Although hesitant to set a precedent, council has agreed to do further research into moving the Jasper Farmer’s Market onto public land. That research will include a look at the current business licence bylaw, the policy surrounding event permits and a discussion with Parks Canada about the town’s commercial cap.
The Jasper Local Food Society is requesting the use of the McCready Centre parking lot—which is zoned as public land—for its 10 summer markets. Since 2010, the society has been using the parking lot at the Jasper Legion—which is a part of the Legion’s leasehold—but over the years it has outgrown the space.
“Our number of vendors has been going up every year,” said Tracy McKay, who was representing the society at the Feb. 4 council meeting. “We went from 13 vendors in 2012 to 19 in 2013, and basically it’s just going up every year.”
Another reason for the request is that the McCready Centre is more central and visible from downtown.
The society used the space once last summer when there was a scheduling conflict at the Legion.
It applied for a special event permit—of which non-profit organizations are allowed up to two a year for the same event—and was approved for the one-day market.
According to McKay, on that day, it was noted by tourists, residents and vendors that the location was a huge improvement.
“The major advantage of this location is that it’s downtown,” she explained.
“We just picture, you’re walking down Patricia Street, you’re here on vacation, and then you see the farmer’s market and you’re drawn there. Whereas, if you’re going to the market at the Legion you really have to know where it is and you have to know it is happening.”
Council’s hesitance to approve the society’s request stems from the issue of approving the private use of public land. This is a common concern for council. It’s the same one that has come up during discussions about busking and sidewalk cafes.
“The policy is that public land is for public use, it’s not for private commercial use,” said Mayor Richard Ireland. “If we open the door to farmer’s markets, can we legitimately stop there or have we changed a policy that people are entitled to operate commercial businesses on public land?”
In response to the mayor’s concern, which was echoed by other councillors, McKay reminded him that it is up to council’s discretion when to open or close the door.
“I understand about opening the door, but you also have the ability to close it anytime you want,” she said. “We count on your discretion in deciding those things and if we don’t like the decisions that you make, we don’t reelect you.”
This response was met with laughter from council, administration and the half a dozen people in the gallery.
McKay also noted that many communities have accomplished this in the past, even going so far as to shut down an entire street for the weekly farmer’s markets.
“We can always worry about what the consequences might be, but it’s not necessarily a reason not to do it,” she said. “If [other towns] can do it, it seems like we could too and we would like to.”
Council asked the society to continue looking for other locations on private land and committed to doing some of its own research in order to continue the discussion.
“There is no opposition from council to the social benefits of a farmer’s market. The concern that we share is about the unintended consequences,” said Ireland.
 Nicole Veerman
[email protected]
