WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The long-awaited West Palm Beach Green Market has opened for its 29th season.
On Saturday morning, vendors were selling locally grown produce, baked goods, coffee and a whole lot more.
Thousands of people hit the streets in downtown West Palm Beach with the impact felt far between each booth.
The West Palm Beach Green Market was named USA Today's No. 1 farmer's market in the country for the third year in a row.
"Oh yeah, I voted on that," Gilliam Kennedy Wright, a market goer, told WPTV reporter Briana Nesprel. "It's dog friendly. There's always a lot of vendors. Everybody's friendly. The location is amazing. Palm Beach. Yachts. It’s warm. What can I say? Perfect.'"
Thousands flood downtown for the sights, the sounds and of course the smells.
"We roughly do about 8,000 doughnuts during the market," Travis Oimoen, owner of Cider Donuts, said.
Cider Donuts, a crowd factor, has been more than 25 years at the West Palm Beach Green Market, a testament to what this market can do for business.
"It makes me very warm inside and I just love seeing everyone smile about it," he said. "It makes everyone happy."
A customer at Cider Donuts, Suzette Pinkston, said the doughnuts, acai bowls, organic honey, flowers are "amazing."
This season the city is bringing in an additional 30 vendors for a total of 125, the most in its history. It makes sense that this year's theme is "Here we grow again."
The West Palm Beach Downtown Development Authority is encouraging residents and visitors to go greener and live healthier by supporting bicycle trips during visits to the West Palm Beach GreenMarket and the weekly Antique and Flea Market in downtown West Palm Beach.
Running through April 20, the DDA will offer a free bike valet service every Saturday, alleviating the stress of finding a place to park their car or locking their bike.
Located at 200 Clematis St., the bike valet will work just like a coat check. Riders will be issued tickets in exchange for their bikes, which will be kept in a secure area. To reclaim a bicycle, riders will present the appropriate claim ticket to staff at the same location. The service is open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
"People come, they shop, they stay," Angela Poco, the city's community event supervisor, said. "We’re filling our (parking) garages. People are coming in off the Brightline. There’s just so much business to be had for people."
The growth and development continues to put the city on the map.
"It's impressive and good to know that it’s here where we live," Pinkston said.
