By David Harry
Staff Writer

From pastures in Buckfield and kitchens in South Portland to a park near the Casco Bay Bridge, the South Portland Farmers Market is set to become a reality.
The market in Thomas Knight Park on Waterman Drive will be a weekly source for fruits, vegetables, meats, baked goods and seafood. It will open at 3 p.m. July 14.
It also may be the boost Knightville needs to again make it a destination spot, said local businessman Bob O’Brien.
O’Brien said he hopes the market, open until 7 p.m. each Thursday, will attract visitors and show them what else is offered along Ocean Street, Waterman Drive and cross streets – all quieter since the Casco Bay Bridge in 1997 replaced what was called the “Million Dollar Bridge.”
South Portland resident Stacey Begin signed up for a stall to sell pies, bread and other items she makes in her home kitchen.
“I really don’t know what to anticipate, especially when you are baking,” she said.
Begin established Blackbird Baking Co. about a year ago and has relied on Internet orders she delivers throughout the area. She said she expects customers will look for desserts or breakfast foods – “grab and go” items.
News stories about the market attracted her interest, Begin said. She joined the Cape Farm Alliance after she called Cape Elizabeth farmer Caitlin Jordan about renting a stall.
Jordan, who also is a Cape Elizabeth town councilor and farmer at Alewives Brook Farm, heads the South Portland Farmers Market Association with her cousin, Penelope “Penny” Jordan.
The market has room for 20 vendors who will be charged a $100 fee. The city receives $25 and the remainder is used to operate the association. Market rules require vendors to grow or process at least 75 percent of what they sell.
Buckfield beef farmer Richard Piper said the market provides another opportunity to sell his grass-fed beef, berries and maple syrup and honey his neighbors produce.
The Maine Department of Agriculture website, getrealgetmaine.com, lists more than 100 farmers markets in Maine, some of which operate indoors during winter. Locally, the South Portland market falls between Wednesday farmers markets in Saco and Portland, a Saturday market in Deering Oaks Park in Portland and a Sunday farmers market in Scarborough.
The market also coincides with one held on Thursdays in Biddeford.
Piper, 67, said he grew up on a farm in Minot and swore off farming before he got an urge to raise beef about 25 years ago.
He said he combines Internet sales with stalls at four markets. Piper said competition for getting market stalls can be stiff; he would like to be a part of the Saturday market in Deering Oaks Park, but the stalls are all filled.
“People are getting concerned about what they are eating,” he said. South Portland market rules require food to be organic, and Piper said his grass-fed beef is leaner and lacks additives.
O’Brien is president of the Waterfront Market Association, a group of businesses located in Knightville and Mill Creek. He said the association has not taken a stance on the market, but he is optimistic farmers market customers will enjoy what they see in Knightville.
“It is walkable, comfortable and has real potential,” he said.
O’Brien, who has been in business at his insurance agency for 16 years, recalled the traffic flow to the old bridge, an estimated 25,000 vehicles daily.
The traffic was a boon to businesses such as service stations, he said, but now the neighborhood requires a change for businesses to profit there.
“Mill Creek is still a regional draw, the challenge is to get people to go a few more blocks,” he said.
Begin said she is eager to help add recognition to the park and neighborhood and will open her stall after she finishes work at the part-time job she holds in Falmouth.
“Hopefully, someone in my family will bring me supper,” she said.