Re: SBA yanked from Sidney summer market (News, April 27)
I own Carlos Cantina and Grill in Sidney and during my first year of operation in 2010, I was surprised when approximately 15 food vendors were installed right in front of my business. Despite this direct competition, Thursday night markets were my most profitable times of the year.
Last year I made a $10,000 investment to purchase a food cart to join the market. This proved to be a very profitable move. People who purchased from my food cart on Thursday nights returned later in the year to check out my dine-in restaurant. For me, the Thursday night market brought people back to my business.
The question I have is what have the other businesses done to increase their foot traffic on Thursday nights? Are their stores open? (We even changed our dine-in menu to reflect the needs of the Thursday night crowds who want a quick meal as opposed to a dine-in experience.)
It is odd that Sidney council has terminated a contract saying the Sidney Business Association is no longer able run the market when it has been successful for so long. What they are saying is that a Thursday night market, which brings between 4,000 to 5,000 people onto Beacon Avenue, is not effective and businesses on Beacon Avenue cannot find a way to take advantage of this influx of consumers.
There are always two sides to an issue. It is very sad to see that a compromise was not reached. I have been trying to expand my business in Sidney, but I was forced to expand somewhere else and now have two permits to operate food-vending carts – the other is in Victoria.
Victor Manual Sanchez
Sidney