What: A gorgeous, covered market that dates to the turn of the 20th century and is a focal point for city life.

Why it Works: The spectacular building has been lovingly renovated and sits in all its glory just steps from the Danube on the Pest side, at the foot of the Liberty Bridge (itself a lovely structure). Not only is it beautiful, it is completely wheelchair accessible. Plenty of local people shop for their daily fare here undaunted by the hundreds of tourists roaming up and down the aisles. The second floor contains the handicrafts and souvenirs so dear to visitors hearts: embroidery, leather work, hand-carved chess sets, matruska dolls from Russia. The lower level is devoted to food - there are aisles of fresh vegetables, stands of fowl and meat, a couple of shops with wine and liquor. The only problem a guest faces is trying to choose from the salami, strings of red peppers and packets of saffron. Far in the back, a few small farmers come in from the country with honey, peppers and fresh berries in season.

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What: A permanent market on the Amazon River with over 2000 tents.

Why it Works: The Ver-o-peso market is amazing market located on the Amazon River. It is on a very large-scale with more than 2000 tents. It is a historical site, and was recently renewed. Located in the city centre, on the margins of Guajará Bay, it is accessible by the people who come from the nearby islands by boat. The place is full of life, densely occupied with people and products from the Amazon. The fish market, a steel construction imported from Glasgow in 1901, is the most memorable image of the city. The market is open from 4:00am to 15:00pm. People from all social classes use the market. It is where they buy traditional products from the Amazon. The people here are very friendly, although there are a few pick pockets.

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What: Situated in the heart of Madison, a market whose fame extends well beyond the city.

Why it Works: On Saturdays this market surrounds the Capitol Square. The vendors are friendly Wisconsin growers. On Wednesdays the market is on a street that runs from the Square to the Monona Terrace. The Capitol Square is on the isthmus in Madison. There are parking garages near the market, but many people either walk or bike to the market. Capitol Square is connected to the University of Wisconsin by State street. State Street provides additional shopping - clothing, music, restaurants, etc. - and traffic is restricted to buses and commercial delivery vehicles. Everybody shops here. It is clean and beautiful - summer in Madison, Wisconsin is amazing and green. The setting of the market around the Capitol building is idyllic. During the market the area is really dominated by pedestrians and cyclists. Vendors sell cheese (goat cheese, cheese curds, and more), produce (every apple you can imagine in the fall), flowers, poultry, fish, bread, nuts, jams, honey, and more. The crowd is as diverse as Madison - you will see many families, college students, and even politicians.

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Locavore

* Markets and eating local. Locavore ($3.99) uses the iPhone’s GPS capability to find your closest farmers’ markets, and tells you what’s currently in season near you, from almonds to zucchini.  It also links to recipes and information for all 234 food varieties it tracks — very convenient when you’re trying to figure out what to do with quince or sapote.  Farm Fresh NYC ($2.99) works similarly for the Big Apple, and includes a graphical grocery list; San Franciscans can use Sprout (free) to track down markets, CSAs, and other local food sources.  (And check out this group that combined their love of Apples with their love of (locally-grown) apples!)

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Washington DC's historic Eastern Market has reopened

The resurgence of public markets in the United States was the subject of an interesting post on the Good Magazine website recently, focusing on the history of public markets, their decline and recent resurgence.  Once the place to go for fresh food, local commerce and socialization, public markets declined with the advent of refrigeration and the automobile.

As of late, the movement to eat locally and support local farmers has driven the revitalization of historic markets and been the impetus for new markets opening.

A new market is not always an automatic recipe for success, however.  The Good article profiles Portland’s Public Market, which failed despite a massive investment and a large selection of vendors.  After the market closed, however, a smaller group of vendors began a campaign to “save” the market, and reopened with limited hours near a local farmers market.  PPS Senior Associate David O’Neil, interviewed for the piece, explained that a market “should suit its place,” and make sense in its surroundings.  At its best, a market reflects the demographic it serves.

Brooklyn's Moore Street Market

Recently, PPS has helped several existing markets create revitalization plans.  Brooklyn’s Moore Street Market, located in the gentrifying neighborhood of East Williamsburg, now has a new management and operations plan, as well as a set of design guidelines, to help make it a community gathering place that will bring in more revenue for vendors. Detroit’s Eastern Market is undergoing renovations to ensure that fresh, healthy foods remain available to the surrounding community.  And earlier this year, we completed a feasibility study for a new public market district in Boston, which will include the historic Haymarket.

High Springs farmers market

Former PPS Diversifying Farmers Market grantee, the City of High Springs, was a recent winner of the Excellence Award for Sustainability from the Florida City and County Management Association. The city, which was awarded PPS funding in 2007 for its weekly farmers market, was honored for their community garden program, which was an integral part of the PPS grant project.

