November 13, 2020 · 0 Comments
By Mike Baker
The Orangeville Winter Market is moving to a new temporary location this upcoming season.
In order to “provide a safe and comfortable market shopping experience” to all visitors, the Orangeville Winter Market will be operating out of Tony Rose Arena until April. The bi-weekly market will be housed within the facility’s B rink.
“The Tony Rose B rink location offers plenty of space for safe social distancing and can easily accommodate the 50 shopper limit, with plenty of space to spare,” said Alison Scheel, General Manager of the Orangeville Business Improvement Area (OBIA).
The winter market will run from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. every other Saturday, and began on Nov. 7. The next market will take place on Nov. 21. There is a direct entrance into Tony Rose B rink, located on the south side of the facility’s parking lot. Ms. Scheel noted there will be no access to the market through the building’s main entrance.
The market will operate under strict health and safety guidelines laid out by the Town of Orangeville and Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health. All vendors and shoppers will be required to wear face coverings at all times, while visitors will also have to give their name and phone number before they enter for the purposes of contract tracing. There will be no bank machines in site, public washrooms will be closed and customers will not be permitted to touch any products or produce. Many of the products on offer will be pre-bagged.
Farmer’s Market organizers are also asking that only one family member attend, so as to allow as many individual families as possible to shop at one time, while people should always attempt to keep a minimum of six feet from other shoppers and vendors.
While the market is, usually, a place where local residents can catch up and socialize, Ms. Scheel is asking that visitors keep that to a minimum while COVID-19 enforced restrictions remain in place.
“The market is usually a very social place, but for the time being shoppers are asked to limit social interactions inside the market,” Ms. Scheel said. “While many may miss the cozy atmosphere of Town Hall, market staff and vendors are very pleased that the winter market has found a large, temporary home for the season.”
She concluded, “When appropriate, the winter market will return to its downtown, Town Hall home. Hopefully in plenty of time for the beginning of next season.”