If you grew up in or near Allentown, chances are that you been to the Farmers Market. The market has been in operation since 1953, all year except during Fair Week.
While those visiting downtown Allentown will recognize very little from the past, the Farmers Market is frozen in time. Some of the purveyors have been there for near 60 years.
When I was a boy, my father operated a meat concession at the market for a year or so. He gave it up because he recognized so many of the customers from his market on Union Street, and realized that he had doubled his overhead to serve the same clients.
For those of us who find change not always for the best, the Market remains a comfort.
The Market is great and I LOVE Vallos Bakery. In an unrelated matter, I was so disappointed to see that Allentown City Council was pretty impressed and supportive of the Northridge concept plan at the old state hospital site. The concept land use plan looks like nothing more than a sprawling suburban style medical office/apartment building complex. The developers are understandably talking up the mixed use and pedestrian friendly aspects of the plan, but to me it looks like something laid out in a 1960s era east block country by the Soviets. Allentown's staff has numerous qualified planning professionals, I hope they're able to impact the project to result in a better design, one that Allentown can be proud of. For inspiration, they need only look 1 mile away at the beautiful neighborhoods created at the Overlook Park site/the former Hanover Acres.
ReplyDeleteanon@1:09: I will be visiting the Northridge plan tomorrow here on the blog.
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