Patrons and vendors alike bid farewell to the Overland Park Farmers’ Market pavilion in downtown Overland Park over the weekend.
People left messages, shared memories and signed their names in permanent marker on the pavilion’s pillars on Saturday, the final day of the 2024 market season.
The city will soon begin the process of disassembling the aging market pavilion to make way for a new $34 million structure.
“We have exciting days behind us, and we have even more exciting days ahead of us,” Mayor Curt Skoog said during a brief goodbye celebration of sorts at the conclusion of Saturday’s market.
Overland Park market pavilion built in 1990s
- The precursor to the Downtown Overland Park Partnership organization built the current farmers’ market pavilion in the 1990s.
- That was driven by “downtown businesses and residents who wanted to create a destination for the community,” Skoog said.
- In 2011, the city government took over the farmers market’s operations, and over the years, it flourished, growing from 36 vendors in 2012 to more than 60 today.
- It has also been recognized as one of the best farmers markets in that nation.
Market pavilion going to another Kansas community
Now, the old structure is headed southwest to Garnett, Kansas, where it will get a new life as a space for that community’s farmers market. Garnett has until mid-January 2025 to completely relocate the pavilion.
“Isn’t it wonderful that it’s getting repurposed?” Skoog said on Saturday.
The removal makes way for Overland Park’s long-anticipated new pavilion and gathering space in downtown Overland Park.
OP Farmers’ Market will have a new look by 2026
- The new structure, which is set to open in 2026, will have a larger footprint and be enclosed, enabling year-round operations.
- There will also be accessibility upgrades, more seating, new restrooms, improvements to utilities and work on Overland Park Drive.
- The city is also planning some improvements to the adjacent Clock Tower Plaza.
- All told, the project is expected to cost $34 million, with Skoog on Saturday describing it as “transformative.”
- Next year, as work on the new structure continues, the farmers market will be temporarily relocated in the Matt Ross Community Center parking lot.
Keep reading: Overland Park approves $34M plan to remake downtown farmers market
