Zaretsky, who has done consulting for nearly 60 public markets, said he was surprised by how much the Broadway Market means to residents. Feedback from over 1,000 citizens came through surveys, interviews and community meetings.
“Given all of the problems that are so obvious about the Broadway Market, I was really impressed at how much people still loved it and really cared about it,” he said.
“It’s a generational thing,” said Andrea Cooley, who has shopped at the Broadway Market her whole life.
“It’s been here a long time and the community definitely needs it here,” Cooley said. “We need some upgrades and anything positive they’re trying to do I’m all for.”
A key decision, if the plan is followed, calls for creating a nonprofit to manage the market, Zaretsky said. Nearly every successful public market operates in that manner, he said. The market is currently overseen by the city’s real estate department.
The market also needs a more appealing look.
“The whole idea is to make it more transparent and inviting, and let people see what’s going on in there,” said Robert Stark of CJS Architects, a Larkinville-based firm partnering with Zaretsky on the project. “Right now it’s almost bunkerlike.
