I’m a fan of the idea of having more commercial developments, restaurants etc. to up-brand the Farmer’s Market.
…but it’s a bit hard and ingenuine to call it a farmer’s market without … y’know… the part where farmers get together to sell their produce, wholesale…
Important context: I’m having a hard time finding another article to cross-check what’s mentioned on this article (let alone a copy of the Farmer’s Market Master Plan that briefly shows up on the video). Does anyone know where I could find it and/or know what other businesses are currently a part of the market?
Besides, the video doesn’t exactly strike me as the most unbiased piece of all time, since it sounded to me like it complains about/repeats the words “money” and “cost of the soil” a few too many times, even if it’s a genuine reason…
There is a difference between the wholesalers and the farmers, TBF. The wholesalers are selling things in bulk (non-local produce) and the farmers are folks from adjacent communities that sell produce they procure on their land. The article did a poor job of providing context to that, but when they’re talking about (10) wholesalers, that infers to me the final building where the non-local produce is sold in bulk vs. the local farmers. 
It sounds like the Farmer’s Market master plan was paid for by the Dix Conservancy. Jim Goodmon is a prominent member of both the Dix Conservancy and owner of WRAL. This sounds like a feasibility plan that was done to show the state how much the property could be worth. If it was a state generated plan there would probably have been a public process with an rfp, meetings, draft versions and comment periods.
This sounds like start of a group of influential people floating their ideas for the redevelopment of the site.
That’s exactly whats going on, in the meeting I attended held by Steve Troxler, that guy David Smith was in the meeting as well. Although his tune towards the market and the wholesalers was a little different in front of Mr. Troxler, who is an advocate for the wholesalers all being in one place.
We all kind of laughed at the notion this was even being discussed when the first piece of dirt being moved at DIX is a decade away, nor is there even talks of when or where residential units will be at DIX.
He then informed there are now people on the Conservany who can write checks for the value of the market and they can’t stop the state from selling it.
If I’m understanding this correctly, the small booth farmers that are selling retail are not displaced in this masterplan, only the wholesalers. Correct? Is the wholesale biz part of the Farmer’s Market mission? If so, then it needs to be retained. If not, and they’ve only been there out of courtesy or convenience, then it sounds like a grey area to me. It would seem to me that the buyers from these wholesalers might want to weigh-in on this topic too.
I am I wrong in believing that there is a lot of unused/underused space at the farmers market property? Isn’t there a very large field between the parking area and Lake Wheeler road? Could a new wholesale warehouse be placed there, freeing up the land that adjoins Dix to be redeveloped with Mix Use buildings? What am I missing here?
I love the concept of the Framer’s Market, but IMO the biggest hassle is the ingress/egress and the total reliance on cars to access the market. I feel like every time I go, I am dodging cars to get between the vendors in the enclosed building to the farmers stalls in the open building.
I went to a farmers marked in DC, that was a block from a Metro station, the streets were blocked off, and the farmers were set up right in the street. It was great. While ours is permanent, the autocentric nature of our city is very apparent.
How about we put an actual “veggie-garden” there…new concept? 
There is plenty of unused space that could be better utilized, including multiple acres between the wholesale section and the fencing for DIX park, that’s completely unused.
It sounds like the biggest issue was the 18-wheelers coming in early AM hours and their vision that people will be walking to the market by the numbers (which won’t happen for decades if ever)
I wish the Raleigh state farmer’s market had prices like the one in Asheville. If you’re ever up there be sure to give it a try. Go to the area all the way down the hill off to the right. You can get huge one-bushel boxes of fresh apples picked like 10 miles down the road in Henderson County, or half-bushel baskets of fairly local (100 miles or less, usually) peaches, tomatoes, cucumbers, you name it, for a song there. You can shop around to different vendors and haggle for even lower prices. In Raleigh it’s usually more expensive than the grocery store (though still always fresh and tasty.) We always load up on our way home and eat like kings for a couple weeks afterward.
Wholesale is one of the missions for the Farmer’s market and it has served that purpose. There are definitely benefits to having the wholesale operations there. It has incredibly good access to I-40 and points east where farming is a huge industry.
I think the idea is that with continued development the wholesale operations are no longer the best use for that part of the property. This is kind of a natural progression for the property. If the State can make a deal and come out of it with the funding to build a new wholesale facility near Jones Sausage Road, they could end up enhancing and expanding their operations. They would still have great access to I-40, better proximity to I-95, 64, 70, 401 and arguably better access to both 440 and the 540 extension. This could end up being a win/win for everyone involved. The negative is in the perception of losing a big Ag presence in the Capital, located next door to the flagship Ag school.
They told us if the wholesale section was purchased, they do not have a replacement location in Raleigh at all. All the wholesalers would have to find their own warehouses/cooling space and become completely separated .
I think some people are confused who the wholesalers service, it’s not Box Stores (Kroger, Food lion).
It’s EVERY SINGLE restaurant basically east of Greensboro. Some restaurants buy from Fresh Point, US Foods(who aren’t at the market), but those places aren’t typically known for their food (Burger King, ETC).
Chefs visit the market daily to see the wholesalers and would be negatively impacted with them moving.
Also most people don’t know this, a large amount of the produce from the “farmers” area is purchased in the wholesale section when it’s not in season, which is frequent.
Clearly a wholesale operation needs to be somewhere. I get that.
Am I correct in understanding that the wholesalers don’t sell to the retail shoppers that visit the Farmers’ Market? If so, I understand why it would not be seen a vital part of a future vision. If the entire experience of Dix Park intertwined with the Farmers’ Market, and wholesale operations were not open to the general public, then it makes sense to relocate it.
What can’t happen is that they are just left high and dry. They need a plan to continue operations.
Anyone can purchase from the wholesalers, no one does because it looks like you’re driving into an area you don’t belong with 18-wheelers everywhere, and blocking the view of the dock and front doors. There’s also no sidewalk leading that direction so you would have to drive your car from one side to the next, and they also close at 2pm (some earlier than that).
@dtraleigh, given the longevity of the Dix development, should the discussions on the Farmer’s Market be split out to another thread?
I’ll add that many restaurants rely on US foods and Freshpoint for their food distribution. Burger King etc. Is not a fair characterization. There’s a reason most menus don’t say “local this, local that” - if they could they would. It is inhibitively expense to source all produce from local farmers around here.
There are other smaller distributors as well like East Coast Organics (Eco) in Durham.
I used to grow and deliver specialty produce directly from an urban farm to Fiction Kitchen, Death and Taxes, Gravy, etc. Just wanted to add that the wholesalers here are not the end all be all for our restaurant viability.
No strong preference but I see the farmers market as a strong tie to Dix so didn’t think it needed another topic.
They don’t “currently” have a replacement wholesale location because that’s never been a consideration. If they decided they’re going to redevelop the Farmer’s Market, a part of the deal could be to find a place to relocate the operations.
If the Conservancy can write checks to buy the Farmer’s Market they could probably find a place to relocate them. Gregory Poole, who was also formerly one of the main drivers of the Conservancy, has 40 acres of undeveloped land at Greenfield Parkway and Garner Road. Excellent access to transportation and even fronts a rail spur. I’m not suggesting that would be the right spot for the Wholesale ops but the Conservancy could probably find a place that would work for a relocation.
I could also see this as a “win-win” for everyone. Read 