Poplar Bluff council delays vote on Farmer’s Market management agreement after vendor concerns

Assistant City Manager and City Clerk Lori J. Phelps presented a draft Management Agreement between the City and Grow Our Downtown, Inc., described as similar to a 2014 agreement and presented as an initial draft open to amendment. Council discussed the draft during a March 16 workshop session and invited public comment.

Two members of the public spoke. Phylis Baker (3500 Marble Hill Road) raised several procedural and operational concerns she said should be addressed in the agreement, including the name and composition of the managing board, permit requirements, the balance of produce versus value-added items, reporting and insurance obligations, tax treatment, stall allocations for vendors and permitted uses of the market premises. Rhonda Hillis (367 College Street) said the current market brings in approximately $3,000–$3,500 per year, presented a wish list for future market goals and warned that adding duties or requiring renovations could impose burdens on vendors.

After the discussion and public comment, Mayor Pro Tem Lisa Parson moved and Councilman Robert Smith seconded a motion to move the management-agreement item to the Council’s April 6, 2026 voting session for possible amendment and adoption. The motion carried; no formal vote on the agreement occurred that night.

The postponement gives Councilmembers additional time to review draft language and to address the operational and fiscal questions raised by speakers, including stall allocations, insurance and how the agreement will treat vendor income and permitting. The Council will take up the item for formal consideration on April 6, 2026.