After one last hurrah on a sun-splashed Sunday afternoon, vendors at the Auburn International Farmers Market crated the veggies, iced the seafood, packed up the pasta, folded their stands and left the Auburn Transit Plaza for the season.

But don’t worry, they’ll be back in the spring.

Auburn City Councilman Bill Peloza, the driving force behind the market, summed up his feelings about its inaugural season.

“It’s been a dream come true,” said Peloza. “We needed downtown revitalization, and we have it. It’s been a very successful 16 weeks.”

No arguments from Dao Lee, owner of Dao Lee Gardens of Duvall.

“It’s been good,” Lee said as she handed a customer a bouquet of chrysanthemums and daisies. “I’ll be back next year.”

Erin Dempster said business was brisk at the Mosby Brothers Farms stand where she worked, but added that it had slowed down in recent weeks.

“We still do a pretty good business,” she said. “Beets and corn are our big sellers and usually green beans, but not so much today. We’re the only people with a lot of our items here, like potatoes, lettuce, celery, cabbage, the only ones that have those, so we get a lot of thanks for that.”

Market devotees Jim Ferrell and his wife, Chris, are sad to see it all go away for the season. They have tried to make it to the plaza every Sunday after church and not just for the goodies.

“We don’t just come here for the wonderful fresh fruit, or the oysters, we come for the friends,” said Jim Ferrell, arms cradling skinny packages from Pappardelle’s Pasta. This is a kind of time out where you can sit and gossip with people. It’s a wonderful opportunity.”

A sign above a nearby stand advertised “Clams! Harvested Today!” Five doomed crabs chilled out on crushed ice in a cooler below.

“The thing about Quilbay Seafood there is the fact that I grow my own, and this stuff is as good as mine or better,” Ferrell said.”

“People are talking about how excited they are to be back for next year’s season, and they haven’t had the last day yet, that’s pretty cool,” said Mayor Pete Lewis.

Len Elliot, one of 13 people who volunteered their Sundays to set things up and take them down, said it has worked out well.

“It looks like we are maintaining most of the vendors. We have a good variety of produce and flowers, fruits and vegetables, and also some quality crafts. I would like to see some more prepared food next year,” Elliot said.

“We have been successful in part because of all the volunteers,” Peloza said. “They’ve taken every Sunday for 16 weeks, given up their own time to come out and volunteer. As for next year, I think that we have reached our pinnacle as far as market layout for farmers. I don’t see where we can really improve on the layout for next year. I mean, this is the ultimate layout.”

Contact Auburn Reporter News reporter Robert Whale at rwhale@auburn-reporter.com or 253-833-0218, ext. 5052.

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