Saskatoon Farmers’ Market opens new temporary location

The Saskatoon Farmers’ Market has started it’s new chapter.

At 8 a.m. Saturday, it opened at its new temporary location at 2604 Koyl Avenue, near the Saskatoon Airport.Fresh off the move from River Landing on Dec. 22, 2019., dozens of people filled the temporary home in its first hours of operation.

Kelly Pankratz, a local photographer that has been operating at the farmers’ market for over three years, was surprised to see so many people follow the market to it’s new spot after questions of access public interest surrounded the move.

A group of people depart the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market new temporary location on Jan. 4, 2020. (Keenan Sorokan/650 CKOM)

“It was a little bit sad, but also at the same time, exciting to have a weekend off and think about the new opportunities here at the new location,” Pankratz said, looking at the crowds mingling around him.

“I wasn’t really sure what it was going to be like today. There’s actually a bunch of people that have never been to the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market before here today.”

Doug Porteous and his wife Anne spent nearly every Saturday morning having a cup off coffee while enjoying the scene at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market.

They couldn’t pass up the opportunity to be some of the first to walk through the doors at its new location.

“We were concerned because it was leaving River Landing, and we’d like (the market) to be successful, and I think it will really enhance this area of the city as people gravitate towards it,” Porteous said.

There were few places more popular at the the previous location than RJ Nichol’s Square Cup coffee shop. With plenty of uncertainty surrounding opening day, Nichol feels it’s history repeating itself.

“Twelve years ago when we moved into the Market Square building, there were a lot of the same complaints: ‘No one is going to come down here. There’s nothing else around,'” Nichol said of the poor reception to the co-operatives previous move.

The Saskatoon Farmers’ Market opened its temporary location on Koyl Avenue on Jan. 4, 2020. (Saskatoon Farmers’ Market)

“We watched Riversdale grow up around us. There’s no reason not to try it again.”

The markets’ operating hours will remain the same — 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sundays. The permanent home for the farmers’ market will be next door but is currently under construction.

A grand opening at 2600 Koyl Avenue is expected to happen on Feb. 29. City officials had expressed a desire to have something open more often on the riverside property and rejected a lease renewal citing roof damage.