Recently, I was in Maine on business and had a couple of hours to kill before my flight, so I made my first visit into Downtown Portland. Portland’s downtown was smaller than I had imagined, yet still nicely urban in a comfortable, unpretentious way. There was a solid foundation of well-maintained historic commercial, residential, and civic buildings, interspersed by a few contemporary structures, some blighted properties, and an occasional parking lot. Overall, the downtown area was definitely more intact and pleasant than not, yet it still left an impression that it had seen livelier days. But while some blocks were rather sketchy, there was also clear evidence of building renovations, conversions and investment taking place in the area, and a general feeling that things there were getting better, not worse. Here are a few general street photos, taken at about 11:30 AM on a weekday:


Then, after deciding to explore just a bit farther down Congress Street, I stumbled upon Monument Square, a small, civic plaza surrounded by buildings and featuring a large war memorial statue. From a block away, it didn’t appear as the city’s most engaging urban space, yet as I entered the plaza, I found it to be exactly that. Here’s a shot of Monument Square as seen from across the street and from high above (thanks to GoogleEarth):

The square hosts a small farmers market one day a week, and I was lucky enough to be there on the right day. The presence of the farmers market, consisting of only about a half-dozen or so booths in a rather small area, completely invigorated the area. The several small restaurants that inhabit the ground floor of the adjacent buildings—their outdoor seating areas spilling out onto the square—were buzzing with activity. The square itself was alive with people of all types, from elementary school children on a field trip to see how many different fruits and vegetables they could identify, to seniors citizens, local residents walking their dogs, downtown workers on their lunch hour, skateboarding teens, and a few camera-wielding visitors (like me).



The place was amazing and authentic. It wasn’t canned urbanism, nor was it an elaborate programmed production target-marketed at an upscale demographic. There was no gimmick. It was simply a very modest farmers market held in an intimate urban space, and yet it was tremendous.

So I began thinking… why don’t we have something like this in Denver? Where would the intimate “Monument Square” place be in Denver that could host a small farmers market? Actually, we do have a farmers market now in Downtown. This summer, thanks to the Civic Center Conservancy, a farmers market was regularly held in the center plaza at Civic Center Park. While I applaud the Conservancy’s efforts to bring activity to Civic Center Park, I wouldn’t exactly describe the center of the park as particularly intimate, nor is it bordered by restaurants or retail that can contribute to the vitality.

For several years now, Cherry Creek has hosted a regular farmers market. But, the location? A big parking lot at the corner of a busy intersection. So much for a cozy location or having the synergistic influences of adjacent restaurant patios or retail storefronts.

If I had to pick a place for a small farmers market in Downtown Denver that has similar qualities to Portland’s Monument Square, I’d suggest Writer’s Square, the plaza in front of RTD’s Market Street Station, or Skyline Park. All three of these spaces are generally underutilized, are relatively small in area, and have restaurants or retail nearby. Imagine, in any of these three spaces, a small cluster of vendors selling fresh fruits, vegetables, and flowers a day or two a week during the summer and fall, and how it would contribute to the energy of Downtown Denver.

Sometimes we can over-complicate downtown revitalization. A modest farmers market in the right location or a couple of designated “busker” corners can go a long way in enhancing our Downtown environment.