Among the hand-picked berries and crisp carrots, Bellevue Farmers Market shoppers may also notice a fresh face: new director Natalie Evans.
Evans is taking the reins from long-time farmer’s market director Lori Taylor, who left after the 2015 season. Having worked at the Bellevue Presbyterian Church and volunteered at the market, Evans caught Taylor’s eye and was soon asked to take over.
“I’ve always had an interest in sustainable agriculture and local farms, and I think Laurie saw that in me,” Evans said.
Born and raised in Colorado, Evans moved to Seattle several years ago and quickly fell in love with the area. She began driving out to the Skagit Valley and volunteering on farms during her breaks at the University of Washington, watching documentaries on food and participating in town hall events on agriculture.
Despite her clear passion, she admits that the idea of taking over for Taylor was daunting, though fun. Taylor took her under her wing, and Evans was able to spend many months learning and helped lead the last few weeks of the 2015 season.
Evans’ leadership will not only bring a new face to the Bellevue Farmers Market, but also some changes in operation.
After extensive conversations with the market’s board of directors, Evans made the decision to fold the Saturday farmers market.
“It was awhile coming,” she said. “It wasn’t getting enough foot traffic, and we felt like it would have been overextending our budget and staffing to do it this year. A hard part of transitions is that they often necessitate scaling down for a little while. But our hope is to reopen a Saturday market in the future.”
The Bellevue farmers Market on Thursdays will continue to go strong. Many residents visit the stalls to purchase fresh produce, fresh fish, cheese and more from local family farms and small businesses. Supporting their vendors has been a mission of the market for the last 12 years, but Evans also sees the market as a way to bring socially just, environmentally stable and economically viable food to people who don’t always know where their food comes from.
“I do worry that there us a ‘trendiness’ to local food culture, and I think if it’s not going to just be a trend, it needs to be more accessible. There’s definitely a mindset that fresh food is the upper middle class,” she said.
That’s why Evans is working on new programs and opportunities for the market.
While traipsing some of the farmers markets in Seattle, Evans discovered Fresh Bucks, a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (colloquially known as food stamps) initiative that allows recipients who spend $10 of their assistance money each day at any of Seattle’s 16 farmers markets to receive an extra $10 to spend on fresh fruits and vegetables.
Cost is often cited as a key barrier to eating recommended quantities of fruits and vegetables, according to the State Farmers Market Association.
Evans is also looking into ways to make buying local products easier and to draw people together.
Sitting in her office is a photograph of what the land used to look like — a sight she can hardly imagine in the current atmosphere.
“I feel like there’s many parts of Bellevue that have become little, independent bubbles,” she said. “I think farmers markets have that human element that is missing from food now. I would love if, though these face-to-face connections, people could learn what farmers’ and small business owners’ lives are like.”
The Bellevue Farmers Market opens for the season on May 12 and will be located at 1717 Bellevue Way NE every Thursday through Oct. 27.
