Gateway Pavilion Could Be Used for Downtown Events

If/when the Gateway Project is finally up and running, the city plans to lease the Gateway Pavilion for festivals and art events. City Manager Kent Myers intends to make the pavilion “the heart of downtown Port Angeles.”

He said: “The goal is to have something down there all of the time. It’s going to be a busy place. Visibly, you will see a lot of activity.”

Tentatively it would cost $75 a day to rent the pavilion, but that amount hasn’t been approved by the City Council yet.

Myers also said the city wants the Port Angeles Farmers Market to use the pavilion instead of their current location at Clallam County Courthouse parking lot. Farmers Market Vice President Jane Vanderhoof said she isn’t sure the pavilion would be right for the market; there isn’t any feasible location where vehicles can pull up and load/unload their produce. But it would certainly be nice to have them back in town.

Arts in Action has expressed interest in using the pavilion; they currently use City Pier for their annual event. And Ann Manildi, executive director of the Strait of Juan de Fuca Festival, said she might use the pavilion as one of their stages during their annual Memorial Day weekend festival.

Port Angeles Farmers Market’s Sales Increasing

When the Farmers Market was driven out of downtown Port Angeles in 2005, their sales dropped. From 2004 to 2006 their revenues fell from $186,652 to $163,825. But in 2008 they grossed $228,248.

To paraphrase that German expression, that which couldn’t destroy them made them stronger. (This story was in today’s PDN but not on their website.)

Michele d’Hemecourt (manager of the farmers market) and Jane Vanderhoof are determined to make the market grow even stronger during 2009. Jane Vanderhoof — along with her husband Peter — runs Westwind Farm near Joyce. And Jane has just been elected to the Washington Farmers Market Association Board of Directors.

It’s becoming more popular to buy organic produce, and to buy locally in general. Jackie Aitchison, director of the Washington Farmers Market Association, said: “People want to know where their food’s coming from, and they want to keep their dollars local.”

Westwind Farm and Nash’s Organic Produce — two of the market’s longtime vendors — both reported that their sales went up by about a third from 2007 to 2008. Another regular vendor, “Tuna Dan” Dinwoodie, said his sales have gone up about 25% in the past year and a half.

The Washington Farmers Market Association — with more than a hundred members — increased their sales last year by 20 to 30%.

The Port Angeles Farmers Market has a smaller turnout at this time of year. Michele d’Hemecourt said: “Our market could be more of an event every weekend. We can make it something that people come to just for the experience.”

The Port Angeles Farmers Market is at the Clallam County Courthouse parking lot every Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Hopefully this summer they’ll return to the downtown parking lot (First and Laurel, next to The Toggery) on Wednesdays, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

For more information about the Port Angeles Farmers Market, check out their website.