By Frankie Pobar Lay
MarketReady
Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway recently took the step of including funding for the Madison Public Market in her city budget proposal. After signaling that the project could be cut, the mayor’s office received over 100 letters of support for the project. This outpouring of support may well have changed course for the city and for the entrepreneurs in the MarketReady program who have continued working on and developing their businesses, even in the midst of a global pandemic.
Judy McNeal of QB’s Magnetic Creations has been in business since 2009. She now works full-time on her business and was “elated and relieved” to hear that city funding for the public market was in the final draft of the mayor’s budget. McNeal acknowledged that the pandemic has “affected the entire world” but asked, “should that dampen our future; should we hinder growth and this great possibility?” She described the market as a bright light at the end of a tunnel, something to be hopeful about in these uncertain times.
Josey Chu of Madame Chu Delicacies is another member of the MarketReady program. For her “the public market has been a long time coming… it is a representation of Madison, it is a representation of people who are willing to work hard and not only make it sustainable for themselves but build jobs, create equity, and be a part of the community.”
Chu said the mayor’s hesitation to fund the market was “disheartening” because she sees the market as an opportunity to revive our local economy in the wake of the ongoing pandemic. “The Madison Public Market is not just another food court… the public market is a place where the community can come together and feel they are safe to share their cultural view, share their culture, and be able to participate in various diverse events. It is a safe place to gather, to voice their views, to share and to express who they are.” In other words, a place where people can gather “without stigma, without fear, without judgment and without bias.”
Luis de Dompablo, of Caracas Empanadas and Caracas Arepas food carts, has also been “extremely disappointed in the process, how slow it has been, how many years it has taken.” Like other business owners in the MarketReady program, he said he cannot wait many more years for this project to come to fruition.
He jumped at the opportunity to be part of the MarketReady program in 2017 because he saw the market would be good for Madison, as well as for tourists. He pointed out that Madison is lacking year-round destinations for visitors and residents alike, a place where everybody can shop, eat and connect with each other.
For Carmell Jackson of Melly Mell’s Catering, the market increasingly felt out of reach until the recent announcement from the mayor. She enjoys visiting public markets in other cities and is excited to be a part of something similar in Madison. She sees the public market as the perfect opportunity to celebrate the diversity of Madison, with small businesses run by women and people of color all in one building.
The public market has been in the works for over a decade, with delays that left MarketReady business owners wondering where things stand. With the project one step closer to completion, McNeal reflects that “keeping the funding is breathing life back into those of us who have been working toward this.”
As soon as the Madison Common Council approves the market funds included in the mayor’s budget, these businesses will be that much closer to finally operating as part of the Madison Public Market, filling it with the energy and excitement that it is sure to establish it as one of the most vibrant and uplifting destinations in Madison.