Jennifer McIntosh, Ottawa East News
July 13, 2017
Council approved the inaugural board of directors for the ByWard and Parkdale markets on July 12.
The city began working on a visioning exercise to shake up the management structure and the look of the two city-run markets in 2012, in order to make them more competitive.
Aside from a new look, unveiled at ByWard earlier this summer, the shakeup also includes bylaw amendments to allow for microprocessors like coffee roasters, cheese-makers and jam producers. Smaller scale vendors will also be able to share stands.
But arguably the biggest change is a arms-length board of directors dubbed the municipal services corporation.
The idea is to lose some of the bureaucratic nature of the current market structure and tap some of the city’s entrepreneurial expertise.
Council approved the nine members following a review of more than 75 applications by a committee led by Couns. Mathieu Fleury and Jeff Leiper, as well as Mayor Jim Watson.
“I’m pleased that the recruitment of this board inspired such widespread interest among residents, who showed an inspiring level of support for the markets revitalization project,” Watson wrote in a press release. “The inaugural members of the board have impressive credentials and show exemplary levels of community involvement. Together, they embody the collective qualities to develop a clear, innovative vision and launch a successful new management model for the ByWard and Parkdale markets.