• Home
• Contact Us
• Meeting 4/26/09
• History/Mission
• Rules
• Application

Haymaker Farmers’ Market

• Kent Farmers’ Market Completes Bench Project

  25Oct
  Categories: market bench, market business, market growth Comments Off

  

  Face Painter extraordinaire, Helena Esparza at Haymaker, summer 2009.

  Haymaker Farmers’ Market has dedicated six new market benches that have been donated to the city of Kent.  The benches have been installed by the Kent Service Department along Franklin Avenue in front of the farmers’ market site over this past summer season. The first bench has been provided by the farmers at the market in memory of former farmer and vendor, Frank Goodell.  Mr. Goodell, who sold his family’s maple syrup at the market for years, passed away in 2008.  In keeping the family tradition, the Goodell family still operates a stand every Saturday morning offering their fine maple syrup and related products. The Kent Environmental Council, one of Kent’s oldest volunteer institutions, has sponsored the second bench. Judge Barbara Watson along with Portage County Auditor Janet Esposito have expressed their appreciation for the market through their shared sponsorship of another of the series of benches. The Unitarian Universalist Church of Kent and the Kent Yoga Center, Brahmrishi Yoga have graciously provided two of the benches. The sixth in the series has been provided through a donation from baker and vendor Rafael Rodriguez and the farmers’ market. Mr. Rodriguez bakes authentic Spanish breads for his many fans at Haymaker every Saturday morning.

  The benches are constructed of recycled plastic lumber from the Plastic Lumber Company of Akron. The legs, featuring an agricultural motif were designed by market manager, Fritz Seefeldt and fabricated by Quick Service Welding of Kent. The Remodeling and Construction program at Kent’s Theodore Roosevelt High School lead by instructor Don Titko assembled two of the benches.  The manager assembled the final 4 benches.

  The farmers’ market runs every Saturday rain or shine, from 9:00 am until 1:00 pm in the lots along Franklin Avenue between College and Summit Streets in downtown Kent.  Saturday October 31^st will mark the final day for the Kent market’s 2009 Summer/Fall season. Filling out the live performance Music @ the Market series will be guitarist Brian Henke, who will play from 10 am until noon. As always, the concert will be free and open to the public.

  The market will reprise with two special indoor holiday markets on December 12^th and 19^th from 9 am until 2 pm. The indoor markets will be held in the garage provided by the law firm of Williams, Welser and Kratcoski  LLC  at 11 South River Street in downtown Kent.

• A new arrival!

  28Aug
  Categories: market bench, market business, market growth, music @ the market Comments Off

  The market benches are all in place now, and from seeing how many folks are using them, it was a project well worthwhile.

  The benches have all been sponsored with the exception of one which will be paid for through the kind donations of our own Rafael Rodriguez and the market.  Thank you for the extra help Rafael!  The first 5 benches are sponsored by the Unitarian Universalist Church of Kent, the Kent Yoga Center and Brahmrishi Yoga,  Judge Barb Watson and County Auditor Janet Esposito, the Kent Environmental Council and one dedicated in memory of Frank Goodell who passed away this spring. The City of Kent has generously installed them all on concrete pads at the market site.

  We have a new arrival.  Jamie and Baron Hottensmith had a baby boy, Kiedis.  Jamie brought the little fellow to the market these past two weeks and I snapped a picture of him to share with everyone. Please be sure to congratulate them on their newest addition to the market family!

  

  Jamie and Kiedis at Haymaker

  I won’t be at the next 3 markets and Kelly Ferry has agreed to step into the fray in my absence, If you have a question that needs answered, or a problem with setting up in the north end,  feel free to ask her for help!

  I hope that you all have been enjoying having the musicians playing at the market this summer. We are having a different musician booked for every Saturday this season, and have been fortunate to have received a grant from the city to help defray the additional costs associated with the expansion of the Music @ the Market program. The sense that I have gotten has been that between having the live music as well as having the benches installed, our customers are spending more time at the market. Whether this has translated into the individual vendors selling more I can’t stay, but I do know that we have a much larger crowd on hand each week. This Saturday, 29 August, Wilbur Krebs will be playing sounds from the Caribbean on steel drums. Barb Withee will be on hand the following week playing swing guitar, and the following week the Bluestones will be featured.

  

  Haymaker Farmers' Market 22 August 2009

  All the best to you all.

  Fritz.

• Great day in the morning!

  02Aug
  Categories: Uncategorized, market bench, market business, market growth Comments Off

  This was a phrase my grandmother would repeat on a sunny morning as the mist from the night’s dew rose from the fields in the warmth of the morning sun.   She was always happy to see the sun rise over the fields to the east of their farm house in central Michigan, it meant another day spent doing the things she loved; gardening, cooking for her family and visiting with her neighbors on her egg route.  She’s been gone for quite a few years now, but I still like to repeat her phrase when I see the sun shining in the morning, especially on a market day like we had yesterday!  We have never had a bigger or better attended market in our history in Kent.  Special thanks goes out to the talented members of Kent’s Celtic Clan who performed for us under the Haymaker Bridge.  Great job one and all!

