Information Tables at Farmers' Market

2024 Saturday Farmers' Market Informational Table Policy

Thanks for your interest in setting up an informational table at the City of Bloomington Community Farmers’ Market. Information booths will be available each Saturday of every month April-October.

The City of Bloomington Parks and Recreation Department is committed to providing an environment where issues can be openly discussed and explored. In order to provide an atmosphere in which open communication can occur without disrupting the other activities at the market, please follow the guidelines below for the Saturday Market. There is no informational tabling at the Tuesday Market.

Locations – Info Alley:
There are two areas where groups may set up to distribute information. One has a weekly fee associated with it and the other does not.

• Fee area: Groups may set up tables on the west side of Market, along the 8th Street entrance, near the Market B-Line Café (click here to download a copy of the Informational Table Policy form with a map of the Market) each Saturday. There are boundary lines and numbers marked on the pavement indicating the spaces available for groups to use. Representatives of tabling groups may stand in the area immediately in front of their selected space when distributing literature, gathering signatures, or otherwise actively engaging the public. At no time may group members walk through the Market engaging in these activities.
   
• Free area: Groups may set up on the east side of the B-Line Trail, just north of 8th Street, outside of the Market boundaries during the Saturday Market. There are no markings in the grass, but groups should limit their space to approximately 6’ x 6’ and situate it off the trail by at least two feet. If you need help identifying where to set up in the free area, please consult the staff at the Market Information Table.

Registration and Cost to Participate

• There is a one-time $10 registration fee for all groups regardless of whether they use the fee or the free area.
• Any group interested in tabling in either area must submit the agreement form (click here for a copy of the agreement form) and pay the $10 registration fee.
• For groups using the fee area, there is an option to rent and reserve the same space month to month by paying the space fees for all remaining Saturdays in the Market season. There are 30 Markets in 2024 between April 6 and October 26. (There is no tabling during the November Market or Holiday Market).To reserve for every Market will cost $300 plus the $10 registration fee for a total of $310. Any reservations after the start of the season will be pro-rated through the end of the Market season.
• When renting a space by the month, materials need to be turned in to the Parks office one week in advance of tabling or can be turned in to the staff at the Market Information Table on the first day the group participates. A Market staff person will collect your payment during Market. Groups may pay ahead for multiple months and the amount paid ahead will be recorded by Market staff. Please note: paying ahead in this manner does not guarantee a group the use of the same space from month to month. This is only possible when reserving for all the remaining Market Saturdays.

How to Access a Space in the Fee Area

• The Info Alley sign up board (located on the curb at the east end of Info Alley) will be available by 7:30 a.m. (April - September) and 8:30 a.m. (October). This only indicates the time the sign-up board is available. Groups do not need to arrive at this time.
• To claim a space for weekly rental in the fee area, a representative of the group places the group name on the Info Alley sign up board next to the number that corresponds with the number marked on the pavement of the space desired. There are 10 spaces marked.
• Groups with reserved spaces will have their name affixed to the board next to the space they reserved and are required to be in that space by 8:30 a.m. (April - September) and 9:30 am (October) to secure it for the Market day.
• Groups must wait until 7:45 a.m. (April - September) and 8:45 a.m. (October) to access their space for the day, as prior to that time, Info Alley serves as vendor ingress.
• Groups must vacate their space by 12:45 p.m. each week.
• Groups are not allowed to save spaces for other groups not yet present.

Unloading/Loading and Parking

• There is no vehicle access for informational groups to the Market and Info Alley area.
• Between 7:45 a.m. and 12:45 p.m. groups may pull their vehicle just outside of the Market bollards near Info Alley to unload/load. Landscaping carts are also available by the Market shed located on the south side of the Market to assist in moving supplies in and out of the Market.
• City parking is enforced on Saturdays. Groups tabling at Market should park their vehicles during Market hours at the Trades District Garage on the northwest side of City Hall. To avoid being towed, DO NOT park in the Johnson Creamery parking lot off 8th Street.

Equipment

• Groups must provide their own tables and chairs. Any type of shelter (tent, umbrella, etc.) and/or sign used by a group must fit within the 6’ x 6’ space and be securely weighted/tied down.
• Groups must not utilize the railing behind spaces 6-10 for securing signs.

Additional Guidelines

• Groups may not sell items or actively solicit donations at the Market. A passive donation receptacle is permitted.
• Any displayed items must be available free of charge.
• Groups may not give away any items intended for human consumption.
• Groups may not amplify sound.
• Pets are not permitted in the Market (as defined by the paved area of Showers Common) or in the Market B-Line Café.
• Smoking and vaping are not permitted in the Market, including the Market B-Line Café and Info Alley.
• Restrooms are available inside City Hall.

Weather Policy

During Market hours, the staff member inside City Hall will monitor the weather radar. If severe weather is imminent, the Market Master will then notify the Info Alley participants. At any time participants can go into City Hall and ask the Market staff for a weather update.

In the event of thunder, lightning, high winds, tornado, hail or other severe weather at the Market site, participants are advised to take shelter in the lower level of City Hall. In the case of heavy rain, thunder or lightning, if participants cannot take cover in the building, then move to an enclosed vehicle with a metal roof and closed windows, taking care not to touch the metal frame of the vehicle until the threat has passed.

The Monroe County emergency sirens sound with a steady tone in the event that the National Weather Service has issued a tornado warning for the county or if emergency personnel have sighted a funnel cloud or tornado. At the time of the siren sounding, the Market Master will alert Market patrons that the downstairs interior hallway of City Hall is the safest nearby location to seek shelter until the threat has passed. The tornado siren will sound for 5 minutes, but the cessation of the siren does not necessarily mean that the threat of tornado has passed. Market staff will notify participants in City Hall when it is safe to return to the Market.

 If you have questions about Info Alley, contact Clarence Boone at 812-349-3738 or clarence.boone@bloomington.in.gov.