Based on a quick look at this morning's news, it seems as though we are starting to see some convergence on a temporary location for the inside vendors. In this article in the DC Examiner, for example:
City leaders have said they hope to keep merchants within a few blocks’ radius of the market’s current location off Seventh Street in Southeast. Wells, D-Ward 6, said the merchants could be allowed to move to Hine Junior High, located a block away, if it is closed at the end of the academic year under a proposed District public school consolidation plan.
“Our commitment is to be no further than two or three blocks [from Eastern Market],†Wells said. “We are going to see how creative we can be.â€
Another article (Norton, Wynn, Oberstar Tour Eastern Market) makes mention of similar ideas:
“The inside vendors, the ones that can set up, we'll have them setting up here on Seventh Street. Seventh street will be closed for the entire weekend,†said D.C. City Administrator Dan Tangherlini.
Many other vendors will be temporarily located in the parking lot of Hine Junior High School across the street from Eastern Market.
“Hine would be wonderful. It would help the merchants. It would help all the vendors. It would keep us all in one family,†said Bill Glasgow of Union Meat Company.
Other news links:
- There's a great story about the fire and rebuilding on the National Report page of the New York Times today; the article notes that the walls officially appear to have suffered no structural damage, which might explain why the chain link fences are currently coming down from around the Market. (The article comes complete with a great picture of Ray Bowers, who Jason spoke with this morning and who will be set up somewhere outside the Market this weekend selling a more limited supply of cheese and dairy!)
- The Washington Post has two neat Market-related articles in today's edition, one about how firefighters found a wallet on the roof of the Market which had been stolen six weeks ago -- and was essentially intact -- and the other details the amazing work put in by the DC firefighters on both the Market and the Georgetown Library blazes.
- NBC4 had a video segment yesterday evening showing Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton touring the inside of the South Building with a few other Congressional representatives; the segment also mentions that 7th Street SE will be closed in front of the Market all weekend so that the inside merchants can set up shop outside. That's great news indeed.