In response to the directive from the Mayor’s office, we will be participating in efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19 by temporarily closing all of our Public Markets until further notice.
We expect to be closed a minimum of four weeks; all markets, events and locations are cancelled. Over the next several days, our staff will be issuing refunds for all affected markets – please be patient, as this process takes some time to complete. I anticipate it will be at least a week before we are finished with the refunds.
If you paid via check, you will be asked to either use your unused balance as a credit or be issued a refund check in several weeks. Regardless, your fees will be refunded/applied towards future events.
We look forward to reopening as soon as possible so we can continue to support our local businesses, farms and artists!
Update: it turns out that the refunds we are working on will all be done by check. There are too many to handle online, individually – you will get one check for all of the cancelled events.
Yes, especially if you are a Reserved Booth holder. We expect that some normalcy will return by then – but if we are forced to cancel, we will refund as we are doing with the other events.
We’re trying to take a positive and upbeat attitude towards the closures, and do our part. This too shall eventually pass!
Thank you for letting us know and being on top of things! Is there a specific date when the RSVP portal will be open for reserving opening weekend (other than orientation)?
Chris, thanks for further info. We became an approved vendor in 2019, are a returning food truck, and have sent in our 2020 health permit and COI. We have yet to receive any early registration instruction aside from the season pass info. Is the season pass the only early option for us before general registration opens on the 25th?
UPDATE: Opening Weekend and the following weekend (CSO) are definitely cancelled. We are in the process of contacting registered vendors and issuing refunds to those who desire them, and crediting payments towards the upcoming events for others.
We are targeting mid-May as the new starting point for Opening Weekend; May 9-10 is our preferred choice, but May 16-17 is also on the table. I’ve sent our plans to city officials for a nod of support before making things public/final. We will not be making any final/firm decisions until April 1. This is all intended to provide you with our thinking, plans and hopes.
Update 5pm: May 9-10 is cancelled; May 16-17 is the agreed-to target, provided the CDC does not revise current warnings.
Once the starting point has been identified, I will have some additional news to share. Briefly, we are planning to add three months of Chattanooga Market Saturdays to our calendar at the First Horizon Pavilion; a stripped-down, less crowded version of our Sunday Market. There will not be themes, and fewer vendors will be allowed to participate - the layout may even be modified. The goal here is to disperse our crowds a bit over two days so that people feel more comfortable/safer attending, and to allow you the opportunity to make up for some lost ground.
River Market, in the tourist district, will also be returning – different audience, different sales approach. Reactivation will depend, in large part, on overall downtown tourism strategy. Meaning, it’s not entirely up to us.
We will also be rolling out Collegedale Wednesdays starting in June; I believe that we have the makings for a great Collegedale season this year. Collegedale Sundays will restart the same weekend as Chattanooga opens.
The future is bright, we just need to find our way through the current storm. Hang tight
Thank you Chris and team for keeping us informed! This is a hard time for everyone involved! One day we’ll look back on this and say “remember when?” but for now we just have to get through.
Chris, will there be another registration for Opening Weekend or will the current RSVP’s be used? I still hadn’t registered (I know, I know) but will if you still think that’s best.
You can not register for anything at this point; we halted enrollments. Those that had registered are being contacted now to determine if they would prefer a refund or credit applied towards the Opening Weekend. Most have chosen to keep their Opening Weekend plans intact.
UPDATE: Brandy has issued checks for all of the smaller markets, and I’ve signed them - about two inches-thick worth of checks! - they are headed to your mailbox soon. Most everyone preferred to keep their place for Opening Weekend, so those fees have been applied to the future date. The refunds are mainly for Collegedale, River, Erlanger and SipTN (which will be rescheduled for June).
We are targeting May 16-17 as Opening Weekend, based on latest guidance. As mentioned previously, we are going to wait unti April 1 or so before firming that up - the next two weeks are likely to be vital in this campaign, so we wait.
Everyone has been quite generous through this process, and it’s great to see our community band together. The self-sacrifice and help given to others is heartwarming.
