Willow Glen Resident
News
Photograph by Vicki Thompson
Just Picked: The Willow Glen Farmers Market attracts about 600 customers weekly. It was relocated to the back parking lot behind the Garden Theater last fall. Carmen Kubo (center) and her husband, Larry, purchase eggplant and strawberries directly from a local grower.
Growers appreciate loyal following, but farmers market is less visible
By Laura Rheinheimer
Bright flowers line the driveway between the Garden Theater and Blockbuster on Saturday mornings, marking the entrance to the Willow Glen Farmers Market. Country Essences Flowers owner Linda Arietta has been selling her flora since the market opened in August 1995. Back then, it was in the front parking lot of the Willow Glen Elementary School.
Last fall, when the market moved to the parking lot behind Aqui Cal-Mex Grill and Blockbuster, Arietta moved too.
The relocation was the result of the construction at Willow Glen Elementary School.
Arietta thinks the downtown spot is more centrally located.
"People are able to stroll around and enjoy it," she says.
Willow Glen resident Alisa Busche is among those loyal patrons. She comes to the market every week, but she misses the school location because she could let her two young children enjoy the playground, while she shopped for produce. She also says the parking was better at the school; the downtown back lot is shared by market patrons and restaurant goers.
But moving back to the elementary school is not an option, market manager Bethany Farrelly says. The school tore up the parking lot that once held the market and is constructing a two-story building.
Being downtown has not enhanced the market's visibility, says Fresh Catch Seafood co-owner Carrie Jenkins, who has a booth at the market. She says customers often complain they didn't know the market moved, or say it could be better advertised.
SuEllen Sterling, director of South Bay Farmers Markets, which runs the Los Gatos and Willow Glen farmers markets, agrees.
"A lot of people have said they can't find the market," Sterling says.
Farrelly says she has tried to lure passersby by hanging nine signs in the area, but she is not allowed to hang a banner across Lincoln Avenue advertising the market. The market has been advertised on the Garden Theater marquee, in the local community newspapers and on banners at the Willow Glen Elementary School. But people still have difficulty tracking it down.
Nevertheless Sterling estimates more than 600 people come through each week. And although the Willow Glen market is not one of the busiest in the South Bay, the sense of commitment among the vendors is strong.
Jenkins says even though the market doesn't bring in the big bucks, some market-goers depend on the fresh fish she sells each week, and she doesn't want to let them down.
"The problem is you need foot traffic to keep the vendors," Farrelly says. The friendly atmosphere is what appeals to first-time vendor Mary Ann Vlcek, who sells art and plants.
"It's more about how much fun you're having," Vlcek says. "They bring their families and that's what's great."
Vlcek also uses the market to provide families with information about the West Nile virus.
The farmers market is a visible link to the local growers, and residents shopping there know exactly who is growing the produce they buy.
"This way you get to support the farmers directly," customer Jennifer French says.
Some of the growers are almost neighbors. Willow Glen resident Bharat Shenoy grows 10 varieties of organic heirloom tomato plants in his back yard and sells the fruit at the market.
He is part of a growing coalition called Bountiful Garden, started by a Cupertino man, Frank Huguenard. The proceeds go to the International Association for Human Issues, a trauma relief organization.
The organization chose the Willow Glen location because it wanted a "real independent market," Shenoy says.
The Willow Glen Farmers Market is open every Saturday through Nov. 18 from 8:20 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
