The threatened Moore Street Retail Market, aka La Marqueta de Williamsburg, is almost saved. More than a year and a half after the city tried to shut the East Williamsburg market and move its vendors to a new location they rejected, a five-year lease is about to be signed. The head of the vendors group told the Times, "They wanted to throw us out. Now we have a place that will give us life." Another vendor said, "This is an accomplishment. We were dealing with monsters, millionaires." The vendors came up with 25,000 petition signatures and also recruited a bunch of heavyweight Brooklyn politicians to protect them. The market is one of four built during the Great Depression that survive, but the city said that it had to go because it had lost $1 million over four years. As part of the deal, the market is supposed to become self-supporting over time.
· Venerable Brooklyn Market Is on the Verge of a New Life [NYT]
· Is La Marqueta de Williamsburg Toast? [Curbed]
[Photo courtesy of Food of the Future]
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