Vandalia’s Community Market set to open

One of the sure signs of warmer weather is the return of the outdoor market, or farmer’s market. These informal storefronts can often be found in shopping center parking lots, but the city of Vandalia decided to take it a step further. They have three outdoor Markets scheduled over the summer at the Sports Complex on Stonequarry Road, starting on May 21. The Gazette recently spoke with Courtney Rietman, who is acting as Market Host and Coordinator for the events.

“This will technically be the second season,” she said. “We did one market last year in September, to see what the response would be. It went so well that we decided to plan three for this year. I started a market in Englewood a couple of years ago and it went really well, so I approached the Rec Center and asked if they were interested in having something like this in Vandalia.”

Last year’s event was successful enough for the city to expand the schedule to include additional markets in mid-summer and early fall. “We estimated that there were 500-plus people in attendance last year. The Vandalia Police and Fire Departments came out for community engagement. We had seven food trucks, a musician, and around 45 vendors.”

The response for this year’s schedule has been very positive so far. “I have 40 vendors signed up for May, plus food trucks. All the vendors have to be offering goods that are handmade or homegrown. These are people who are all putting time and effort into what they’re selling. We plan to have four regular food trucks, one sweets truck, one drink truck, and one coffee truck at each event. We’ll also have entertainment from local musicians, not necessarily local to Vandalia, but local to Dayton. We’ll have the musicians set up near the shelter area so people can get their food then listen to music.”

The tentative culinary offerings for May 21 include Buckeye Burger, Beach Brothers BBQ, Thai 1 On, Death Grip Donuts, The Little Lemon, and Travelin’ Toms Coffee of Miami County. Music for the inaugural event will be courtesy of solo vocalist Paul Cullen, performing an assortment of country, soul, Bluegrass and pop music.

Unlike the traditional farmer’s market concept, this one expands the type of goods that will be available. “We do have quite a few vendors who are offering crafts versus produce, along with flowers, homemade breads, and other edible goodies. We have a couple of vendors who make jams and jellies, and they might switch to seasonal flavors at later events. We’ll have the crafts, t-shirts, tumblers, things like that. There are also people who make natural skin care and beauty products. It’s all about shopping local and keeping the money right here in our community.”

Rietman developed the idea after a personal experience. “I had actually attended a market as a vendor in another town and was impressed with the laid back community event. It seemed like the whole community turned out, and I decided I wanted to do something like that where I live. I thought ‘I wonder if I can recreate this somewhere else?’ The idea was to create an easy place where people can gather, enjoy some good food and music, and patronize local businesses.”

“This is a family-friendly event, and I do monitor some of the inventory being sold to make sure that the items are appropriate for families and kids walking through the market,” she added. “We don’t have anything planned like kids’ games, but we’re set up by the playground, and we’ll have the Vandalia Police and Fire Departments attending, with a firetruck and an ambulance. They’ll be passing out hats and interacting with the kids.”

Rietman’s primary marketing outlet has been through the city’s website and social media, like Facebook. “So far there have been about a thousand people interested. That doesn’t mean that many will show up, but they’re interested. We wanted to create an event where people are having a good time with their families in a fun atmosphere.”

The first Vandalia Market will be held on May 21 from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Vandalia Sports Complex, 1111 Stonequarry Road. Future market dates are July 23 and September 17. For more information or vendor applications, visit the Parks & Recreation page at vandaliaohio.org, or call 937.415.2340. You can also visit their Facebook page.