Farmers already gather underneath the Veterans Memorial Bridge in Wallace to sell their produce. But work on a project that will make the impromptu marketplace more than a grassy spot near the road will begin this week on Friday, St. John Parish officials said. The groundbreaking for the parish's Red Barn Farmer's Market will be held at 10 a.m....
Farmers already gather underneath the Veterans Memorial Bridge in Wallace to sell their produce. But work on a project that will make the impromptu marketplace more than a grassy spot near the road will begin this week on Friday, St. John Parish officials said.
The groundbreaking for the parish's Red Barn Farmer's Market will be held at 10 a.m. Friday on the upriver side of the bridge.
Rene Schmit, county agent for the Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service for St. John and St Charles parishes said Wednesday that the market will be a boon to commercial growers and consumers looking for fresh produce.
"This is something that's been talked about for years and years," he said. "It's an opportunity for local farmers to sustain their livelihoods," he said.
The market will be open on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
The parish is developing the three-acre parcel under an agreement with the state Department of Transportation.
The market will be housed in a 4,800 square-foot covered market building, which is expected to be complete in four months, with 10 16-by-14-foot stalls for growers, parish Economic Development Director Julia Remondet said.
Parish workers will do the site preparation, pour the slab and perform the electrical work. The building will cost the parish $46,000.
An application for vendors is on the parish's web site on the economic development page. The parish, in connection with the LSU Cooperative Extension Service, will hold workshops about selling at farmer's markets.
"Local growers will be able to expand their operations, and the more expansion, the more value it puts into the economy," Schmit said. "Good quality home-grown produce is in demand because of the desire of the community to eat healthy."
