Many exciting things are happening in the City of College Park!

This edition of the College Park Business Beat highlights several of the new restaurants, stores, and events that are coming to College Park, Maryland.

While the Downtown College Park Farmers Market has been open for a few weeks this season, we’re ready to showcase the revamped market to the world. To celebrate, a Grand Opening will take place this coming Sunday, May 5th featuring the following events to make for an entertaining day:

• 11:00 am – Cooking demo with Ferhat Yalcin, owner of College Park’s own Fishnet
  
• 12:00 pm – Mocktails with Gina Chersevani, owner of Buffalo & Bergen
• 1:00 pm – Nutrition expert Katherine Tallmadge
• All day – Kids’ corner featuring a face painter, balloon animals, and oversized board games

The market will be open during its usual time from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm in the City Hall parking lot. Free parking is available throughout Downtown on Sundays, including the parking garage off Knox Road.

The City of College Park, in partnership with the Downtown College Park Management Authority, is pleased to announce the relaunch of the Downtown College Park Farmers Market (DCPFM) for the 2013 season. Please join us as the market reopens weekly beginning Sunday, April 14^th followed by a Grand Opening on Sunday, May 5^th as more produce becomes available.  The market operates in the City Hall parking lot from 10:00am – 2:00pm. Free parking is available throughout Downtown on Sundays, including the parking garage off Knox Road.

In its third year of operation, the market is now under new management and will offer producer-only fruits and vegetables, while no longer allowing items purchased wholesale. The management team is currently recruiting vendors to provide a diverse set of products that will enable the DCPFM to become a premier market in the region.

Currently approved vendors include Bear’s Honeypot, Bill’s Backyard BBQ, Flower of the Forest Farm, Grandma Vera’s Bakery, Heavenly Created Desserts, Miller Farms, Pleitez Produce, and Smith Meadows. For more information on these vendors please visit the market’s page. Several other vendors are currently being considered, so we expect this list to grow as the season progresses.

The management team has currently scheduled events for both the season opening and Grand Opening dates:

• April 14^th – Farmers Market reopens for 2013 season
  • Cooking demo with Ferhat Yalcin, owner of College Park’s own Fishnet restaurant

• May 5th – Grand Opening event
  • Cooking demo with Ferhat Yalcin, owner of College Park’s own Fishnet restaurant
  • Non-alcoholic cocktail demo with Gina Chersevani, owner of Buffalo & Bergen
  • Discussion with nutritionist Katherine Tallmadge