Urban farmer’s markets have an interesting dilemma that rural markets often don’t. On one hand, they benefit from the large population base, the density and the clear need by many city dwellers for fresh, healthy foods. On the other, they suffer from limited space, higher expenses, parking nightmares and ill equipped food selling regulations. Although space limitations and higher expenses are products of urban life that will not disappear, relief from complicated regulations may have a simple answer: kitchen incubators.

Food seller regulations are notorious and the root for more than a few business failures. They also prevent many would be food entrepreneurs from ever marketing their products. For example, a food entrepreneur in Atlanta has to get licensed through the Georgia Department of Agriculture for food processing or the Fulton County Health and Wellness Division for catering. This alone can be a confusing difference when you are selling food at a market that can be taken home or eaten at a nearby bench.

The Arizona legislature is considering making it a crime to seek day labor work on a public street or nearby area. House Bill 2412 would make it a misdemeanor for anyone to be found "Standing or remaining on any public highway or public street or any property adjacent to any public highway or public street and disrupting vehicle or pedestrian traffic for the purpose of soliciting day labor employment." The Arizona House of Representatives passed the bill in March and sent it to the Arizona Senate. That body has thus far failed to pass it, but last week granted a motion to reconsider the bill.

The Senate should be mindful of the First Amendment. Seeking day labor work is communicative activity. Laws restricting it implicate the First Amendment. Legal challenges have been brought against a number of similar ordinances, including a few on behalf of day laborers. First amendment law is famously complex, and the validity of any particular restriction on expressive activity turns on a whole host of issues, such as whether the solicitation takes place in a “public forum,” and whether the ordinance is content neutral, is narrowly tailored to achieve a significant government purpose, and allows alternative channels of communication. The outcome of individual cases is difficult to predict.

We often hear of big box stores (i.e. Wal-Mart’s, Kmart’s, Targets, Home Depot… etc) entering a community and pushing mom and pop businesses out. But I bet most of you have not heard about mom and pop businesses reclaiming defunct big box stores and re-creating diverse marketplaces. Although it gets very little press there are examples of this happening from California to Georgia and I’m sure everywhere in between.
Enterprising property owners have created homegrown (and profitable) marketplaces out of the once single-use buildings by installing temporary walls to subdivide the massive floor spaces into small “stalls” (See Image). The subdivided spaces are rented to small businesses, which benefit from short term, affordable leases that include electricity and nearby bathroom facilities. Renting a booth with a short term lease not only reduces start-up capital needs for the entrepreneur, but also allows for a more flexible schedule and a second job. This new use might not be glamorous but it is a big contribution to a community. Not only are these new marketplaces recycling under-utilized buildings they are reducing the cost and complexity for new entrepreneurs to enter the market and improving their odds of survival when they do. If we consider it that way, these big box conversions sound a lot like small business incubators… pretty glamorous after all.

Gregg and I would like to welcome Miguel Granier to OPENAIR.ORG. Miguel has a MA in Urban Planning from Georgia Tech.

He is currently a Project Manager for Market Street Services in Atlanta. His experience is extensive, he was the Consulting Director of Operations at Appalachian Community Enterprises (ACE), a North Georgia based microfinance organization. Previously, as a Loan Consultant for ACCION New York, he helped secure loans for small business owners and entrepreneurs. He has also conducted several public seminars on managing credit and starting small businesses.

He will be blogging about markets, particularly indoor markets as well as street vendors in Atlanta and the Southeast. We hope he will help with questions on micro-credit, real estate, finance and insurance. We’re excited to add him to the team!