Spokane Farmers’ Market moves to Browne’s Addition as conservation district secures funding for permanent market

Spokane’s oldest farmers market will relocate to the city’s oldest park, providing a new neighborhood with fresh, locally grown food.

The move will happen just after the Washington Legislature provided $750,000 to the Spokane Conservation District to create a new permanent market and kitchen between Spokane and Spokane Valley.

The Spokane Farmers’ Market, which is entering its 25th season, will now be held in Coeur d’Alene Park in Browne’s Addition every Wednesday and Saturday morning from May 13 through October.

“We are very excited to be moving to such a beautiful location in one of Spokane’s oldest neighborhoods,” said Kira Olsen, owner of Olsen Farms and board president of Spokane Farmers’ Market. “It feels like a great way to celebrate our 25th anniversary and we’re looking forward to a vibrant market season.”

For the past 14 years, the market was held north of Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center near the northeast corner of South Browne Street and West Fifth Avenue.

The market will now grace the southeast corner of Coeur d’Alene Park at West Fourth Avenue and Chestnut Street.

The 28 vendors at the morning market sell fresh produce, flowers, coffee, baked goods, meat, honey and other items.

“We try to promote healthy eating as much as we can,” said Ataina Gilmore, market manager.

The market accepts a wide variety of assistance vouchers, including SNAP, EBT, WIC and WIC Senior. They also participate in the Kernel Program through Catholic Charities in which kids complete a short activity on an aspect of healthy eating or farming and get a $2 coin to spend at the market.

Most shoppers treat the market as part of their grocery shopping routine, Gilmore said.

“We have fresh produce that was picked that morning and brought in,” Gilmore said.

Like most area farmers markets, the Spokane Farmers’ Market closes in early to late fall.

The Spokane Conservation District hopes to provide a new space for farmers to sell their produce year-round with the creation of the Scale House Market and Kitchen.

Last week, the Legislature approved $750,000 in community project funding to create a year-round market and community space.

The conservation district plans to renovate a large unused building on its campus, 4422 E. Eighth Ave., in Spokane Valley.

The 50-acre campus is home to a preschool, the conservation district’s offices and recreational trails. A large building used as a “scale house” when the area was an asphalt production facility will become the year-round market and educational kitchen.

The goal is “offering the community year-round access to fresh food,” said Vickie Carter, conservation district director.

The district is located in an area with limited fresh food options, said Hilary Sepulveda, its community engagement manager.

“We’ll be hosting a ton of community events that are related to cooking, food production and just getting to know your farmer a little bit more,” Sepulveda said.

The funding from the Legislature is just enough to launch construction of the project, but the district still needs to raise an additional $1.5 million to open the Scale House.

The district expects the Scale House will host 249,000 people annually, including 18,000 people who qualify for food assistance programs once it’s completed in 2025.