Some 30 people attended the meeting, mostly because of the farmer's market issue, which is a proposal by Discover Downtown Middlesboro for use of property owned by Jeff and Johanna Bowling at 2005 Cumberland Ave. Council's approval was needed for the project to proceed, and it was granted - although Councilmen Hank Barnes and Gary Mills dissented. Barnes said he did not have enough information to vote for the issue, and Mills still had questions about whether the participating vendors would be limited to farmers and whether they would be required to pay the same vendor licensing fees as other businesses in town.
The farmer's market was first proposed Feb. 6, at which time council decided to waive the individual vendor fees if Discover Downtown Middlesboro would pay a one-time $50 fee that would cover all participants, and approved the request unanimously.
However, the next day, City Code Enforcement Officer J.C. Meredith, who originally suggested the waiver, said he had determined that, in fact, the law says “every single merchant doing business in the city for profit must buy a license to support that entity.” That would mean, as Meredith explained, that each member of the market would have to pay the $50 minimum fee to do business initially, with the annual renewal cost being $50 or 2 percent of the net profit, whichever is larger.
Some potential vendors at the market argued at that meeting that the $50 fee would cut too deeply into some vendors' profits.
On Tuesday night, Bo Green, who is coordinating the project with Discover Downtown Middlesboro, said, “The idea is not to hurt anybody's business. It's just to get foot traffic back in the downtown area.” Green said that the vendors would come not only from Bell County but from the tri-county region, which also includes Lee County, Va., and Claiborne County, Tenn.
Councilman Rob Lincks said further examination of city laws would allow that Bell County farmers participating in the market would not have to pay anything if the crops - fruits and vegetables - being sold were grown in the county. Other farmers in the tri-county region could pay as little as $5 a day, if they only participate a few times during the market season (roughly June to October) or $50 if they choose to participate the whole season.
David Sanford, whose father-in-law is Dewey England, owner of Laymon Fruit and Produce on North 11th Street, asked if the market would be for all peddlers or strictly a farmer's market. Lincks replied that limiting the products sold to produce would technically make it a peddler's market but one that is limited to farm produce.
Sanford pointed out that many communities, such as Dallas, Texas, have lengthy legal documents specifically outlining the rules for operations of such markets, and that so far, no such rules of operation had been put forward. Green and Jason Brashear, also of Discover Downtown Middlesboro, both said that such rules are in the planning stage and would be in place by the time the market starts operations.
Sanford said he would prefer that the rules be presented before the market gets under way because he didn't want to see “another ramshackle flea market in downtown Middlesboro.”
“You're affecting this city and future generations to come,” Sanford said and urged the planners to “put some bylaws down.”
“This is something we're working toward,” Green said.
Bell County Tourism Commission Executive Director Judy Barton said the county extension office would be providing a list of more than 300 produce growers in Bell County, and that these farmers would be the ones invited to participate.
“We just want a little foot traffic, not a document,” Barton said.
Several people raised questions about how the market would be regulated, in terms of licensed participants and products sold.
Audience member Bill Smith asked, “Could this have just as easily been an arts and crafts market rather than a farmer's market?”
“Could any peddler set up in town here?” asked Amy Sanford, another audience member.
“We can make guidelines that says its fruits and vegetables only,” Green said.
“What's to stop anybody from having a produce yard sale in their yard?” asked audience member Billy Ray Jackson.
“Let's say this once and for all - your farmer's market is not interested in rag dolls and used radios,” said Councilman Larry Thacker. “That place down there will not become a flea market. It's up to us to see to it.”
After Councilwoman Evelyn Farmer called for a council vote on the issue, council cast its 7-2 vote on the issue. Following the vote, Councilman Everett “Mammaw” Gulley said that council had done its part in approving the lease agreement - the rest of the details needed to be worked out by the planners and the participating farmers.
In other business, council:
Heard a complaint by audience member Jay Turner about a Texas Hold'em poker tournament being advertised in the Pineville Sun newspaper and subsequent concerns about gambling operations of all kinds presently and potentially operating in Middlesboro. Councilwoman Evelyn Farmer called for the city to invited “someone from the state to come down and address the bingo issue.” At the Feb. 6 council meeting, a representative of Bonanza Bingo discussed charitable poker operations in the city, after which council members said the presentation raised as many questions as it answered.
Accepted, without comment, the monthly reports of the police and fire departments.
Approved payment, without comment, of the monthly bills.
Heard a report by Councilman Randy Ball that some 40 city street signs had been reported stolen and were in need of replacement. Ball called on Councilman Thacker and the newly-formed historic downtown area neighborhood watch group “to get to work quickly and prevent this. It's not a big crime, just an aggravation crime.”
Council also opened several bids for new police cruisers, which were referred to the safety committee for review and recommendations. The bids included:
One bid, for $21,307.45, from Cumberland Ford Motors Inc., 1518 Cumberland Ave., Middlesboro.
Three bids, for $20,048, $22,916 and $20,748, from Paul Miller Ford of Knoxville, Tenn.
One bid, for $23,115, from Countryside Motors of Lawrenceburg.
One bid, for $33,416.67 from JTE Epps Motors, 1935 U.S. Highway 25E, Middlesboro.
One bid, for $23,004 from Morristown Ford of Morristown, Tenn.
Three bids, for $26,699.49, $32,699.48, and $22,149.66, from Lee Motors, LLC., of Pineville.
James-Clifton Spires is Senior Staff Writer at the Daily News. He can be reached via e-mail at jcspires@middlesborodailynews.com.
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