Farmer’s Market Looking for New Home
Wednesday, March 21, 2012 @ 3:46 AM
Prince George, B.C.- The Prince George Farmer’s Market Association is looking for a new home. It has served notice with its landlord (Commonwealth Realty) that it will vacate the premises as of the end of April.
The President of the Farmers Market Association, Nancie Krushelnicki, says the space in the former Morrison’s Men’s Wear building at 3rd and George is just too expensive for them to stay because they have lost a prime vendor “The issue is not the rent, the issue is we have lost one of our prime vendors as P&R Organics will no longer be renting its five stalls as of the end of next month.” She says that vendor just can’t produce the kind of crop is had in the past because of two poor growing seasons in a row. “We have tried to find other vendors to fill the 5 spaces, but haven’t been able to come up with anyone so this (vacating) is the best alternative for us at this point.”
The rent of the building has increased, from $1200 a month to $2100 a month as of December, but Krushelnicki says the rent is reasonable considering the landlord has made several improvements including new windows and painting the exterior.
The Farmers Market will move back to the outdoor setting on the grounds of the Court House at 3rd and George and will have some time to examine its options for indoor accommodation when fall rolls around. “We have started looking at our options” says Krushelnicki “the membership will hold a general meeting on April 14th and hopefully we will have some alternatives to present to them at that time, but it will be up to the membership.”
Comments
I understand the old odeon theatre location at 3rd and Vancouver is vacant. That would be a great spot for it.
And you think that would be a less expensive location?
This is all about being in a space on a shoestring. Their rent almost doubled and their main sub-tenant gave notice. A double whammy. Essentially they need as close to free space as possible.
Maybe the CITY should buy the building and the air space from Commonwealth for a few Million then they can rent it to the Farmers Market dirt cheap!
I can’t figure out why the rent increased that much. Painting and windows doesn’t cost $900.00 a month forever. Seems like somehow ‘the market’ wasn’t fitting into the downtown business plan of certain people. Now we don’t know what that plan is but I guess a loss of $2100.00 per month is somehow a tax write off for the owner. Nice going. I wish all of us could write stuff like that off too.
Well, right. They need to hook it up to the energy plant down the street though. The more there are, the more the City will profit.
I am surprised the City is buying up all the run down places. Something about slum landlords …..
They should look into buying the Ramada as a P3 project and renting it back to them. I hear P3s are a lucrative business.
Oh, I guess they did that with Terasen (Fortis).
$1200 to $2100 pr month? Now I know why the lady inside the building was selling her “organic chicken free range eggs” at $5 bucks a dozen. Keep up the good work revitalizing.
It sounds like just GREED on the part of the landlord. As I understand it the tenants did much of the work renovating the building and the renos cost the owner almost nothing. All he paid for was the windows that one months rent would pay for and still have money left over for him. So it’s good that they move out now. Should look great down there now with another empty shop. That building aint worth 2100 dollars a month. Hope it sits empty and the landlord get nothing. Good move. Real smart one there.
City could let them use the old Norgate building for a nominal fee, perhaps enough to cover costs.
Upgraded windows and a coat of paint on the outside is to protect the landlord’s investment and is his overall responsibility to justify collecting any amount of rent in the first place. Nice community spirit Commonwealth!
This demonstrates how Commonwealth really feels about Prince George. If they/he/it were really interested in improving the downtown for the good of all the PG people, they would be working hard to keep the Farmers Market going in that location. The people involved with this company are really starting to show their stripes.
Interesting how it seems that commonwealth’s community spirit is being questioned, and they are being criticized for at least trying to get a nominal rent for the space.
I would make a couple of points here;
1) Even at $2100 per month the farmer’s market was being heavily subsidized by the landlord, as this amount would barely cover the mortgage let alone the taxes on the property
2) I don’t see any of you so called community minded critics offering to pony up some of your own cash to help out the farmer’s market….so much for community spirit, or does that only apply to other people’s dime?
NyteHawwk
I’m sure many people would pony up the dough if they had received $500k taxpayers money to flip an old hotel or $900k for some air above a parkade.
Agreed lonesome. No way McClaren can spin it to make the tenants look bad. Geez they only sell vegetables there. They do not bring in very much money for that. So again I say let it sit empty. Wonder if they board up the windows to make it look better.
Sell it to the city then tear it down.
Harbinger. If you looked closely at the $5.00 per dozen eggs you would notice that they are half again the size of regular eggs. So weight for weight you are getting a good deal. In addition they actually taste like eggs, unlike those cheap ones in the stores.
Further they are basically free range, and well fed, not locked in a building and laying sickly white eggs all day.
$5.00 to support the locals is a good thing. $3.00 to support the BC Egg Marketing Board is another thing.
Have a nice day.
No comment about “revitalizing”?
So the current Mayor and Council want to revitalize down town Prince George; and what do they do? Allow the Farmer’s Market to get the boot! I mean really, $2100.00 a month for the old Morrison Men’s Wear Building? That building was old when I was young and I’m not young any more! I’m not a planner, but my guess is, if you want to redevelop down town you need to attract people. Didn’t the Farmers Market do that? The City of Prince George should be encouraging them to stay with a little seed money and come on Commonwealth, be a little more common with your wealth!
“2) I don’t see any of you so called community minded critics offering to pony up some of your own cash to help out the farmer’s market….so much for community spirit, or does that only apply to other people’s dime?” .. I think that’s what we do when we shop there….hmmm?
There are a class of people who do not see the value in eating fresh, locally grown food. Just plain food. The stuff that has not been sprayed with pesticides, grown intensively in chemically fertilized soil, picked before it is ripe, gassed and refrigerated before being loaded on a truck for a 2 to 4 thousand mile ride. These people seem to prefer that their food comes from the Industrial Food Complex. You know what I mean, the complex ensures that all of your food is scientifically managed, consistent in size, colour, flavour and texture, and devoid of natural goodness, vitamins and fibre. Kind of like how your Big Mac always tastes the same no matter where you buy it. The people who prefer the Industrial food think that they should not have to pay more for fresh eggs, they think they should actually pay less.
For these people, we have supermarkets.
metalman.
I don’t come to this site very often, but when I do I can always count on a nasty comment from Lonesome Sparrow (Kathi). Are you this mean in person or is it just easier when you’re hiding behind a pseudonym?
NyteHawk is right. The market rent on that building is over $6,000 month. This means Commonwealth has donated over $100.000 to the market. Maybe Kathi can put her money where her mouth is and match Commonwealth’s donation? Yeah…thought so.
Oh, and let’s not forget that the market isn’t a charity. It is a group of for-profit businesses. Businesses that are exempted from having to purchase business licenses. Let’s see the folks at Pine Centre get away with that.
And Kathi, as far as my modest annual contribution is concerned, you can kiss it good-bye. The SPCA is supposed to be about “protecting”. You Kathi, are just a bully.
Does this site really showcase the best minds PG has to offer?
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