Winneshiek Farmers Market will move across Heivly Street

The Decorah City Council has approved a change in the location of the Winneshiek Farmers Market.

Growth in the populairty of the market from a vendor standpoint has led the organization to request that it be allowed to use the north half of the "lower Fareway" parking lot.  The south half of the parking lot would remain open during farmers markets, allowing for parking and through traffic.

Decorah city council members were divided about the request Monday night.  Council member Paul Wanless said the switch "might be a nice change."  But council member Randy Schissel had several questions for Farmers Market representative Eric Sessions, including questions about why the Farmers Market wasn't relocating to the fairgrounds instead.  Sessions replied that the farmers market had been looking for new locations for 15 years and that the north part of the "lower Fareway lot" allowed the Farmers Market to grow in size, while remaining downtown.  Sessions said the farmers market already has had 29 stalls filled this spring--a new record--and it hasn't even hit the most popular months of the year.

In the end the city council voted 6-1 to approve the move, with Schissel being the lone dissenter.