Grafton Twilight Farmers Market to stop holding weekly market at Market Square, Grafton

Despite starting off with a bang, a Grafton farmers market will no longer continue due to “a culmination of many issues” that left the operator with no choice but to hit the pause button. Here’s the latest.

Grafton Twilight Farmers Market. Picture: Facebook.

The Grafton Twilight Farmers Market has been forced to hit pause after it was “smacked” by a culmination of setbacks, despite a promising start.

Clarence Valley councillor Debrah Novak, who also runs the weekly Yamba market, took the reins of the Grafton farmers markets from previous management in 2020.

At the time, the market only had six stalls and took place on the grounds of Christ Church Cathedral.

When Cr Novak took over, she moved the markets to Market Square, made it a twilight – rather than a morning – affair and managed to attract around 30 to 35 regular stallholders.

“It looked amazing,” Cr Novak said.

Daniel, Etta (4), Sarah and Oliver (2) Blackman enjoying the Grafton Twilight Farmers Market in October 2020. Picture: Bill North.

However, since then Cr Novak pointed to “a culmination of many issues” which led the farmers market to announce on Facebook that it would be finishing up on September 7.

“We got smacked by the bushfires, which impacted the farmers, then we got smacked by the pandemic and then we got smacked by the floods,” Cr Novak said.

On the back of floods, Cr Novak also said there became a lot of “anti-social behaviour issues” which impacted the twilight markets.

The number of stallholders was soon reduced down to 12, and when they decided to make the markets a morning event once more, only six of the 12 stallholders could commit.

“So we were back to the beginning – I’d made no ground in two years because I started out with six stallholders,” Cr Novak said.

Debrah Novak said she’s back to where she started when she first took control of the markets.

Since deciding to stop the markets, Cr Novak has held discussions with other venues to see if they can re-open the markets once more and get back to full strength.

She is also committed to hosting a Jacaranda food and art market, taking place on 28 October in Grafton, as well as four Christmas markets in December.

The venues for these markets will soon be confirmed.

Cr Novak said her long-term goal was finding a venue for the market when Clarence Valley Council completes its second stage of the Grafton waterfront precinct redevelopment.

“It will still need to be sustainable for the stall holders, it’s got to be attractive, it has got to be consistent for customers,” she said

“But what is really important about markets is they provide is a sense of community, a safe place to come and meet and greet … a place that people can come to and breathe.”