Fourth farmers market opens

NORTHWEST GLENDALE — The Kenneth Village Farmers Market kicked off Friday afternoon, following a swirl of controversy and opposition from area businesses who argued the weekly event might be bad for business.

The Kenneth Village Meat Market, a store on Kenneth Road that sells organic produce and other groceries, was previously the most vocal opponent to the farmers market, with owner Sarkis Militonyan arguing that a weekly collection of produce stalls might poach his business.

But Militonyan changed his tone dramatically Friday. After weeks of protests to City Clerk Ardy Kassakhian and other officials who oversaw the permitting process for the event, Militonyan signed a petition to continue the farmers market beyond the parameters of its current four-event permit, said Marriane Atkinson, owner of Ivy’s Flower Station and the main organizer of the market.

Militonyan shifted his stance after visiting the market and speaking with Atkinson, she said.

“We really had a heart-to-heart about what he was concerned about,” she said. “What I told him is ‘I’m the florist. I sell flowers and plants. There’s an orchid man here,’” she said, pointing to a stall selling orchids and explaining that although stalls may sell similar items on Friday afternoons, they would bring more business to the one-block stretch of stores that has struggled during the recession.

Militonyan was not available for comment, but store Manager Seta Tarakchian, speaking on his behalf, confirmed that he had changed his stance.

“It’s very nice to see people around and there’s a lot of people out here that we’ve never seen before,” she said of the market. “It’s good for the community. Why not?”

The Kenneth Village Merchants Assn. also supports the market, even though some store owners were previously opposed to it, said Rene Karapedian, president of the group.

The market is paid for and operated by Scholastic Gardens, a nonprofit that runs four other farmers markets, including one in Toluca Lake.

The organization gives proceeds to local schools to support community gardens and campaigns promoting healthy eating habits, said Tanja Castle, who runs business operation for the group.

Although the Kenneth Village Farmers Market is the fourth such weekly event in the area, other business organizations, which use the markets to attract more consumers to their stores, were not opposed to it.