Ligonier Country Market is looking to move to Greensburg.
City officials received a special event permit application last week from Ligonier Country Market seeking to use Lynch Field, said Greensburg Administrator Kelsye Hantz. It is under consideration and has not been approved.
“They approached us, but we have no agreement,” said Mayor Robb Bell.
It was unclear when, or if, city council might see the matter on an agenda. The next voting meeting is May 11.
“It’s a complicated matter, so it takes some time to put things together, if it’s going to happen at all,” said Councilman Randy Finfrock. “It’s just under consideration.”
The market has been looking for a new home for months. After the relationship soured this year with its landlord in Ligonier Township, officials have been eyeing other homes for this year’s weekly event.
Those have included Ligonier Borough’s downtown and the Waterford fire station in Ligonier Township, but neither idea got support from municipal officials.
That apparently led market planners to turn about 18 miles west to Greensburg. Ligonier Country Market is set to start May 16 and run until Sept. 26, according to its website. It typically draws between 3,000 and 5,000 visitors from 8 a.m. to noon every Saturday over four months. About 130 vendors from around the area sell their crafts, produce, flowers, meats and other wares.
Kelly Svesnik, director of Ligonier Country Market, did not respond to messages Monday.
Mark Sorice is the attorney for Ligonier Country Market. He said, if the application is approved, vendors would set up on part of the paved walking path at Lynch Field, which is along Route 119 north of the county courthouse and Greensburg’s business district.
Vans would be available for shuttles, and there are a variety of parking lots within walking distance, Sorice said.
“I think the market will be a boon to the Greensburg area,” he said. “It’s a shame it’s not going to be in Ligonier this year.”
Greensburg officials said Monday there are plenty of factors to consider when mulling over the special event permit application.
Lynch Field is home to a walking track, the Aerobic Center, Kirk S. Nevin Arena, Veterans’ Memorial Pool, sports and recreation fields and the start of the Five Star Trail. The parking lot is typically busy on Saturday mornings, and wet weather sometimes results in flooding.
“Logistics are always an issue, and that’s one of the things we have to muddle through,” said Finfrock, the Greensburg council member.
There are details to be worked out, Hantz said, such as whether the market would provide any transportation or if certain parking spots could be blocked off for other users of the park.
“We don’t want to disrupt our normal operations down there by adding anything in, but we don’t want to let that opportunity go by,” Hantz said.
A farmers market has been held from 9 a.m. to noon Saturdays about a half mile away at All Saints Brewing Co. on Route 119 for the past few years after moving out of the Lynch Field parking lot. It opened for the season April 25 and typically runs through November. Though smaller, it includes local vendors who sell some items similar to those at Ligonier Country Market, such as produce, meats and crafts.
Organizer and farmer Paul Sarver said he hopes his market and Ligonier Country Market, if approved, can work together and cross-promote their events. He isn’t concerned about less foot traffic and thinks the two can complement each other.
“We have some loyal customers,” he said.
Sarver does have concerns about the potential for increased traffic on Route 119, motorists parking at All Saints and walking to Lynch Field and possible conservation issues if there is wet weather.
The Ligonier Country Market had been held for the past 25 years on a 9.6-acre Loyalhanna Watershed Association property off Route 30 in Ligonier Township. Special events permits were issued in January, but a reported dispute over the lease between the market and association led to the market seeking another location.
Initially, Ligonier Borough was proposed as the new site, but that plan didn’t move forward. A proposal to move to the Waterford fire station in Ligonier Township was nixed by township supervisors last month when they rejected a request from fire officials to rezone the property for commercial use.
The station, off Route 271, sits on 26 acres and is zoned agricultural, which doesn’t permit retail sales.