperatures and persistent rainfall. About 80 vendors were on Main Avenue, fewer than the typical 120 vendors. But the smaller turnout wasn’t exclusively due to rain – many had already sold out of produce as the season approaches its end.
Durango Farmers Market Executive Director Anna Knowles said the farmers market is working with the city to feature the market on Main Avenue on all second Saturdays May through October next year – a total of six.
“Our farmers are happy, our vendors are happy – it seems like the feedback we’ve been getting from businesses has been really positive,” she said.
She said she’s always looking for community feedback and people can provide that at durangofarmersmarket.com. The farmers market will also be circulating a community survey.
More feedback will help the farmers market ensure Second Saturdays are community-driven, she said.
“I can’t believe how many people came out in this weather. That's really surprising,” she said. “One of my farmers said, ‘Wow, I had no idea how much the community supported our agriculture here to have them be out in this kind of weather.’ It just means so much.”
The first Second Saturday was held Aug. 9 and drew an estimated 2,200 to 2,500 people, more than double the turnout of a typical Durango Farmers Market at its old location in the parking lot of TBK Bank at 259 W. 9th St.
"We were very pleased with the pilot program. There was a great turnout and it was obvious residents were excited about the feel of the market and the ability to shop downtown,“ said Tom Sluis, city spokesman.
He said data showed a “dramatic increase” in sales for most vendors, and the city will do a full review before the end of the year.
Returning the farmers market to Main Avenue will require the sign-off of both the Durango Farmers Market and the Business Improvement District board.
A few blocks north of the farmers market, residents celebrated Durango’s 17th annual Apple Days Festival in Buckley Park, organized by The Good Food Collective.
Lauren Ames, food security director for The Good Food Collective, said the Apple Days Festival is all about celebrating Southwest Colorado’s apple heritage and its abundance of apple trees. It’s held annually in October, when apples are ripe for the picking.
Gleaning began at the end of September, leaving organizers and volunteers just about a week and a half to gather apples ahead of the festival, said Austin Telck, Apple Days Festival gleaning coordinator.
Fifty-five hundred pounds of apples were harvested for the festival this season, he said. With the exception of 1,200 pounds of apples gleaned in Farmington, the rest were gleaned from local farmers’ orchards.
He said apple gleaning was a little tricky this year due to drought, although a lack of moisture certainly wasn’t a problem Saturday. Organizers were happy residents still turned out considering the rainy weather.
“Duranga-tangs are little hardy creatures,” he said. “They want to go out in the rain any time they can.”
He said he was responsible for locating trees, talking to orchard owners and organizing volunteers for the apple harvest. He rallied about 25 volunteers in total.
EsoTerra Ciderworks, which sponsored the festival, provided cold storage for the gleaned apples in the lead-up to the event.
On Friday, workers pressed 3,600 pounds of apples in preparation for the festival. About 200 gallons of apple cider was available for purchase Saturday.
“Apples would get unloaded, sorted through, go through a wash system, go on a conveyor belt, up to a grinder system, get ground up where it makes the pig (feed) and cider, and then you get pressed, and then we would have cider out of it,” he said.
An apple press was on scene for attendees to see and try the pressing process for themselves.
In addition to cider, fresh apples and dried apple chips were for sale at Buckley Park. Proceeds from the sales help The Good Food Collective continue operations
cburney@durangoherald.com
