Business & Tech

Rosemont Square Farmers Market to Open in Fall

Property owners offer more details on the project to fill the old Borders space.

While Rosemont Square owners say they’re still in the beginning stages of putting together , they are aiming for a fall opening. 

They’re now working on architectural drawings for the building façade, making engineering plans and meeting with people to put together a good tenant mix, said Steve Bajus, of S.W. Bajus, LTD.

The building will remain two stories, with the former Borders entrance staying where it is, Bajus said.

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“What we try to do is serve the needs of the immediate community,” Bajus said. “It made sense to put a food operation in there.”

Bajus said he ran a farmers market in Chestnut Hill for 28 years, so he has some familiarity with putting one together.

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He expects about 25 to 30 vendors in the Rosemont Square farmers market, mostly mom-and-pop types.

“We’re working with people for produce, red meat, poultry and deli,” Bajus said. “That’s the main draw to a farmers market, and those are the components you need to get in place. Other specialty and prepared foods—that comes later.” 

He said they have received a good response from preliminary talks with people in the area. There will be two sections—one that’s open Thursday, Friday and Saturday for farm stands, and another that’s likely open six days a week for other vendors like bakeries.

“They all have to be local, but some people tout this farm-to-table thing,” Bajus said. “Our growing season here is fairly short, and people expect good stuff 12 months a year. We want to be open Thursday, Friday and Saturday every week, 52 weeks a year, so you can count on that.” 

The market will be similar to the Lancaster County Farmers Market in Strafford, he said.

Bajus said it was unfortunate went bankrupt since that location always did well, but as a national decision it wasn’t something he could control. 

As far as the new façade of the building for the coming farmers market, he said they’re planning on complying with Lower Merion’s village redevelopment plan to make it look more like a downtown façade and less like a big suburban-type building. (Bajus said they are exempt since it’s an existing building.)

“Years ago, this was considered suburbia,” Bajus said. “Now they’re encouraging people to walk more, and to make it more pedestrian friendly rather than get in your car and drive to the next door down. We like that, so we try to comply with those kinds of codes.”


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