Greetings! We are gearing up for the Downtown Bloomington Farmers' Market 2011 season and are ready to start accepting applications from farmers and prepared food vendors. You should have already received an invitation to our pre-season meeting--so we are hoping to see you there.
As a reminder, the pre-season meeting is scheduled for March 5 from 10:30 a.m. until noon at the McLean County Museum of History, located at 200 North Main Street. This meeting will provide an opportunity for you to meet other prospective vendors, ask questions, and get additional information about the Downtown Bloomington Farmers' Market.
Again this year, we are requesting that vendor applications be submitted electronically. This approach saves paper and postage, and helps us avoid errors resulting when we have to re-enter vendor information into our records.
The Market will open on May 14 and will continue on Saturday mornings through October 29. Again this year, we will sponsor a Thanksgiving Market on the weekend before Thanksgiving--November 19--at the U. S. Cellular Coliseum in downtown Bloomington from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. Vendors participating in the regular season will have an opportunity to participate in this popular holiday market on a "space available" basis.
Booth fees are remaining at $250 per space for the regular season, and there will be no charge to full-season vendors for participating in the Thanksgiving Market this year. All fees are invested directly into market operations and promotions--and costs are kept to a minimum through the use of volunteers and donation of administrative support from Downtown Bloomington Association.
Please note that vendors are responsible for adhering to government regulations, including State Sales Tax and Health Department requirements. If you have any questions about food handling regulations or products that can be sold at the Farmers' Market, please call the McLean County Health Department at 309-888-5450. If a permit is required, the Health Department will make arrangements for an inspection on the first date you attend the Market. Health Department and other officials may visit the Market periodically to assure compliance with regulations.
We are unable to consider applications without a valid Illinois Tax ID number. If you do not currently have an Illinois tax identification number, you can apply online through the Illinois Business Gateway. After you register, you will be assigned a tax ID in approximately 24 hours. You can then log back into the Illinois Business Gateway to retrieve your ID number.
Here is what we need in order to consider your application:
Approved applicants will receive their booth assignments by April 15. If you have questions about the Market, please email Elaine Sebald at bloomington_farmersmarket@yahoo.com or call Downtown Bloomington Association at 309-829-9599.
We are looking forward to your participation in the 2010 Downtown Bloomington Farmers' Market and hope to see you at our pre-season meeting on March 5.
DOWNTOWN BLOOMINGTON FARMERS' MARKET |
