First Downtown Farmers market set Saturday; record 219 vendors expected

The Cedar Rapids Downtown District has announced a new Downtown Farmers' Market map is now available for patrons to view online.

Vendors, entertainment, product search, activities and more can be found here.

The first 2011 Downtown Farmers' Market will be held this Saturday, June 4 from 7:30 a.m. to noon. Presenting sponsor for the June 4 market is River Cedar Properties.

A record 219 market vendors will be placed along Third and Fourth avenues, Second and Third streets SE as well as Greene Square Park in downtown Cedar Rapids. Patrons will have access to free parking in Fourth Avenue and GTC parkades and non-hooded meter space on open streets. Handicap accessible parking will be available in the Guaranty Bank parking lot (entrance along Second Avenue).

KCRG-TV9 will host June 4 main stage entertainment, including musical acts from Sunday Afternoon, MOvMnt Dance Company, Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre and Kevin BF Burt. On street entertainment includes Magician Jackson Green, Mark Brown, Junk Funk and a cooking demonstration hosted by Prairie Soup Company.

After the market, a celebration of diversity will be hosted through Cedar Rapids Pride Fest 2011 in Greene Square Park, starting at 1 p.m. Several local organizations will present an afternoon of music, food, retail and food vendors as well as live entertainment.

Corporate Sponsors for the market season include Alliant Energy, Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust, Cedar Rapids Public Library Foundation, Great Clips, Whickwire Chiropractic and Wellness Center, 7G Distributing, Cedar Rapids and Linn County Solid Waste Agency, University of Iowa Community Credit Union, Eastern Iowa Airport, ImOn Communications, River Cedar Properties, Mercy Medical Center, Qwest, Quaker Oats and Van Meter Industrial. Media Sponsors include KHAK, KCRG-TV9, 100.7 the Fox, 600WMT, Hoopla, MVP Visual Media Solutions, The Gazette, Mediacom, the Corridor Business Journal and Z102.9.