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This Little Piggy.... (07.18.03)
Well well, it would appear it's finally going to happen. The big three will become the big two tomorrow afternoon. The big three, of course, being promises made by a hundred people over what seems like a hundred years. There's the classic "We're getting a movie theatre" followed closely by, "They're moving the tracks" but right up there with them is "We're getting a farmers' market".
The last one, I'm sure, began the moment the last nail was sold at the old Mountain Building Centres site. Many years and broken dreams later, the market is actually coming to town. Yes, it appears the Olympics isn't the only thing that can leave a legacy as the latest Hollywood hoopla to come through our town leaves behind more then just memories.
During the recent filming that was all but impossible to ignore, Squamish was transformed into a ghost town. It's kind of bitterly funny that they only had to ugly up three buildings to make it convincing, but even so it was nice to see something happening downtown. Even nicer is the fact that one of Squamish's eyesores not only got a makeover, but the lifeblood will continue to flow as the hardware store, turned decrepit building, turned casino, will live on as a farmers market.
The prospect of a farmers' market at the end of Cleveland Avenue is certainly exciting but I'm afraid we've all seen far too many business plans crumble on Cleveland to believe it will go off without a hitch. It's all about momentum, and tomorrow's inaugural market will no doubt have its fair share of growing pains.
So who's responsible for such a thing? Well, in a refreshingly heartwarming display of teamwork, Community Futures, The Squamish Chamber of Commerce, the Squamish Nation and the District of Squamish all got together and went above and beyond to make this happen. The fact that it was put together in two weeks is both amazing and scary. Two weeks may be enough time to set the groundwork but the challenges are just beginning. Tomorrow we'll see many people who are sickeningly well-prepared to unleash their wares at a moment's notice. Others will be frantically trying to get their ducks in a row hoping to have everything ready on time. I believe that once people see what they can bring to the table, in the coming weeks those tables will be full of fantastic finds.
The mission statement of the event is "make it - bake it - grow it". The idea is to finally have a showcase for goods made, grown and baked in the Sea to Sky corridor. I imagine this will be a great opportunity for local artisans to finally have a chance to show off their wares with a home field advantage no less.
So here's hoping Lady Luck is on our side and once and for all we'll get to see the end of the Cleveland curse
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