Students will soon visit a new Portland Saturday Market when it moves on May 2
By Clare Shreve
Where else can Portlanders go for fleece, crystals, tie-dye, and tea cozies other than Portland Saturday Market? The answer? No where.
For 36 years Saturday Market has served the community's needs, as much as tabouli or hemp ever could.
Vendors and street performers alike give the market an alternative vibe. But its location underneath the Burnside Bridge is what truly makes Saturday Market a notable experience for locals as well as out-of-towners.
Saturday Market has spent the last 33 years at this unconventional location; its first three years were spent at another location roughly two blocks away.
However, as the area around the site, known as Old Town, upgrades, Saturday Market follows its lead.
"This neighborhood has changed considerably," said long-time vendor Dean Caldwell. "It's more up-scale and Saturday Market is not upscale." He chuckled at this last statement, glancing at his surroundings.
"It needs to follow the direction of the neighborhood," he said.
On Saturday, May 2, the Market will spend its first day in its new home in Waterfront Park.
The excitement is almost palpable for those who have been working for over three years to get this plan completed, like Paul Verhoeven, executive director of Portland Saturday Market.
"It'll be a little renaissance for us," Verhoeven said. Half of the current Saturday Market location will still be in use in Ankeny Park, adjacent to the current site.
It is the vendors underneath the bridge that will have to relocate.
The new space is about a block away, located on SW Naito Parkway, which runs along Waterfront Park.
There will be a raised platform in the center, as well as a new covered portion of the park for vendors to set up camp rain-free.
"It'll have the same feel," Verhoeven said. "Just a little shinier around the edges."
There are some who prefer it without the extra polish; like sophomore Caitlin Jeck.
"It's always been that way," Jeck said. "The location makes it unique compared to other markets."
Amanda Lyn has similar sentiments. Lyn is a Saturday Market enthusiast, who has helped at a friend's tie-dye booth on and off for several years.
"It's been a very strong tradition to have it under the bridge," Lyn said. "Plus it's kind of fun how it's tucked underneath."
The location's distinctiveness is acknowledged, but Verhoeven sees it a bit differently.
Saturday Market's uniqueness remains in the vendor's products, and less in its proximity to a bridge said Verhoeven.
"Change happens," junior Chris Clem said. "The space necessitates the move."
Ultimately, the move is meant to beautify Saturday Market, which in turn is meant to benefit all of those who make it happen weekend after weekend.
The new location also lends itself to giving the market more exposure; visibility, being another reason for the move.
Verhoeven hopes that the more park-like setting near the waterfront will attract a more diverse crowd.
"As Old Town redevelops," Verhoeven said. "We'll get more people who are now somewhat hesitant to come downtown."
Although Caldwell sees the move as positive, even after 23 years of working under the bridge at "Dean's Original Ear Nest," he hears some customer reviews that express a fondness toward the unassuming location.
"A lot of customers have told me, 'It's quaint here. I like it,'" Caldwell says.
For many Portlanders a large part of the appeal of Saturday Market is its offbeat location, making it interesting and special.
With five weekends left before the big move, students should get their fill of Saturday Market with a side of Burnside Bridge while it's still available.
