Community roots grow deeper at fresh farmers market location

If you find yourself spending a sunny Saturday in downtown L’Anse, the recently relocated Baraga County Farmers Market should be on top of your list of things to do. Folks from across the county come together to provide home-grown and hand-crafted goods to fellow community members. With more than a dozen vendors and countless goods to purchase, the market now serves as a thriving community hub for Baraga County residents.

“It’s a real nice activity for a small town like this,” said local farmer Patsy Keyes. “It’s usually busy now that people know where we are. We have great signage, more space and many people come back regularly.”

Several farmers, producers and artists are a part of the Baraga County Farmers Market, providing a variety of products including woven goods, flowers, jewelry, eggs, meat and plenty of fresh vegetables. People bring their pets and families to enjoy the fresh air, and live music can often be heard coming from the pavilion on market days.

In 2023, the Village of L’Anse relocated the Baraga County Farmers Market to improve the customer experience, and help its growth potential with vendors. With $75,000 in support, granted by Copper Shores Community Health Foundation, the Village of L’Anse built a new pavilion and added handicap accessible parking with a paved path to the pavilion.

Prior to the addition of the pavilion, the Baraga County Farmers Market was held at the L’Anse Waterfront Park. Despite the beautiful view of the bay, setting up and unloading was difficult for vendors due to the limited and distant angled parking, and weather coming off of the lake often made for windy and chilly conditions.

“Signs and products would be blowing over,” said Joyce Budreau, spokesperson for the Baraga County Farmers Market. “Winds off of Lake Superior would generally come up around 10 or 10:30 every morning.”

The farmers market now takes place a few blocks away at Meadowbrook Park, on Division Street, nestled right in the heart of downtown L’Anse. The park is more protected from winds coming off of the lake, is highly visible to those driving through town and is used specifically for the farmers market. Vendors can back their vehicles right up to their spots to unload, rather than haul their products in from the road. With an additional $25,000 in funding from the Village of L’Anse, dedicated handicap parking was added next to the Meadowbrook Arena, connected to the base of the market by a paved path.

“The farmers market is safer now,” said Budreau. “A lot of people who attend are older citizens, and it's been a great help for people with limited physical abilities.”

The Baraga County Farmers Market is open through the second week of October, taking place on Wednesdays from 3 to 5:30 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. To learn more about the Baraga County Farmers Market, visit their Facebook page. To learn more about grant opportunities at Copper Shores, visit the Grants page. To receive a notification for grant opportunities at Copper Shores, sign up for the free monthly email newsletter.