PMAC: surge in vendor applications; staff cites MDARD permits, stall limits and orientation bottlenecks

Lisa Young, chair of the Public Market Advisory Commission, opened the April 17 meeting and received a staffing and vendor-applications update from market staff member Stephanie.

Stephanie said the commission has received 57 applications since January, compared with 37 for all of last year, and that staff has accepted 17 new vendors so far. “We have accepted 17 new vendors,” she said, noting many new applicants are already scheduled for orientation or have begun operating. “It is a very high volume.”

The commission was told the primary outstanding item for returning vendors is licensing from the Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development (MDARD). Stephanie said MDARD’s food-establishment licenses run on a schedule that does not match market deadlines; she told…