Council takes step to make its vacant, flood-damaged Quality Chef site available for year-round City Market

CEDAR RAPIDS - The City Council this week expressed general support for helping Cedar Rapids City Market Inc. to locate a year-round market at the site of what is now the city-owned former Quality Chef Foods building on Third Street SE in the New Bohemia district.

Council member Monica Vernon, who is the council member working most closely with the non-profit market's board of directors, said the Quality Chef site is the board's first choice for a possible location.

Vernon asked the council if it would be interested in making the city property available for the market.

Vernon said the market idea and its board of directors have strong local support and she said the board has a good business plan that would provide a point of sale for dozens of local vendors.

Vernon suggested the city convey the Quality Chef property to the market in a similar fashion to the way the city is making the former Roundhouse site at Czech Village available for the future home of the National Czech and Slovak Museum and Library.

The flood-damaged Quality Chef site has been empty for some years.

The city and the Federal Emergency Management Agency have not yet completed an analysis of the site to see how much FEMA may be willing to pay the city for damage to the site and if FEMA would pay for its demolition

The council already has decided to steer FEMA money – perhaps $160,000 might be available, Greg Eyerly, the city's flood-recovery director, has estimated - to the City Market that would have gone to restore the Roundhouse. The Czech Village Association has dismantled the building with plans to erect it elsewhere in the village.

Council member Tom Podzimek noted that the city could have the ability to obtain environmental cleanup funds for the Quality Chef site should they be needed, and he wondered if the market would want to assume that responsibility.

Podzimek noted that the City Market also was looking at other sites in the New Bohemia district, and he said the district feels right for the project.

Council members Kris Gulick and Chuck Wieneke said they want to see the market's business plan.

Vernon said the plan envisions that the market will be open only on Fridays and Saturdays at the start.

By providing land to the market, the city could be satisfying a local match that would be required if the market applies for and wins a state Community Attraction and Tourism grant, Vernon noted.

Mayor Ron Corbett pointed out that the Downtown District has a successful downtown market on several Saturday's throughout the summer. How will that impact the City Market? Corbett asked.

Vernon noted that Doug Neumann, president/CEO of the Downtown District, is on the City Market board. The market and the district will “coordinate,” Vernon said.

Corbett also wondered if it would be possible for the Quality Chef buildings to be demolished quickly in conjunction with the forthcoming demolition of the nearby former Sinclair meatpacking plant