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Farmers Market manager reports record attendance, vendor growth and move to Matt Ross Community Center
Summary
Overland Park’s farmers market reported record attendance in 2024, strong vendor retention and plans to relocate the 2025 season to Matt Ross Community Center beginning April 19.
Christina Stanley, the market manager for the Overland Park Farmers Market, told a city advisory committee that 2024 was a record year for attendance and vendor activity and that the market will open the 2025 season at Matt Ross Community Center on April 19.
Stanley said the market received local and regional accolades in 2024 and that market programming and partnerships increased vendor exposure. She highlighted vendor success stories — including a fifth‑generation farmer featured on Juneteenth coverage and James Beard‑recognized vendors who began at the market — and said the market’s Instagram account rose to just under 29,000 followers.
On metrics, Stanley said the written operations report attached to the agenda shows 282,000 shoppers in 2024, up from 53,000 in 2019. She described a vendor return rate of roughly 80–85 percent, a multiyear wait list for new vendors, and more new vendor applications received so far this season than in prior years.
Stanley described program details including the Double Up Food Bucks matching program; she said Cultivate KC has indicated local funding for a match will continue but the market has not yet received final details on the amount. The market will continue token processing for shoppers who use credit or debit cards at an information booth.
Stanley also described a successful “unofficial” year‑round market at Matt Ross in the off‑season and said the permanent Clock Tower Landing project will create new year‑round programming opportunities. The market manager said staff are hiring to add a full‑time market coordinator and that some part‑time staff now work year‑round to support increased operations.
Why it matters: The farmers market provides retail and business incubation for local food and food‑adjacent vendors, is a site for federal nutrition match programs, and is shifting locations and staffing to support expanded year‑round operations.
What happens next: The market will open the 2025 season April 19 at Matt Ross Community Center, continue vendor recruitment from a wait list, and coordinate with Clock Tower Landing construction and city marketing.
