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Posted by Brighton McConnell | Nov 2, 2022 | Business, Instagram
As more and more preparation for redevelopment begins at University Place mall in Chapel Hill, visitors will begin to see some incremental changes. One more immediate change, though: the Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market is migrating to a different space on mall property.
Kate Underhill is the manager of the Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market. On this Tuesday edition of the market, she is walking around the vendors’ booths and hanging up flyers telling customers that the market is going to be switching locations.
Kate Underhill holds up a flyer being shared around the Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market about its upcoming move to a different area of University Place.
The Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market has long called University Place mall its home, but it has stayed in the western corner bordering South Estes Drive for the longest stint. The market, which sees hundreds of people visit the dozens of local vendors each week, has long been popular – but saw bumps in attendance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Underhill says the fact the local market took safety precautions while never closing is a point of pride for the farming community and small businesses who participate.
“I think we gained a lot of customers during that time because people wanted to have that space and feel safe that way,” she says. “And they’re still coming to our market because we’ve been able to keep that atmosphere and it’s been nice.
“And now,” Underhill adds, “we’re about to move to a new location in the mall in two weeks.”
As University Place continues its extensive redevelopment plans, the empty bank site near where the Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market sets up twice a week will soon begin demolition for a new bank. That means a relocation will be in order, with the market and mall management making the change in just two weeks.
The good news, Underhill says, is that the market isn’t moving far. Starting Tuesday, November 15, it will be held on the eastern border of University Place near Fordham Boulevard – in the parking lot formerly for the Southern Season store and Orange County recycling center.
Underhill says the market will be sharing lots of social media posts reminding people of the migration, but updated signs and directions shared on the mall property should also help catch the attention of any lost customers.
Vendors for a Tuesday edition of the Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market line up at University Place on November 1, 2022.
But what will become of the Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market in the long-term? Underhill says the plan is not to stay in that exact spot. She says there have been discussions over the years about whether moving from University Place is in the best interest of the market’s future. While that is still a possibility, the redevelopment of the mall provides an opportunity to better feature the market.
Ram Realty, the owner and developer, aims to create a new “main street” area after demolishing the empty Southern Season portion of the existing mall building. Two one-way roads, flanked by new businesses and office buildings will surround a long, public green space.
Underhill says the current vision is for that entire section to be shut down on the farmers’ market days.
“It’s going to have green space, it’s going to have a couple of small businesses there, it’s going to have plenty of playscape and it’s going to have plenty of room for our market,” she describes. “That’s the plan right now, and it’s still a couple of years down the road before that space is going to be finished.”
An important step in finishing that part of the mall property for the new “main street” is demolishing that southeastern end – which will happen very close to where the Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market will be moving later this month.
Underhill says while mall ownership doesn’t expect that part of the property to see major work begin until the new year, it does raise the possibility the market will transition locations again.
“That doesn’t mean that we couldn’t come back here and use this space,” Underhill says of the space along South Estes Drive. “That’s an option. Or we might decide – given our market hours during the winter when we’re down to just Saturday morning market – [to] stay there. We don’t want to move back and forth.”
Right now, though, the focus is making sure customers are ready to see the market’s new location. With winter holidays coming up, Underhill says it’s a popular time for people to visit the market and she does not want anyone to believe vendors will not be available.
“People think, ‘Oh it’s winter, you won’t have anything here,’ but we are in North Carolina and this market is open year-round,” the market manager says. “Farmers are growing things year-round because they can here, which is wonderful. It’s still a big time for us: it’s the holidays, everyone is out shopping, and food is a big part of these holidays.
“So yeah,” Underhill continues, “we’re a little bit worried about people still finding us and knowing that we’re still open.”
Tuesday, November 15, will be the first market session in the new spot bordering Fordham Boulevard. It will be open on Saturday, November 19 and then Tuesday, November 22 before closing its only Saturday of the year: November 26, after Thanksgiving. From there, the Chapel Hill Farmers’ market will fully transition into its winter schedule — and, hopefully, be fully settled into its temporary new home.
Editor’s Note: 97.9 The Hill/Chapelboro.com is a tenant of University Place, having first moved there in 2016.
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Chapel Hill Farmers' Market Prepares for Move Within University … – Chapelboro.com
