Church Square is open for business again; traders moved back to Grahamstown’s city centre after a meeting between traders and Festival management on Friday night to resolve the impasse over the decision to move the stalls to Fiddler’s Green.
Church Square is open for business again; traders moved back to Grahamstown’s city centre after a meeting between traders and Festival management on Friday night to resolve the impasse over the decision to move the stalls to Fiddler’s Green.
The traders, who traditionally used to set up in Church Square, complained of a lack of customers at their new venue on Fiddler’s Green.
They blamed this mainly on the relocation of the Village Green to new premises at the Great Field on Rhodes University’s campus.
Some traders wanted to move either to the new Village Green or return to Church Square.
Tony Lankester, the Festival’s chief executive, said the move to the new Transnet Village Green had been designed with the aesthetic of an international craft market in mind.
When traders had applied for stall space, he said, they had been required to give detailed descriptions of what they intended to sell. In an attempt to “maintain standards”, some crafters were chosen to trade at the new Village Green, while others were allocated an area in the Container Village at Fiddler’s Green.
He acknowledged that the full impact of the move had not been considered. “We didn’t fully anticipate what effect the Great
Field move would have on pedestrian and passing trade,” he said.
A full evaluation of all new initiatives will take place post-Festival to ensure the smooth running of the 2010 event.
Celeste Kriel – CUE Online