  

  People were walking from cars parked all over the downtown area for the opportunity to shop at Haymaker. My 88 year old father found a parking spot north of the Pufferbelly and walked the 3 blocks to see us.  He said that he was glad he had brought his cane along, because the walk was a lot more than he had planned.  I spoke with customers who had parked on Water Street and walked the distance.  As vendors, I think its important to try to park our vehicles at the rear of the market lots so that our customers have better access to street front parking.  If there isn’t enough room in the north lot, there are usually extra places along the fence at the rear of the south lot.  The market lot actually narrows from the south going north.   As the season progresses it seems we have reached our peak capacity in terms of vendors. I never thought I would see the day when it was necessary for me to turn away people from selling, but this has been my unfortunate duty for the last several weeks. My phone and the market email box have been busy places with lots of people wanting to join our market family.

  Yesterday brought a few glitches during set up in the morning. I apologize for any bruised feelings.  Its my intent to preserve the integrity of the market by mixing types of vendors as well as allowing people to set up where their customers have come to expect them.  This isn’t always possible, especially when there are late arrivals, and folks setting up for the first time in the season.  I am doing my best to make things happen smoothly and with as little stress as possible. It was necessary for me to set up some vendors along the grass strip between the street and the market lot.  I’m afraid that this is something we may be doing more of in the future, but I would like to confine the double row idea to the wider parts of the market. Under the Haymaker bridge is one area that will easily accomodate this sort of arrangement.  I need your input on this as well as any concerns you may have. I still have not assigned spaces in the north lot, but will begin this process next Saturday.

  I’m still working on the market benches, but have stalled at two because of a lack of free time. If anyone would like to pitch in, we could probably have them finished in a short time. Feel free to give me a call at 330-678-5748, or just respond to this posting.

  I’m looking forward to hearing from you,

  all the best for the week ahead,

  Fritz.

• 2009 Opening day!

  31May
  Categories: Market Opens, Uncategorized, market bench, market growth Comments Off
  

  Opening day at Haymaker Farmers' Market, 30 May 2009.

  What a great start for what promises to be a spectacular year at Haymaker!  Richard DiRienzo of Bella Terra Farms counted an opening day record of 28 vendors today, and many of our regular produce growers are still busy coaxing their vegetable goodies up from the warm spring soils of north east Ohio.  The street front parking along Franklin Avenue was filled during most of the day while quite a few cyclists and walkers took advantage of the warm temperatures and sunny May skies to shop at the market.

  Many of our market regulars returned again this year joined by about 10 new vendors.  I saw quite a few new products as well.  I don’t ever recall seeing rhubarb or asparagus sold at Haymaker before and fresh ice cream from contented grass fed cows was offered by our own Mark Grogan who also sells a wide variety of northern Ohio cheeses.  I couldn’t pass up some of the fresh feta cheese from the Ornery Goat Farm, it was whey out!

  

  Guitarist Eric Oswald performs at Haymaker Farmers' Market, 30 May 2009.

  I’m going to have to moooove away from the dairy vendors and on to our featured musician.  Guitarist, writer and singer, Eric Oswald,  opened our 2009  Music @ the Market series with  original music as well as a few flashbacks from the 60’s and 70’s, (yes, I was there too, at least I think I remember being there…),  all played without a sheet of music or a bad chord.  Great job Rick!  Next week, percussionist and Kent State Professor Emeritus of African Ethnomusicology  Halim el-Dabh, will be keeping up the beat with original African cultural music.  Bring along your drums to join in the celebration!

  The lots were in tip top shape thanks to the hard work of our many volunteers two weekends ago as well as the generous donation of gravel from Bob Mayfield of  McKay Bricker Gallery and Framing in downtown Kent.  Bob was also on hand early this morning to help Elaine and Jerry May, Karl Liske and myself to mark off the vendor spots for the upcoming season. Thank you for all the help, the market has truly become a community effort.

  Be sure to check out the next posting on our newest amenity, the Porta-Potty, which is now ready for use and smelling “minty fresh” under and behind the Haymaker bridge!

  Cheers to everyone for a great 17th season at Haymaker!

  Fritz Seefeldt.

• Who gave out the key?

  30May
  Categories: Market Opens, Uncategorized, market bench, market business, market growth Comments Off
  

  Who is that guy? And who gave him a key to our new porta-potty? Is that a customer.....wait....no....... it's Carter Bailey of KC Coffee and Teas, checking out the facilities. Coffee's a diuretic you know. Love those sunglasses Carter, tres chic!

  It’s a new year at Haymaker and things are looking up. We now have a place right in our back yard to take care of important business.  We all voted in favor of adding a new amenity for our 2009 market and it arrived this morning bright and early while some of you were still sleeping, picking veggies, loading the truck or maybe even baking stuff for the first market.

