Hollywood Farmers Market will continue for at least 90 days

The Hollywood Farmers' Market will continue operation for at least another 90 days while its organizers negotiate a possible compromise with the Los Angeles Film School over access to a school parking garage.

Market officials won a 90-day extension of their street closure permit after Los Angeles City Councilman Eric Garcetti met with them and representatives from the film school Thursday. In a statement released early Saturday morning, Garcetti said both sides had agreed that the market at Ivar and Selma avenues, a local attraction since 1991, should remain in the neighborhood.

Before April 12, when the 90-day extension issued by the Board of Public Works expires, each side will consider several options, he said.

Market officials will study potential adjustments to its footprint, including alternative market layouts on adjacent streets, while film school administrators review the feasibility of joining the parking garage that is blocked by the market with another parking structure to ensure access on Sundays.

Garcetti said both sides agreed that the market should not be reduced in size.

The two parties have been at an impasse since the city denied the market a permit two weeks ago to close one block of Ivar Avenue to traffic. The permit was denied in part because the Los Angeles Film School complained that the market blocked the entrance to one of its parking garages.

Market patrons have mounted a spirited campaign to keep it open.

In an e-mail to supporters sent late Friday night, market officials thanked them -- and urged them to stay on their toes.

"Although we are encouraged by the progress made so far, we need to remain steadfast in our commitment to our principles, and ready to demonstrate that commitment again if needed," the e-mail read. "Please stay ready should we need to again show our resolve to keep the market the unique community experience it is."

-- Kate Linthicum

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Comments

[Malby]

The Farmers' Market's "principles" include using the public streets. If a property owner and taxpayer wants to use the street, they have the superior right. That's why they call it a "permit." This is all a tempest in a teapot. The Market could reconfigure its footprint in heartbeat.

[Walter]

I was at the Hollywood Farmers Market last Sunday. The LA Film School parking lot was open and accessible. They were also charging $7.00 to park in their lot. I am not sure what the problem is. The parking was open, the Farmers market was in session. Everyone was making money. Where is the beef?

[Gerry Miller]

The whole farmer's market/ Organic certification is so full of corruption it should be scrutinized big time. Included in the scrutiny should be the "certification" process which is done internally instead of by a third party disinterested party. Until then, enjoy the warm fuzzy feeling which is kind of like Oz

[Robert GOLDSTEIN]

Why can't this situation just be resolved. The film school must know that Los Angeles and California are losing productions. The School mission is to create film makers who might like to shoot their films in LA. Meaning they would need locations possibly in neighborhoods,i.e., Hancock Park, Beverly Hills, or maybe the stores on Sunset Blvd. To do their films, they must learn to cooperate with the neighborhood where their locations are...what they are doing now is not a teaching moment. I would like to know how many spaces are you talking about? Is it the entrance closer to Sunset or Selma? I am certain if you need parking you can arrange with the Archlight to use the 5th floor of their parking structure. The Hollywood Market has been their a lot longer than you. You are like people that knowingly move to a street near Sony, Disney, Warner Bros, Culver Studios and then complain there is a studio next door. You need to work this out living the market just where it is. People count on it every Sunday for their food. Seniors in Hollywood should not have to accomodate your school when so many options are available to you. How many additional spaces do you really need? There are so many ways to work this out. Get in a room with the proper representatives from all parties-and make it work.
Robbie Goldstein/Location Manager for Film and Television

[Niki]

The Farmers Market has been operating at that location for more years than the Film School. It's all about money, why attempt to move or shut something down that hasn't bothered anyone!!!!

[mangochutney]

the hollywood farmers market has been a farce - bread and circuses - from its beginning asa public relations ploy - building feelgood for the area when the empty purposeless subway huge taxpayer ripoff was being built.

the market is a huge waste of taxpayer money - and provides no more substance than the pony rides its cousin studio city farmers market offers to entice parent
locals away from local businesses that actually pay salaries, pay workmens compensation, unemployment, liability and disaster insurance, pay rent or mortgages, pay real estate tax, phone tax, utility tax, business tax - and more,
none of which are paid by the feel good managers and their(usually) out of town vendors who are here in LA to get the money and run to launder their cash

worst of all, there are no real farmers there, just merchants buying and selling, but, most fortunately for them, on the inside of the political hustle, taking care of the council persons ever growing need for more money. that is the real farming taking place, right in front of everyone's nose, and it stinks. they can smile thru the next photo opp and tell you what a fine thing it is that everyone has health vegetables, but very few buy dirty tubers no matter how organic, they are there to cruise, buy taxable products like flowers without paying any tax, meet a friend, have a latte, and tell each other how cool it all is, completely unaware that their excursion has been underwritten by the city, including site
procurement (and political payback), management, police and fire protection, and lots more.

do a little counting, friends, figure it out, it costs the taxpayer eight to fifteen
bucks a week for each and every farmers market visitor. the film school brings in paying customers too, they want a little bit of the pie, not just the crust. since the council knows who butters the bread, they will make everyone happy - well, almost everyone, certainly not the business owners who are paying for all this every day. it might have been a good idea at one time. that time has now passed.

[James McCuen]

If Walter is right that the Film School parking lot was open (and accessible) during the Farmer's Market operating hours, then what is the issue?

Perhaps Walter should take and post photos/video, because that would be a very strong argument to question the Film School and to drill down into the real motives and who is behind it.

[charles herman-wurmfeld]

parking is not culture, and cars are not human. these seem obvious distinctions until these type of choices are laid out before us and i realize that aggressive pro-parking policies and auto-hegemony are still writ strongly into our laws. we'll never have living, thriving streets across all of LA until we unplug and restructure our parking requirements and commit to organize a town that shares our streets with pedestrians, bikes and vendors and is NOT dominated by car-culture. considering the true moral price we pay to fill our tanks with cheap gas (war), the devastating health problems and dangerousness of automobiles, and the limitations of urban space we pay too high a price for free, endless parking. let LA awaken to this madness and stop prioritizing parking over people and human-culture on ivar and across the town.

[Olden_Atwoody]

This whole Farmer's Market thing smells like bad fish. We need to reaward the contract to someone else.