PRODUCERS from Okehampton Farmers? Market say they are disappointed with a decision by Okehampton Town Council to ask them to vacate their current monthly space in the Charter Hall.
Councillors say they want the Charter Hall to be for ?community use? and to develop increased business for events like weddings, receptions and seminars.
They feel the farmers? market is more consistent with the other kinds of markets which are regularly held in the Market Hall.
But Mrs Chris Brown, secretary for Okehampton Farmers? Market Association, feels the farmers? market belongs in the Charter Hall.
She said: ?The council say they want the Charter Hall to be for ?community use? ? if farmers are not part of the community, what are they part of??
Mrs Brown said the monthly markets were ?very successful? and well-supported by the people of the town.
The farmers? market has already pre-booked the Charter Hall up to this December, but the council has decided not to take any further bookings for markets in the hall after that, while it seeks to address the issue.
Mrs Brown said: ?We plan a year in advance. Now we can?t do anything until we know where we are going. We are in limbo. It is very disappointing.
?It would be nice to know sooner or later, so we can make other arrangements if we have to. Obviously, we are very busy this time of year because of all the shows.?
Okehampton Farmers? Market Association chairman Rachel Stephens has also written to the town council to register concern about the move and her disappointment that traders were not consulted before any proposed changes were made public.
?We have booked the Charter Hall each month for more than five years because that is where we want to hold our special event each month.
?The area designated for us in the Market Hall is too small and would not allow us to have sufficient definition of our unique character from the other market sites.?
The farmers? market group also say the Market Hall does not have a suitable kitchen for use as part of the market.
Mrs Stephens? letter continues: ?We have our own ethos and regulations, which are quite different from the traders of the ordinary market. We are producers and not traders.
?Each individual producer is upset at having to leave the Charter Hall ? no-one wants to go to the bottom market?.
The possibility of the farmers? market trading in Red Lion Yard was discussed at a meeting of the properties committee last week.
But Cllr Jo Slater said while this may be attractive at this time of year, an open air market in the yard in the middle of winter was a different proposition altogether.
The committee decided to take no more bookings for markets of any sort in the Charter Hall from January, while they set up a working party to come up with a definitive policy on use of the two halls.
Pam Powlesland, who currently runs Market Hall operations on a Saturday, said she believed the two markets could accommodate each other.
?I don?t think it would present any difficulties. There is another market I go to at South Molton where the farmers? market is incorporated within the other market,? she said.