Wheaton's French market will make temporary move downtown
The final phase of a massive streetscape project in downtown Wheaton will uproot the city's French market for its 2021 season.
The open-air market will relocate in April to Reber Street to accommodate construction during the last stage of downtown revitalization efforts.
The temporary move will pave the way for several permanent changes planned for the French market, a downtown staple for more than 20 years.
The city council recently approved the relocation under an amendment to the original license agreement with the market operator, Bensidoun USA.
And on Monday, city council members approved a new agreement that calls for Bensidoun paying a $20,000 annual fee over a five-year term starting in April 2022.
The $20,000 fee will go toward construction of a canopy structure designed to provide some shelter and further distinguish the French market when it returns to its traditional venue in a municipal parking lot in the heart of downtown.
City tax increment financing funds will cover the rest of the canopy's cost, currently estimated at roughly $600,000.
In a TIF district, as redevelopment boosts property values, the extra tax revenue that otherwise would go to taxing bodies such as schools and parks can be used to pay for improvements to the area.
The canopy construction will fall within the scope of the final phase of streetscape improvements. City planners have long sought to transform parking lot No. 3 on the north side of Liberty Drive, between Main and Cross streets, into "the best open-air market in the area," City Manager Mike Dzugan said.
"With this canopy, with the streetscape effort and the redoing of that lot ... I think we've followed that vision and got finally to the end," he told council members.
Bensidoun also will adjust the market's operating hours in 2022 to give the city more flexibility for hosting other weekend events in parking lot No. 3.
The new license requires the operator to set up and maintain the market between 7 p.m. on Fridays and 6 p.m. on Saturdays next year, instead of three hours later. Commercial sales by vendors also will end no later than 4 p.m. on Saturdays.
The city also has the option of giving Bensidoun 10-day notice to request the operator end sales at 2 p.m. on a Saturday and to have vendors vacate the Liberty Drive space by 4 p.m. in preparation for an event that evening.
A scaled-back version of the market reopened last May with pandemic-related restrictions on occupancy levels.
This spring, the market plans to set up shop slightly to the east to Reber Street between Liberty and Willow Avenue.