OG Farmers Market Approved for New Riverside Location

The Greenwich Planning & Zoning Commission recently voted to approve the Old Greenwich Farmers Market’s use of a parking lot at St. Catherine’s Church on Riverside Avenue.

The applicant was Dana Lee who was one of the original founders of the weekly Wednesday farmers market.

A few weeks ago, a tent special event application for up to 14 non consecutive days from June 17 to September 16 was approved by P&Z staff.

What the P&Z commission approved last week was temporary tent installation for more than 14 non-consecutive days.

That would be in effect Wednesdays from through November 11, 2026. The applicant would be required to apply to renew the permit annually.

Tents would be 10 x 10 ft  or 10 x 15 ft, with 12-15 vendors to include food businesses, craft vendors, jewelry makers and local non profits. Approximately 200 to 400 visitors are expected weekly.

A retired or off duty police officer would be hired to guide and direct cars for parking, and all three entrances to the parking lot would remain unblocked and accessible for users and emergency vehicles.

There is a bathroom available in the church, and a portable toilet along with handwashing stations would be made available as required by the Health Department. Set up is no more than an hour before the 12:00pm start time. and packing up would take no more than 30 minutes.

During discussion, Ms Lee said, “Most of the churches in town offered, but the one that made the most sense was St. Catherine’s because they have that giant parking lot and will not be doing their carnival this year.”

For many years, the farmers market operated at the Living Hope Church in Old Greenwich.

When that church’s application to add housing and expand parking went before the P&Z commission, the future of the farmers market came into question.

At a November 2025 P&Z commission meeting, the church said they withdrew a request for special event approval for the farmers market.

Now, the farmers market will occupy three parking lots at 11, 13, and 17 Riverside Ave.

Tents would occupy the 29 spaces at 11 Riverside Ave . Attendees will use the parking at 13 and 17 Riverside Ave.

Ms Lee said vendors park by their tents.

She said patrons have appreciated the abundant parking.

“People have been amazing,” she said. “There’s just a lot more parking where the other location had a circle and people would sit in the circle and wait for a spot.”

Ms Lee agreed to suspend the farmers market for a week if St. Catherine’s Carnival returns in future.

She explained that most patrons have been shopping in the first half hour of the farmers market, which runs from 1:00pm to 5:00pm.

“We run out of things like strawberries and blueberries really quickly,” she said.

As for potential conflicts, she said the farmers market would not overlap with funerals, which she run from 11:00am-12:00pm, if there is one on a Wednesday. Also there is church service at 5:15pm.

“I went and I looked, and there was parking available, which was our concern,” Alban said. “The traffic seemed to be well managed. …The nice thing was  they were local produce, and it all seemed to be truly a farmers market.”

“I don’t know if at some point you would want to certify as a local farmers market,” Alban said.

Commissioner Arn Welles asked about a restriction on amplified sound.

Ms Lee said there was no power in the parking lot but, they might want live music in future.

The applicant agreed to a condition of no amplified sound.

“We’re not anti-music grinches, but you have a Japanese School nearby,” Mr. Welles said. “There may not be a service next door at the church, but people go to church to pray and have a quiet time. I don’t think they need to be disturbed with loud music.”

“It’s a great consideration,” Ms Lee said. “Nor does it make sense to have a food truck or a knife sharpener. I think those questions are coming up.”

“We are not going to restrict you on that at this point. We know you’ve had wind chimes and assorted things,” Alban said. “What we’re restricting you on is noise – that it not be a disturbance to the neighborhood and that the traffic not disturb the neighborhood.”

Mary Jenkins said she did not object to a non-amplified guitar. She said amplification was the issue, not music.

During public comment Ashley Cole said the farmers market was key to “community culture” and Ms Lee did a great job managing the operation.

“I would have preferred it at the Civic Center, personally, but the vendors have been pleased because we have new shoppers and people can find the market better than they could down in Old Greenwich,” Ms Lee said.

Ms Alban said she’d reached out to Parks & Recreation and learned that the Cohen Eastern Greenwich Civic Center is was location of several summer camps, and could not accommodate the farmers market.

The vote to approve was unanimous with Mary Jenkins, Arn Welles, Anne Jones, Brooks Harris and Margarita Alban voting yes.

See also:

Living Hope Community Church to Cease Farmers Market, P&Z Denies Church Parking Expansion, Approves 2 New Dwellings

Nov 18, 2025

Greenwich P&Z Raises Specter of CT Environmental Protection Act and “Unreasonable Demolition” of Historic Structures