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Forest Hills Greenmarket Set to Open Next Month

By Nigel Chiwaya | June 7, 2012 3:10pm
Forest Hills residents will have more fresh produce options when the area's greenmarket opens next month.
Forest Hills residents will have more fresh produce options when the area's greenmarket opens next month.
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DNAinfo/Nigel Chiwaya

FOREST HILLS — After years of working to get a farmer's market in their neighborhood, Forest Hills residents will only have to wait one more month, as the area's first greenmarket is set to open in early next month.

The greenmarket will be be held every Sunday from 4 to 8 p.m. starting July 8, and will give Forest Hills residents access to fresh fruits and vegetables from nearby farms.

Efforts to bring a greenmarket to Forest Hills date back to 2009. This year, nearly 500 residents signed a petition at Change.org demanding a greenmarket in the neighborhood. Hundreds of letters, phone calls and signatures helped, too.

"Shopping fresh and local produce is important to me," one petitioner wrote. "Having a greenmarket in the neighborhood would make it much easier for my family!"

The greenmarket will be held outside of the Forest Hills Post office on Queens Boulevard.
The greenmarket will be held outside of the Forest Hills Post office on Queens Boulevard.
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DNAinfo/Nigel Chiwaya

Alexa Weitzman, the petition's organizer, said more than 250 people signed up on May 9, the day the community board voted on the greenmarket.

"It spread like wildfire," said Weitzman, who runs the Tuv Ha'artetz community supported agriculture group. "I thought we'd never get there."

Residents did more than just sign an online petition. According to Community Board 6 district manager Frank Gulluscio, residents flooded the board's office with phone calls.

"Our phones were ringing from the minute we came in to the minute we went out," said Gulluscio. "It's probably the biggest response we've gotten on an issue in a long time."

That night the board unanimously voted to approve the greenmarket in front a raucous crowd.

"People were very excited," Gulluscio said. "It's a positive thing for the neighborhood."

The greenmarket will be run by GrowNYC, a non-profit that organizes over 60 greenmarkets around the city.

The greenmarket will be held outside the post office on Queens Boulevard between 69th Road and 70th Road.