Pleasant House

GreenMarket sustainable food production facility

Photo credits: Bright Farm Systems: Linked by Michael Levenston of City Farmer News

I often think about the possibility of a year-round marketplace in Chicago. The markets of Europe are beyond compare, Kansas City’s City Market blew me away this summer, and I’d love to check out the other American markets listed in a recent Local Beet piece. But the more I consider Chicago’s lack of such a place, the more aware I am of the factors that make Chicago different and that perhaps explain why we don’t have one–yet.

San Francisco, to me, is a gastronomic mecca, and it opened its own year-round marketplace only in 2003, in the Ferry Plaza Building. For a city that many people laud for its amazing food culture, San Francisco seemed to take a long time in opening a market that concentrates so many great things in one location. Many of the amazing offerings in the Ferry Building are unique in and of themselves, and the marketplace, open daily, is an essential destination when visiting San Francisco.

Ferry Building, San Francisco

Ferry Building, San Francisco

Ferry Building Market, San Francisco

Photos credit: Ferry Building Market Place

In Europe, it’s easy to understand why these markets continue to exist; they are still a centuries-old part of the cultural fabric, and in many cities you’d be hard pressed to find a supermarket in the center of town.

I was impressed by Kansas City’s City Market, a combination farmers market, ethnic market, and eating place. I’d like to check it out during the winter to see how much of the energy that was evident during the height of the growing season remains.

Les Halles, Avignon

Kansas City's City Market

When looking at these examples, I wonder what these places have that Chicago doesn’t and/or what Chicago has that these places don’t? Could these factors be the reason why there isn’t a marketplace in Chicago? I’m not discounting the Metra Market before it opens; it could turn out to be on par with any of these other examples. But until then, I still ponder.

Chicago is unique compared to other cities because of its sheer size and diversity. It’s also all about the neighborhoods, each with its own special ethnicity and foods. The whole world is a train, bus, bike, cab, car, or boat ride away. We’ve got Chicago-style barbecue on the South Side, tikka on Devon, pierogies on the Northwest Side, banh mi on Argyle, sea cucumbers in Chinatown, and birria on 26th. And in each of these areas we’ve got impeccably fresh produce and spices to make all of these dishes in our homes.

Like Chicago, New York City is another huge, diverse metropolis without a central market. I wonder if places like Chicago and New York are unique cases where the city itself is the year-round market? Sure, the entire city is not underneath one roof, but compared to other cities with year-round markets, perhaps this isn’t necessary. Our wealth of markets, restaurants, and eating places are easily accessible and can provide days or even weeks of exploration.

Don’t get me wrong, I long to see the day that Chicago has its own year-round market; I look forward to the opening of the Metra Market to see if it’s in the spirit of what I consider to be a great year-round market. But I hope that the same reasons why we do not have a market, as other cities do, are those things that prompt us to create a year-round marketplace that is different than all of the rest. Sure, Chicago’s would have all of the great things that other markets have–a place for area farmers and food artisans to sell their goods. It should also be a market that stands out on its own, that reflects our own traditions and regional innovations.

green roof of Chicago's City Hall

Specifically, John Buck’s idea to turn the old post office into a breeding ground for startup companies is a great idea. Carl Giometti also writes in “Making the Old Post Office Deliver for Chicago” that “recessions are great periods of entrepreneurial experimentation.” Well, we’ve got a recession on our hands and what I believe to be a very viable entrepreneurial urban experiment–one that will be not only profitable but socially, politically, and environmentally significant.

I hope you are reading, Mr. Davies, the building is yours now and you need some tenants. My idea for a central market there would be of special interest if some of its startups were sustainable artisanal-food producers. And if the old post office doesn’t work out, I’m sure there are other options, like empty warehouses or power plants.

Imagine a market where goods are not only sold but also grown and crafted on site. Hydroponic vegetables and herbs could be farmed on several of the old post office’s 60 acres, the equivalent of 24 city blocks. Next to a vegetable farm could be an aquaculture operation and next to that, a cheese maker next to a brewery. Get the idea? Take it a step further and create a closed-loop system where nutrient-rich byproducts of these processes are used to feed each other’s operations. Vermicomposted waste could be sold to local farms or put back into the system. Check out this piece by Treehugger.

vertical farm: award-winning rendering by Romses Architects: Image via Designboom

old Chicago post office

I know, big dreams. But we live in a city full of big, vacant real estate and even bigger ideas that have become reality. The same innovative spirit that built this country is alive and well, and I believe our advancements in green technology will be our new boom. It may be slow going and we’ve got some competition from China. Nonetheless, a year-round marketplace could offer a new platform for innovative collaboration, one where many of Chicago’s industries–architecture, business, mechanical, design, agriculture, science, computer technology, and the arts, among others–could build a phenomenal model for the future.

This requires forward thinkers in any of these industries to take the financial risk to innovate. Government support would send the message that with a modern year-round market, Chicago is leading the way as the country’s “greenest city.” Groups like Growing Power, City Farm, and the Green City Market have shown how productive city farms can be in Chicago, and a year-round markeplace would be a collective step forward. I would be interested to hear what Growing Power would think about a project like this. What that group is doing now could be expanded exponentially with great results, if given the necessary funding. Check out this recent article from News Tracker by  J. A. Ginsburg that details how Growing Power’s CEO and MacArthur Foundation Fellow Will Allen “aims to fix the world” through his mission.

City Farm, Chicago

Photo credits: The Resource Center

Back in February, Mike Sula of the Chicago Reader, freshly inspired by a visit to Cleveland’s West Side Market, spoke with Larry Lund, a real-estate expert educated in the public market, about some possible reasons why Chicago does not have a year-round public market. Lund listed several obstacles, which include tough competition, few qualified vendors, and expensive land.

I believe that all three of these perceived obstacles are easy to overcome. My modern interpretation of a marketplace is novel and opens up a brand new market where there is, technically, no competition. People will continue to shop for staples at conventional grocery stores. The marketplace will be a new class of “supermarketplace” that stands alone. As far as competition within the marketplace, vendors will all be on a level playing field with each other. The marketplace will also draw tourists–not typically a strong demographic for conventional supermarkets.

Lund may be right in his assessment of vendor viability because vendors have not elected to take on such a large venture themselves. But they can grow and adapt, especially with training. Chicago has a bevvy of commercial world-class butchers and fishmongers who would now have the opportunity to market themselves more effectively to the public. Grocery stores are currently customers of wholesale fish and meat purveyors; the marketplace would connect the purveyor and the customer directly. The market location would also serve as a new downtown hub for some of these companies, located near O’Hare, cutting down on their transportation costs to and from the city.

Lund’s third obstacle was the high cost of land. The old post office sold for $40 million, or $16 per square foot. All commercial real estate indicators are tanking at this point, and many large buildings are sitting vacant. The time seems right to take advantage of this downturn.

By no means do I consider myself an expert on urban planning, markets, real estate, or politics, but I consider my idea for a new kind of year-round market to be my “concept car.” The renderings look pretty on paper, and if engineered properly, it should ride really nicely and every city will want one parked in their garage. This is an opportunity to do something that hasn’t been done before. Until other people agree it is worth doing, I will continue to dream.