Chicago's Green City Market Secures Permanent Home for Year-Round Farmers Market
After years of searching, the nonprofit behind some of Chicago's most popular farmers markets has finally found its permanent home. Green City Market announced last week that it has purchased a 4,872-square-foot building in North Center and plans to build out the space to host year-round farmers markets.
The purchase price for the property was $899,000, according to Letisha Steele, executive director of Green City Market. The nonprofit expects to open the space sometime this year and plans to host a community event as early as March.
Green City Market's mission is to expand accessibility to fresh, locally grown food. Its markets are "producer only," meaning farmers sell what they grow and other vendors must source ingredients directly from the nonprofit's farmers whenever possible. The organization aims to make high-quality, locally grown produce accessible to everyone, regardless of socioeconomic status or geographical location.
The purchase of this new property is a significant milestone for Green City Market. According to Steele, it was made possible by the late Chicago chef Abby Mandel, who started the organization in 1999 with nine local farmers at the crosswalk next to the Chicago Theatre. Mandel had set aside $1 million for her charitable foundation to fund the purchase of a brick-and-mortar location.
The new building is an ideal location for Green City Market, as it is near several bus routes and about a half-mile from the Brown Line's Western stop. The property is also next door to an Aldi store, making it easily accessible to customers.
Steele described the building as a "mullet," with its nondescript front room but an expansive greenhouse in the back, which will be designed to cater to the farmers working with Green City Market. The nonprofit plans to include a large walk-in cooler to store produce and a kitchen for cooking classes.
The new location is especially important given the federal funding cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). These cuts have made it even more challenging for low-income families to access fresh, healthy food. Green City Market's mission is to provide a solution to this problem by creating a space where farmers can sell their produce directly to customers.
"I just don't think farmers markets are just for privileged people," Steele said. "Going to a farmers market is not reachable for a lot of folks, and I feel like it should be reachable. ... I don't believe that food should be gate-kept."
With its new permanent home, Green City Market is poised to continue its mission of making high-quality, locally grown produce accessible to everyone in Chicago.
After years of searching, the nonprofit behind some of Chicago's most popular farmers markets has finally found its permanent home. Green City Market announced last week that it has purchased a 4,872-square-foot building in North Center and plans to build out the space to host year-round farmers markets.
The purchase price for the property was $899,000, according to Letisha Steele, executive director of Green City Market. The nonprofit expects to open the space sometime this year and plans to host a community event as early as March.
Green City Market's mission is to expand accessibility to fresh, locally grown food. Its markets are "producer only," meaning farmers sell what they grow and other vendors must source ingredients directly from the nonprofit's farmers whenever possible. The organization aims to make high-quality, locally grown produce accessible to everyone, regardless of socioeconomic status or geographical location.
The purchase of this new property is a significant milestone for Green City Market. According to Steele, it was made possible by the late Chicago chef Abby Mandel, who started the organization in 1999 with nine local farmers at the crosswalk next to the Chicago Theatre. Mandel had set aside $1 million for her charitable foundation to fund the purchase of a brick-and-mortar location.
The new building is an ideal location for Green City Market, as it is near several bus routes and about a half-mile from the Brown Line's Western stop. The property is also next door to an Aldi store, making it easily accessible to customers.
Steele described the building as a "mullet," with its nondescript front room but an expansive greenhouse in the back, which will be designed to cater to the farmers working with Green City Market. The nonprofit plans to include a large walk-in cooler to store produce and a kitchen for cooking classes.
The new location is especially important given the federal funding cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). These cuts have made it even more challenging for low-income families to access fresh, healthy food. Green City Market's mission is to provide a solution to this problem by creating a space where farmers can sell their produce directly to customers.
"I just don't think farmers markets are just for privileged people," Steele said. "Going to a farmers market is not reachable for a lot of folks, and I feel like it should be reachable. ... I don't believe that food should be gate-kept."
With its new permanent home, Green City Market is poised to continue its mission of making high-quality, locally grown produce accessible to everyone in Chicago.
finally! a place for green city market to thrive 
i think this is a huge win for the community, especially with all the fed funding cuts for programs like SNAP 
it's not just about the farmers markets tho, it's about making healthy food accessible to everyone 
regardless of income or location. i love that gcm's mission is to break down those barriers and make food a human right 
let's hope they can make good on their promise and create a space that's inclusive and welcoming for all 
. I mean, I know some people love to vent and share their opinions, but can't we just keep it civil and concise? 
A 4,872-square-foot building for a farmers market is awesome, but let's not lose sight of what really matters: the actual users of this space.
that's something to be excited about. hope they can make it happen 
and not get too much of the commercial stuff in there. keep it local, keep it real 
just what chicago needed a year-round farmers market 
it's about time we got some affordable healthy food options for everyone 
plus it's great for the local farmers they're gonna thrive with this new spot 
I mean, it’s about time we have a year-round farmers market that can be accessed by everyone, regardless of income level or where they live. The fact that Green City Market is committed to making high-quality produce accessible to all is amazing. And it's even more important now with the federal funding cuts to SNAP 
. I'm sure there will be so many benefits from having a space like this in Chicago, not just for people who can afford to go but also for those who might not have access to grocery stores that sell fresh produce.
It just feels like such a positive step forward for our community, you know?
finally after all those years they're gonna have a year round market that's not just some seasonal thing, it's so important for low income fams who can't afford fresh food but gettin a big shoutout toabby mandel who started this whole thing back in 99 
for their farmers market in chicago! i'm so hyped that it's gonna be year-round now 
. like, food should be accessible to every single person, regardless of income or where they live. can't wait to see this space come together and support our local farmers 
. Farmers markets are already a great way to get fresh food, but when you have year-round access, it's like a whole new level of awesome 
. That's like, really admirable of them. I mean, we've gotta do better as a society to make sure everyone has access to good grub 
. That's gonna make it super easy for customers to get to and from the market. I'm hoping this means more people are gonna be able to take advantage of this amazing resource 
I'm beyond stoked for the community and especially for those low-income families who'll have access to fresh veggies now! 
. Let's give a huge shoutout to Abby Mandel for starting this amazing org in 1999! 
. it makes total sense that green city market would want to create a space where farmers can sell directly to customers, bypassing some of the middlemen who might be taking a bigger cut 
. i'm also excited about the plans for the greenhouse and kitchen spaces - it'll be great to see the community come together to support local farmers and cooking classes 
. Can't we just go back to those old farmers markets on the sidewalk? I mean, they were so much more chill and didn't have all these fancy amenities like walk-in coolers and cooking classes.
. It's gotta be a good thing that Green City Market is pushing for accessibility and making healthy food available to everyone... or maybe they're just going to gentrify the area and prices will go up? 
.
. And hey, who knows maybe Abby Mandel's charity foundation was actually just a cleverly disguised plot for world domination 
.
also, how did the chef Abby Mandel come up with $1 million for her foundation? that seems like a pretty big ask... 
. it's gonna be a game changer for low-income families who struggle to access fresh & healthy food, especially with those federal funding cuts 
green city market's mission of making high-quality produce accessible to everyone should be celebrated