Preparing a community garden in High Springs

The High Springs Farmers Market had a strong Placemaking component to their project. Located in a James Paul Park, the market sought to use some of their PPS grant funding to revitalize the market by redeveloping the centrally-located park, as well as starting a community garden project to help increase the city’s access to fresh, healthy food. Over the course of the grant the city was able to start several new gardens in the park, as well as one in a neighboring low-income area.

Community members come together to plant a garden

Since the end of 2007, the community gardens project has expanded to 55 plots tended by 26 gardeners, according to Lys Burden, coordinator of the Community Garden Program. Lys, wife of Dan Burden a noted PPS Placemaker, works with master gardeners and community members to grow produce in a sustainable manner which is eaten by the gardeners or sold at the market. The project is a great example of how small, innovate efforts can make a big difference, as former High Springs Farmers Market Manager Sharon Yeago said, the grant has become “the gift that keeps on giving” for her city.

Click here for more information.

What: A mainly pedestrian street lined with cafes, clothing shops, bookstores, restaurants and apartments above the street level.

Why it Works: Istiklal Caddesi is a lively, constantly changing scene. Throughout most of the 20th century, the street was famous for cars speeding down it and pedestrians were unwelcome. Recently, it has been turned into a pedestrian mall, and has become one of Istanbul’s most fashionable streets. If the main street itself weren’t attractive enough, the stroller can also step into perpendicular passageways that contain shopping galleries, food markets (with stalls for vegetables, fresh fish, and all sorts of unexpected things), or simply beautiful courtyards. This creates a dynamic pedestrian experience filled with choice. The area is easily accessible by bus from the nearby Taksim Square and by foot from several surrounding neighborhoods. There are always clumps of young people forming here, and as in other parts of the city, street vendors make their way through the crowds. Istiklal Caddesi is certainly a meeting place that gets heavy use by both tourists and locals.

Read the entire profile here.

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What: A thriving market with an incomparable mix of architecture and cultures.

Why it Works: The Zanzibar Old Town Market is a classic Swahili public space, mixing architectural and cultural influences from East Africa, Arabia, Persia, and India. Rather than the open-plan “plaza” of Western societies, descended from the Forum, the heritage of the Zanzibar market is the “Casbah” or “bazaar.” Thus, the market winds along dense city streets bracketed by the tall sandstone and white coral-wash mercantile buildings indigenous to the Swahili coast. The market is daily thriving with people seeking supplies for household board, from equatorial fruits to grains, fish, vegetables, and the famous spices. There are several different markets nestled throughout Zanzibar Old Town: some specialize in fresh-caught seafood, others in household wares, used clothes, local and imported cloth, jewlry, crafts, and tourist goods. The market defines civic sociability in a culture with very firm separations between private and public spaces. Zanzibar Old Town Market is a superior public arena because it is busy, industrious, purposeful, and valuable to people in the everyday conduct of life in the town.

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A variety of vendors and shoppers makes the Berkeley Flea Market a center for civic life

At the Berkeley Flea Market, the vendors and shoppers are anything but shy.  Everyone’s up for a chat, over tables full of incense, secondhand cowboy boots, jewelry, records, Barack Obama merchandise and more.  The market was found to be one of the country’s most diverse, base on a study by PPS in the 90s.

On one end of the market, a large group of men had organically formed a drum circle to the delight of shoppers.

A diverse drum circle enlivens the Berkeley Flea Market

With its inception in the mid- 1970s and its basis founded on activism and social justice, the market continues to be a welcoming and active hub of life in Berkeley.

It’s safe to assume that most drivers whizzing down the 101 freeway in southern San Francisco are unaware of the rows of fresh produce sprouting in their midst. But just a few feet away lies this remarkable urban farm, which empowers San Francisco residents, especially those in neighboring low-income communities, to grow their own food and participate in community agriculture.

Volunteers tend to the vegetables

Since it was founded in 1994 by members of the adjacent public housing community, Alameny Farm has grown by leaps and bounds. Formerly a place where people deposited trash, the farm is now home to a duck pond, a windmill, fruit tress, and of course, vegetables in various stages of cultivation. This has demanded serious dedication on the part of community members, who successfully revived the farm just a few years ago after its funding sources collapsed.

Participants of the public markets conference were lucky enough to get a tour of the farm from Executive Director Alice Caruthers and some very friendly volunteers. On the day we visited, the artichokes (pictured below) were just beginning to come into their own.

Begging to be doused in butter and lemon

For more info on the farm and to volunteer, visit www.alemanyfarm.org