RFP Delayed to What End
In a surprising development, the anticipated RFP for a new management team for Eastern Market has been held up in the Office of Property Management for over two months. This document was drafted in mid-winter at the behest of OPM by the nationally known public market consulting firm, the Project for Public Spaces, headed by David O’Neil. PPS delivered a draft RFP in a matter of weeks at a cost of $47,000. The Eastern Market Community Advisory Committee acted with equal swiftness on receipt of the draft version, sought public comment and forwarded its recommendations to OPM.

This delay insures that there will not be a new management team at Eastern Market on June 30, the day the contract of Eastern Market Ventures, the current management group, expires. There are two choices: to extend EMV’s contract in some fashion or for OPM to manage the market. Matt Hussman, the liaison for OPM and the de facto manager of the market responded: “I’m going to pass on that,” when queried about both options.

One reason for OPM’s caution in moving forward with the RFP and ending a contractual relationship with EMV may well be a concern that Market House Ventures (MHV) filed a $6 million lawsuit against the city of Annapolis www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bin/read/2008/05_08-08/TOP. The lawsuit according to the Hometown Annapolis newspaper accuses the city of not having the money to fix the building’s flawed air conditioning system and of trying to buy them out of their 10-year, $100,000-per-year lease. Both EMV and MHV are management entities with a mutual parent company, Site Realty of Maryland. In essence, the lawsuit contends that the city of Annapolis failed to perform its part of the lease obligations.

EMV previously suggested (Hill Rag, September 2007) that it might seek legal remedies during last summer’s negotiations that ended with its contract being renewed for one year along with a substantial increase in its management fee from $130,000 to $225,000. Previous contract extensions with EMV had included options for continued management.

Further, EMV’s Bryan Cook has indicated that EMV is interested in submitting a bid when the RFP is made public, despite significant opposition by stakeholders to EMV’s continued presence as market manager. “We are looking for it. We are interested in putting in a proposal for it,” Cook said.

When asked whether EMV will be extended in its contract at the end of June, Cook said, “I am not willing to make anything public yet. It is not anything that I can publicly talk about.” An attempt to reach OPM Director Robin-Eve Jaspers was unsuccessful.

According to Ward 6 Councilmember Tommy Wells’ spokesperson, Linda O’Brien, who is responsible for monitoring constituent concerns about the market, Wells continues to support EMCAC on the need for new management.

Restoration Update
According to OPM’s Hussman, construction on the South Hall roof is nearing completion with the controversial sky lights now being inserted. There remains a dispute as to whether or not there were skylights in the building when it was built by Adolph Cluss in 1873. Roof work had fallen behind schedule, slowed by the wet spring weather. Hussman reports the scaffolding will be removed in June.

The North Hall roof contract has been awarded to Minkoff Construction which did the initial fire abatement work and had been awarded the contract on the South Hall roof. The total scope of work under contract by Minkoff is now over $1 million. Under District law, the contract must be submitted to the DC Council for approval.

The restored windows are currently being placed in the North Hall with similar installation work to follow in the South Hall. This work is also projected to be finished in June.

One problem raised repeatedly at EMCAC meetings by Bill Glasgow, an East Hall vendor, is the soaring temperatures expected in the summer months. Last year the East Hall opened Aug. 25, a day that reached 100 degrees, and for the balance of the summer, the building was unable to handle the crowds and hold a cooler temperature with the interior often remaining in the high 80s. OPM is adding a 25-ton AC unit to the 75 tons that are already part of the cooling system in the hopes of alleviating the overpowering heat of Washington summers.

OPM had approved the construction schedule submitted by Forney Construction, which has been awarded the final stage contract for $8.1 million. South Hall work will proceed in stages: the basement will be excavated with building columns strengthened, then the old floor will be removed and a new one added.

At the same time, the long promised market streetscape work will begin. This means that Seventh Street will be torn up and replaced with a signature pavement more akin to a pedestrian plaza along with carefully chosen lighting and fixtures and other amenities that befit this historical site. This work will begin in late June and proceed in three stages with promised efforts by OPM to restore the market street for weekend use. OPM’s Hussman cautions there will be the inevitable disruptions and inconvenience: “Our goal is to mitigate that as best we can. There will be holes dug and so on.”

At its April meeting, EMCAC supported by a vote of 7-1-1 the closing of Seventh Street and the renewal of the public space permit which was due to expire May 18. 

Spring Business Level
Jerry Mark (Mark’s Greenhouse Spices and Flowers), a longtime farmer’s line vendor, reports that business is “a little better this year” despite the rain and cold on weekends. Mark points to the fact that in the year after the fire “we were down 20 percent.” He concedes there is strong competition from a wide array of businesses but adds that “we have a loyal following,” although he is “not sure we are picking up any new people.”

Bob “Bunk” Knopp (Knopp’s Farm and Greenhouses), in his third year on the farmer’s line and whose family has farmed the Severn, Md., area since the 1890s, says: “Sales are down 15 percent. There have not been as many people. In other years the aisles would be packed. But I am hopeful.”

Angie Brunson (Blue Iris Flowers), located in the East Hall and farmer’s line, reports that business continues to be off. “Weekdays are terrible. There are no customers. Just ask the meat people.” Brunson says that “weekends are great, but that the businesses in the East Hall cannot survive unless weekdays grow stronger. “We need to advertise,” she says.

One proposal the East Hall merchants have rejected in the past is for later hours during the week to accommodate the fast-paced schedules of the surrounding community. The newly opened Harris Teeter and its projected $750,000 weekly sales add ever more fierce competition for consumer dollars. Harris Teeter offers a multitude of choices with one stop shopping: quality produce, fresh seafood and meats, and a very large assortment of gourmet cheeses; a wide offering of beers and upscale wines; a Rite Aide drug store in-house; prepared deli-style meals of salads and foods for take home; and the coup de grace of ample parking. Harris Teeter is making a pitch for the very neighborhood customer the market has felt to be its own.

Brunson gives credence to the threat of Harris Teeter, adding: “I checked it out, and picked up dinner. After working all day, I am not going to cook. “

Market Day
Market Day is a Hill tradition that began 45 years ago as a way for its sponsor, Friendship House (www.friendshiphouse.net), to thank all the merchants at the Eastern Market who supported its services. This year’s event was held May 4 with closed streets providing a festival setting.

According to Nicole Brown, vice president for operations, this year’s Market Day was not a fundraising success. Brown estimates that between 20,000-25,000 people attended on a day with the weather fully cooperating. There were 30 food vendors displaying a wide array of barbecue (most of it North Carolina) as well as Asian and Jamaican samplings. An equal number of stalls were filled with merchandise reflecting the diversity of the vendors. There were two stages each featuring a band or an act for seven hours.

Brown calculates that Market Day took in revenue of close to $30,000, which allowed it to break even. According to Brown, most of the expenses are incurred in being in compliance with District regulations as well as numerous fees paid to make sure liability and other District requirements are met.