Farmers’ market comes to Hansville in June

HANSVILLE — The former fishing community may be growing in population, but this summer, residents will be taking a step back to the area’s old farming days.

The Kingston Farmers’ Market will be operating a Hansville Wednesday Market from 4-7 p.m., starting June 1, in the Hansville Grocery and Provisions parking lot and will run through September.

The plan is to keep things simple with about a dozen vendors selling produce, vegetables and farm items, such as fruits, flowers and eggs, said KFM president Cindi Dudley.

Vendors from the Kingston market had the idea to hold a mid-week market last year after farmers found they had an abundance of produce leftover from their Saturday events. While they couldn’t establish another market before the end of the season, they decided to make sure it happened this summer. The Hansville market will include current vendors from KFM as well as farmers from Hansville Road.

“The thought was to make it a little further to the north and give more people a chance to access farmers and the market,” Dudley said.

One of the final steps is raising money to pay for the insurance premium for the new market, which is only $425, Dudley said. This is just a one-time fund-raising effort as the annual insurance is expected to pay for itself in the future from vendor memberships and rental fees. Donations can be dropped off at the Hansville Market or send them to Kingston Farmers’ Market, P.O. Box 124, Kingston, WA 98346.

The group also needs volunteers to help promote the market, Dudley said.

“It’s a time to pull the community together,” she said. “We’re looking for people with inspiration.”

The market will be operated by the Kingston Farmers’ Market and follow that group’s bylaws and policies. Vendors who join the Kingston organization will have the option to sell at both markets.

The primary goal is to give farmers another outlet to sell their goods, Dudley said.

“It shouldn’t be a difficult thing for anybody,” she added. “It should be a win-win situation for everybody (and) get more produce out there in the middle of the week.”

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