January 31, 2020
Dear Friend of Eastern Market,
If you care about the future of Eastern Market, it is imperative that you take a short survey that is part of developing Eastern Market’s Strategic Plan. This survey can be found at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/eastern-market-survey. The closing date to complete this survey is February 14, 2020.
Our beloved iconic fresh food market is at a cross roads. Mismanagement by the DC Government, which should not be in the fresh food management business, has led to this crisis point. If the DC government does not transfer management to a professional fresh food market management company as required by its own law, the Market, we know and love, will cease to exist. Maybe a food court á la Union Market is in our future if we do not take action now to preserve the Market’s historic role.
In September 2019 The District government contracted with architrave p. c., a Capitol Hill firm, to perform a study of the Market and to make recommendations for the way forward. This survey is part of their fact gathering phase for their study in order to gauge the present and future use of the Market. We encourage you to go to their Eastern Market Strategic Plan web site at https://www.easternmarketplan.org, and sign up for future notices about public meetings, surveys, and progress reports. Become involved! Have a say in the future of Eastern Market!
While you may not have heard much about the Eastern Market Preservation and Development Corporation (EMPDC) since we were reconstituted the Spring of 2018, you can rest assured that we have been very busy behind the scenes. We have met with most of the City Council members and key City government officials to discuss our concerns about market management and the City’s turning a blind eye to enforcing its own Eastern Market law and regulations. We have attended many Eastern Market Citizen Advisory Committee (EMCAC) meetings to raise important issues regarding the Market’s operation and the city’s lack of sufficient promotion of the Market. We applied for the legislatively-mandated seat for the EMPDC on the EMCAC and were rejected for the flimsiest of reasons. We will not let that stop us from continuing to be a vocal supporter for saving the Eastern Market!
We are expanding our board and will continue to remain actively involved in the strategic planning process. We would welcome your participation if you wish to become more actively involved. Please contact us at 202-997-9323, or via e-Mail at info@empreservation.org ,or visit our web site at http://empreservation.org. We look forward to working with you in order to save Eastern Market!
Sincerely,
Ellen Opper-Weiner, President
Eastern Market Preservation and Development Corporation (EMPDC)