The Calgary Farmers’ Market plans to spend $5 million transforming a southeast flea market building into its new home.

The Calgary Farmers’ Market is asking its vendors to lend it almost $3 million to help transform a southeast flea market building into the farmers’ market’s new home — a plan that’s won the approval of some vendors but has others balking at the cost.

The market is staking its future on the plan, which involves a massive renovation on the Heritage Market site at Blackfoot Trail and 77th Ave. S.E. “Let’s face it — there’s just an old warehouse with fairly low ceilings,” says market branding and operations director Ken Aylesworth, adding that the renovation will cost about $5 million. “What we’re trying to do is open it up and bring some natural sunlight and to give the building some more character to make it look like a farmers’ market.” About $2.8 million would come from vendor loans, says Aylesworth, and another $2 million would come from a bank loan.

The market has until the end of November 2010 to vacate its current home at Currie Barracks, and frustrated vendors have been awaiting the financial details of the move for months. Member vendors recently approved the finance plan 20-4 — “resounding support,” says Aylesworth — but it still needs city approval and is being eyed warily by other vendors. (The market is a “new generation co-operative,” which means that while the market has over 85 vendors, only 25 are members and have a say in decision-making.)

“It’s too expensive for us,” says Ron Hamilton, owner of Sunworks Farms, one of the market’s anchor tenants. Sunworks recently announced that it won’t be moving with the market and will try and find a non-farmers’ market retail space in town instead. “Our customers say they would rather not go to that location.”

Vendors who want to move to the new site are being asked to sign a five-year lease and pay $100 per square foot (that’s the loan) in addition to their rent, which will also go up by about $1 per square foot. Aylesworth says the market will pay six per cent interest on the loans, but vendors haven’t been told when they’ll be repaid. They have until October 4 to decide whether they’re in or not.

Vendors also risk losing their money should the plan fall through. “The only guarantee they have is the operation of the co-operative,” says Aylesworth. “Ultimately it’s an investment in themselves.”

That assurance isn’t good enough for some. “It is a complete Mickey Mouse operation,” says one vendor who requested anonymity and calls the plan a “terrible” idea. “Honestly, I would not be surprised if the Calgary Farmers’ Market falls apart.”

The move to Blackfoot Trail is a gamble for vendors and the market itself, which is still awaiting city development permits for the new location. Aylesworth says the market wasn’t expecting the permit process to be so arduous. “That’s a big hurdle for us.” The market is paying for traffic and parking studies to meet city demands, and has been told it will have to pay for a lengthy sidewalk, a bus stop and possibly new traffic lights.

The permit is currently on hold, according to the city, because more information is needed from the market. Aylesworth says the city asked the company handling the market’s parking study for more numbers. “They’ve been back out on the street counting cars and turns and all that stuff.”

There’s no backup plan should the city refuse the permits. “The market and its vendors would have to make a very tough decision whether to try and find another location, which is highly unlikely… or just to see our lease through at the Currie Barracks and then close up,” Aylesworth says.

A tentative floor plan for the new site put Sunworks in a separate small building away from the main market — an “unacceptable” spot, says Hamilton. Because Sunworks is run by actual farmers — as opposed to the market’s resell vendors who don’t grow their own food, but buy it from other farmers — the market will have to find more farmers to keep the 80/20 vendor balance required by provincial regulations. (At least 80 per cent of approved markets’ vendors have to make, bake or grow what they sell.) “We’ll be advertising and looking to interview producers to come back in,” says Aylesworth.

At the Heritage Market, the landlord, Strategic Group, isn’t saying whether the flea market will be able to stay in the building once the farmers’ market moves in. “We won’t know that until the development approval process is finished,” says Strategic Group communications manager Kathy Thompson.

The farmers’ market is set to take possession of the Blackfoot building next August, and will have four months to renovate before it has to leave Currie Barracks.

Local chef and market customer Wade Sirois is worried about how the vendor loans will affect food prices at the market. “It’s a huge amount of money,” he says. “And ultimately, the vendors will pay for that and then the consumers will pay for that. That’s always been my beef…. Where this market is headed is reducing access to local food.”