New Hope For Troubled Liberty Street Market

Winston-Salem's Liberty Street Market opened more than five years ago with big plans to provide food for area residents. But there's been difficulties reaching that goal. Now an effort is in the works to change that.

The hope is to open in July with a fairly small number of vendors, about eight or so, providing meat and produce to people within a short radius of the market off of U.S. 52.

Megan Regan is chair of the city's Urban Food Policy Council advisory group and an economist. She says there are few grocery stores in the area and the ones that are there can have higher prices than similar stores in higher-income neighborhoods.

She says the new market is being funded by a grant that is targeted to the growing demand for locally produced food as people respond to the COVID-19 outbreak.

“The farmers in that space during the pandemic need a market opportunity to profit from their livelihood,” she says. “The grant was very specific that the farmers who vend there must produce within a five-mile radius.”

Regan says some of the producers in the area are urban farmers with smaller offerings than a full-sized farm and may struggle to meet the demands of larger farmers markets. The grant also includes money for safety measures to minimize the risk of spreading the virus as people shop.

The market opened to much hype in 2014 but hasn't filled the need for the area, which is considered a food desert. It was built with support from the City of Winston-Salem and the Housing Authority of Winston-Salem.

The market was a priority for longtime city councilwoman Vivian Burke, who died this month. Regan says she's hoping Burke's legacy will encourage people to help the market thrive.