  I called around and found the best deal at Portage Portable Toilets Inc. Check out their website for all your portable toilet needs! < http://www.portageportabletoilets.com/ > The owner, Bill Davis,  was very accommodating, put it exactly where I asked (well hidden behind the bridge),  and most important, the price was right!  They’ll clean it once a week.  If someone comes hopping up to your stand with an anguished look on their face and asks where the closest toilet is,  please let them know about our hidden treasure.

  According to one vendor, “I needed to go bad, but I had to think, geez…do I really have to go THAT bad? Then I decided to give it a try, and to my surprise, it smelled ‘minty fresh’!!”  If that’s not a ringing endorsement, I don’t know what is. Here’s to a great new season at Haymaker!

  Fritz.

• Gravel spreading-cleanup day at Haymaker!

  18May
  Categories: Market Opens, Uncategorized, market bench, market business, market growth Comments Off

  

  Pictured from the left: Karl Liske, Richard DiRienzo, Karen Dodds, Nancy DiRienzo, Bob Mayfield, Kelly Ferry, Jerry and Elaine May, Joe Loucek, Jo Anne Jones, John Shinosky, Cary James, Aiden (Elmer) Anna and Adam Graham, Beth Buchanan, Wendelin Taylor, Kristen Pool and Fritz Seefeldt snapped the picture. Rafael Rodriguez, Baron Hottensmith, Jessica Earley, Bonny and Andy Esparza and Bernie Chaykowski weren't able to stay for the picture but were also on hand to lend a hand.

  It’s amazing how much can be accomplished in a short amount of time when a group of people set out to complete a task.  Our group of about twenty people spread all the gravel, trimmed the trees and bushes along the fence in the back of the market, cut the grass in the newly cleared strip and even marked the vendor set back from the curb (thanks Baron)!  All the bottles, cans, trash and brush were put in the trash can and stacked along the street front and then we all had pizza and good conversation about the season ahead. The day was perfect, not too hot, not too cold with plenty of sunshine to warm those winter weary bones! Today, Beth Buchanan phoned her friend at the city and asked if they could clear the brush we had stacked at the curb. First, he thanked her for calling, dispatched a crew to remove the brush and asked that we call them in advance in the future. He was very gracious!  Great job City of Kent.   Thank you Beth for following through and helping us all to get the job done. It was a day well spent, with much accomplished. The benches should be in place by the first market on May 30th.   Thanks to everyone for pitching in.

  Fritz.

• Market benches are now available for sponsorship!

  29Apr
  Categories: Uncategorized, market bench, market business, market growth Comments Off

  The first two in the series of attractive, durable market benches will be installed on site along Franklin Avenue before market opening on 30 May 2009.

  

  completed benches

  The benches are constructed of sturdy and durable recycled plastic lumber from The Plastic Lumber Company of Akron Ohio. The benches measure 72″ in length, 16″ in depth. The tops are 20″ high from the ground.

  The decorative legs featuring an agricultural motif and slightly curved seating surface were designed by the market manager, Fritz Seefeldt and fabricated by Quick Service Welding of Summit Street in Kent. The legs are constructed of 1/4″ x 2″ steel that has been weld jointed and powder coated for corrosion resistance.

  All fasteners are of high quality tamper proof stainless steel. The benches were assembled by the Remodeling and Construction classes at Kent’s Theodore Roosevelt High School, lead by instructor Don Titko.

  

  Pictured from left to right: Josh Chadima, Donald Titko (instructor, Remodeling and Construction program at Theodore Roosevelt High School), Zach Winiarski, Fritz Seefeldt (Haymaker Farmers' Market manager). Students who participated in the bench project who are not pictured are: Charles Hawley and Jacob Kovalesky.

  Your cost to sponsor a bench with your name or your business name engraved on a 2″ x 5″ stainless steel plaque inserted into the top surface will be $325.00 per bench.This is actually the cost to the market for the materials alone. The completed benches are then donated by the market to the city of Kent for placement and installation on a concrete base. For more information or to sponsor a bench, please call Fritz at 330-678-5748 or 330-687-9347.

  Email  kentmarket@neo.rr.com.

  Fritz Seefeldt

  Haymaker Farmers’ Market

  Downtown Kent.

  
  

  

  Commemorative stainless steel plaque, 2" x 5" laser engraved to meet your design embedded in surface and anchored with tamper proof stainless steel fasteners.

  

  End profile of bench revealing concave seat top allowing for comfort and classic appearance. Agricultural leaf motif brings the spirit of the farmers' market to the bench design while adding lateral stability.

  

  Heavy steel frames, formed and welded then powder coated for corrosion resistance. 1/2" diameter anchor mounting holes on 8" centers. Legs are approximately 29" on center. The poured concrete pads should be between 6-8" in thickness with dimensions of 68-70" long by 22-24" wide. This width will allow for the placement of a 1 1/2" x 6" long PVC tube in the middle back part of the pad to accommodate a 1 3/8" market umbrella to provide much needed shade on those hot Saturdays in July!

  
  
  Tags: market bench project