This article was written by Autum Robertson of BoiseDev.
After a yearlong stint in Garden Citythe Capital City Public Market is making its return to Downtown Boise, only this time it will be in a different location. It will also start earlier than the hoped-for August timeframe.
The market is scheduled to open on July 17 and run through October for its 27th year. It will no longer center on 8th St. and Idaho St. Instead, Capital City Public Market will shift to the east and run on Idaho St. from 9th St. to 11th St.
The 8th St. area is now home to expanded patios for restaurants, put in place due to COVID restrictions last year.
“It is just a staple in Downtown it’s something that’s been going on for years and years we’re really excited to get back,” Directors of the Market Janel Miles said during a City of Boise Special Events Team meeting. “This is a one of a kind event for everyone with the pandemic, so, it’s been touch and go for the last year and a half and we’re so elated to be here today in front of all of you guys who make these plans to get back to downtown.”
[City of Boise outlines city council districts: which seat will you vote on?]
2020 dip in sales
Miles talked to the Special Events Team about how she was there speaking for these local businesses that sometimes depend on the revenue the market brings.
“So in 2019, all the vendors had reported $2.5 million in sales. Over the year in 2020 or pandemic year, our sales were reporting at a $1 million so that’s about a $1.5 million that did not go to Idaho small businesses,” she said. “So we’re really looking forward to getting back downtown and getting money back in the pockets of small businesses to circulate around Idaho.”
Because of CDC guidelines and various COVID-19 rules and regulations, the market will place booths six feet apart. This means that Capital City Public Market will have between 65-70 booths initially and then vendors will gradually increase as restrictions lift.
“Then maybe increase in the following weeks with more vendors we have a membership base of 85 and then we have an additional 50 provisional vendors so there are a lot of people that want to get downtown with limited spacing,” Miles said. “So we’ll start small and grow from there and see what feels right as we continue to grow.”
Starting next month the market is open every Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
