OCEAN CITY – A new farmers market will debut at Trimper’s Rides this week.
Beginning this Friday, Trimper’s Rides will debut its weekly Trimper’s Greenmarket.
From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. each Friday, the Greenmarket will provide a platform for local farmers to sell their goods to the public and the city’s restaurants.
Trimper’s Rides President Antoinette Bruno said the market will be an opportunity to support local vendors and buy fresh produce.
“I feel pretty strongly that the Greenmarket can be a center for community in our city,” she said. “With all that’s going on with COVID-19 and with the delayed opening of the city and the amusement park, we thought what better activity to bring locals and visitors alike together.”
Bruno said six vendors – Goat Plum Tree Farm, Fresh Harvest Hydroponics, Cropper’s Farm, Cross Farms, Blades Orchard and Another Good Cookie – are expected to participate in the first Greenmarket event this Friday. She noted that several more vendors will join as the season continues.
“We talked to 30 vendors that will join us over the course of the summer, but a lot of people just don’t have a lot of produce to sell yet …,” she said. “I think the market will build as the season gets going.”
The Greenmarket will take place at Trimper’s Rides each Friday through Nov. 27. In addition to vendors, the farmers market will feature live music and cooking demonstrations from Ocean City’s local chefs. Singer Marcella Peters will perform at Friday’s inaugural Greenmarket event.
“You crawl before you walk,” Bruno said. “But we are investing in this market and want it to be a success.”
Bruno said she is excited to bring a farmers market to downtown Ocean City. She explained that as visitors stock up on food for their vacation, and as restaurants plan their weekly menus, they will be able to take advantage of all the items the Greenmarket has to offer.
“We’ve submitted a proposal to the town of Ocean City to take over South 1st Street,” she said. “As the market grows in size, we hope to take over the whole street.”
The Greenmarket is the first of many community events coming to the park this summer, Bruno said. Trimper’s Rides will also introduce an “In the Park” series that includes “Art in the Park,” “Dine in the Park,” and “Star in the Park.”
Trimper’s will partner with the Art League of Ocean City to display local artwork and host an art competition as part of its “Art in the Park” event. Officials are also planning a ticketed event later this year to showcase local culinary talent as part of its “Dine in the Park” event. Lastly, the amusement park will host a Sister City Concert Series, which will feature a lineup of up-and-coming bands from the Baltimore region.
“Baltimore has one of the top indie scenes in the country, and we are going to take advantage of that,” she said.
Bruno said each series event will be scheduled as restrictions related to the pandemic are lifted and the amusement park reopens. Until then, she encouraged people to support the local vendors and visit the Greenmarket on Fridays.
Bruno added that the public will also have an opportunity to tour the park during the Greenmarket and view the improvements that are being made to the facility.
“We’ve been restoring the park since the beginning of March,” she said. “We’ve repaved the park, added 11 new rides, repainted and scrubbed the carousel building and restored our antique children’s rides. Our park is shining.”
For more information on Trimper’s Greenmarket, visit www.trimperrides.com.
