Downtown Farmer's Market reopens with multiple celebrations (Photos)

On Feb 27, Houston Mayor Annise Parker and the Department of Neighborhoods celebrated several simultaneous events, including

• the re-opening of the lunchtime Farmer's Market in the park behind City Hall with 30 vendors

• the For Good campaign by Neighborhood Centers

• National Strawberry Day with Chef Randy Evans of Haven and Cove Restaurants

• The “Veg Out Challenge”

The Farmer's Market is a weekly event held every Wednesday in the spring and fall. Vendors are local farmers or selling fresh locally grown organic vegetables or local vendors who locally grown vegetables and spices in their menu offerings. The event has made the reflection pond behind City Hall a venue where City Hall employees, downtown employees, and tourists meet for lunch who might never have met elsewhere.

Laura Spangian (left) chair of Dept of Neighborhoods listens as Mayor Parker launches For Good program Feb 27 2013

Photo credit: 

photo by Marc Pembroke

Location: 901 Bagby Street, Houston, TX

29.760185241699 ; -95.369354248047

The For Good campaign was organized by Neighborhood Centers, Inc. and sponsored by Shell/Motiva. The Neighborhood Centers offer a number of community-building programs including Choices in Education (including early Head Start preschool programs), Promise Neighborhood, (a community-building project in the Gulfton area in Southeast Houston sponsored by the US Department of Education, Immigration and Citizenship assistance, Neighborhood Tax Centers, the Promise Credit Union, Sheltering Arms Senior Services, and Public Sector Solutions. The Campaign presented several speakers and recognized “Four. For Good” outstanding community leaders. Mayor Parker also honored the campaign with a proclamation. The campaign invites participants to think of ways they can help improve their communities, and add their suggestions to a large chalkboard. According to the Mayor's Press release, “the For Good” movement mirror's Shell/Motiva's commitment to inspire everyone, everywhere, to build better, stronger, smarter, healthier, and happier communities.

Neighborhood Centers VP Claudia Velasquez explained the campaign in Spanish.

Haven and Cove Restaurants a participant in the Farmer's Market, offered fresh strawberries and lunch items in honor of National Strawberry Day.

Urban Harvest, which organizes local community gardens, sponsors the Farmer's Market. It launched the “Veg Out” challenge in which participants agree to try a new vegetable every day for a month. Participants register without charge to learn of recipes share videos, photos, and ideas, and meet other participants. For information and registration visit www.vegoutwithrfs.org