Don't miss a screening of

Hosted by the UVa Food Collaborative, Chipotle Mexican Grill, the Department of Politics, and Urban and Environmental Planning Department, the film kicks off the Virginia portion of a nationwide Young Farmer Screening Series.

The film will be followed by a panel featuring Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms, who stars in the documentary, Chris Ely, co-founder of the Applegate Organic & Natural Meats company, and director Graham Meriwether.

The documentary will explore America's industrial meat system and economy through the eyes of farmers and highlights the creation of a sustainable network of farmers and advocates who are changing the way we think of meat production.  Chipotle Mexican Grill, the sponsor of American Meat screening tour, will offer burritos  - both vegetarian and with Polyface Farms pork.

When: Monday, December 3 at 6pm
Where: Newcomb Hall Theater
FREE!
RSVP here

It may be hibernating season, but we at Market Central have been busy advocating for the future and permanent home of the Charlottesville City Market. And what progress!
Farmers market experts, Market Ventures Inc., has been hired, and tasked with the development of a plan for a market district that will keep the market downtown as the focal point of a downtown development. A Steering Committee made up of market stakeholders will be guiding the process, and will be meeting soon with the consultant.  Members of the steering committee were recently named: 

Satyendra Huja - Mayor and City Council member
TBD - City Council member
Dave Fafara - member of the 2011 City Market Task Force
Cheri Lewis - member of the 2011 City Market Task Force
Michael Clark - City Market Vendor
Michael Anello - City Market Vendor
Brevy Cannon - Charlottesville Market District Alliance representative
Cecile Gorman - member of Market Central
Bob Stroh - At-large member of the business community
Fabian Kuttner - developer and property owner
Stacy Miller - member of the Farmers Market Coalition

The Committee is expected to meet with the consultants 2 or 3 times over the next 3 to 5 months. The public will be able to weigh in during public comment sessions - Market Central will announce dates and meeting places as soon as they are scheduled.

In the meantime, check out Market Central's new information timeline, a guide that illustrates the history of our advocacy for a permanent home.

• The current site is available for development. The City owns the lot, and the plan for years has been to try to sell it to developers to maximize the return on this piece of property.  There are no imminent plans for building/development - though several years ago, a deal was actually in the works, but fell through.

• The city moved the market to the current location (Water Street lot) in 1993 - "temporarily" - for a year until they found a permanent site.

To continue reading the timeline, click here.  We've mapped out twenty years of market history in Chapters 1, 2 and 3.

We'd love to have your school, church, or community choir come to the Holiday Market and share some seasonal singing!  Every Saturday in December, from 10 am to 1 pm -- 

sign up for a 30 minute slot here.