Street Market Report - March 10, 2013

It was a cloudy day, but not cold. The weather reports for the Sunday were initially favourable, but turned foggy as the day approached. Light rain dotted the market at about 3pm, and only helped to clear the vendors out as the end of the day came upon us. A few incidents were worth mentioning, some fights, and some vendor disagreements. These will be described below. 

Fund Raising Report

1) 50/50 Raffle: $52.27

2) Tables/Tents: $90.00

3) Coffee/Juice: $63.90

Profits were only $29.38 for the week due to the purchase of 3 more small costco tables (we now have 9 of them, in addition to the 15 or so larger tables that we bought second hand)

Total now in petty cash = $1,250.02

Vendor count: 152 vendors @ 1pm

General Report

Tim S. had to be sent home. He was working as a guard.

The weather was tolerable. Light rain in the afternoon with clouds most of the day. No sun.

Patricia and her friend were filming during the day, this caused a little concern among some of the vendors, but Richard handled the situation quite well. 

We had an arrest early on in the day, before we closed the street. Two police cars pulled up and were looking for someone in particular. They handcuffed a young woman and questioned her for quite some time. I don't believe we ever found out whether she was charged or what she was charged with. 

There were a number of complaints from vendors about the wall of tarps on the east side of Carrall St., so we tried a day without it. The bike path was quite clear most of the day, so we may try just having the row of tents, and no wall. If we get a complaint, we can always put the tarps back up. 

Early in the day, one of our vendors shoved an old native man that was drinking. It was too forceful, and not necessary. This vendor will be talked to and warned that this behaviour is not allowed at the market. 

There was a big fight at the end of the day, and Teresa handled the event fine without involving the police.

One interesting aspect of the day was that the side walk on Hastings from Carrall St. to Columbia was completely clear for most of the morning. This highlights the interplay between the street market and the side walk vendors and shows that the market can be viewed as a positive option for the hundreds of DTES residents that need just need a place to sell their belongings. 

I am still suffering financially due to the vandalism that occurred against me. A rock was thrown through my car window - in the VANDU parking lot - while I was performing my duties as street market coordinator, using VANDU as a meeting place. VANDU has not yet offered to pay for the damage, and, seeing as I am on welfare and performing these duties for free, it is quite a large financial burden and has impacted my psychology significantly. The window cost me almost $400 to fix. I am beginning to understand why there are no good people left that are trying to improve this neighbourhood. I am beginning to understand why everyone is always fighting each other instead of trying to build anything positive. 

Best item at the market was a wifi-controlled helicopter. See pictures below.