AMHERST – As the Amherst Farmers Market kicks off its 44th season Saturday, the farmers who set up will not be competing with the Extravaganja festival as they often have during the market’s first weekend.
Unlike previous years when the market returned to its long-time Spring Street home, as well as a portion of Boltwood Avenue, large crowds of people for the event that promotes marijuana legalization with speakers, musicians and vendors will be absent.
Tammy Ryan, the manager for the market, said Friday that not having to compete with the festival means there is plenty of parking for market customers, including Amherst College lots that can be used on the weekend. Handicapped parking is available on Boltwood Avenue.
Ryan said the market, which runs from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. each week through Nov. 21, begins with about 28 vendors, selling various produce, coffee and even grilled cheese sandwiches, and will grow to 36 vendors at the height of the season.
“We have such a wide variety of products this year with increasing diversity as the season progresses,” Ryan said.
Musicians will be on hand each Saturday and classes will be taught by farmers on occasion, such as how to grow wine grapes and lacto-fermentation.
Sarah la Cour, executive director of the Amherst Business Improvement District, said Friday that there are mixed opinions in the business community about the Extravaganja festival’s departure for Northampton, where it will be held at the Three County Fairgrounds on April 30.
While some stores and restaurants told her it was their best business weekend of the year, traffic congestion and public safety issues raised concerns for others.
“Many wish it were here, others not so much,” la Cour said.
But the weekend won’t be lacking for activity. The market will open with music played between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. by SilverTone 5, sponsored by the Amherst BID.
Then, beginning at 1 p.m. at Kendrick Park, the BID is putting on a dessert crawl, with live music by Carinae between 2 and 4 p.m. and children’s activities put on throughout the afternoon by Phi Sigma Pi, a fraternity at UMass, la Cour said. The $10 tickets for the 10 desserts are available at A.J. Hastings.
The weekend also includes the annual Daffodil Fun Run and Walk 5K Sunday. That fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Hampshire County starts at 10 a.m. at Kendrick Park and ends there with a barbecue.
Visitors to Amherst can view seven chalk art installations done by local artists on the sidewalks, including one illustrator who will be working on his on Saturday, la Cour said.
The completed art is on South Pleasant Street in front of Hastings and Collective Copies, on North Pleasant Street near Blue Marble and the former Folcwald gallery, on Main Street near Amherst Chinese and on Amity Street near Amherst Coffee.
People can vote for their favorite chalk art by visiting the Amherst BID’s Facebook page.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
