
By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — About five dozen downtown business owners are pushing for City Council to reject a request for Rockford City Market to operate on an expanded footprint again this year.
They want the weekly market to return to the pre-pandemic footprint that did not close State, Madison and Market streets. The City Council’s Code and Regulation Committee is scheduled to consider the proposal tonight, a first step before it would need majority City Council approval.
There were 64 business owners that signed on to a petition to be presented to City Council. They said restricted access to their businesses for 20 consecutive Fridays have led to a loss of revenue.
“Fridays are crucial days for profitability for any retail or restaurant business,” the petition reads. “Closing our streets at noon for twenty summer Fridays is too great a burden to bear. The emptiness that prevails is detrimental to businesses on both sides of the river.”
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Other concerns raised involve access to deliveries and inconvenience for elderly or disabled patients unable to reach medical appointments. They also said packs of ATVs have motored through the empty streets after market hours.
The list has downtown retailers and restaurants, including some that are also City Market vendors or Indoor City Market tenants.
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City Market is scheduled to kick of its season May 20. It runs from 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Fridays until Sept. 30, with hours shifting to 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. after Labor Day.
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It has taken place under the City Market pavilion and on Water Street between East State and Jefferson streets and between Water Street and railroad tracks in previous years. The expanded footprint includes closures at State and First streets west across the State Street bridge to Wyman Street and Madison Street from Walnut Street to Lafayette Avenue.
We’ll follow up with more on this story tonight. Read the latest information after the City Council committee meeting here.
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story had incorrect hours for Rockford City Market. It runs 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Fridays from May 20 until Labor Day and 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Fridays after Labor Day until Sept. 30.
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter at @KevinMHaas.