BUFFALO, NY- Easter Week is the busiest week of the year at the Broadway Market, but what about the other 51 weeks of the year, and the future of the Eastside landmark?
The Broadway Market is synonymous with Easter in Buffalo. Visitors are packing the Eastside landmark to pick up their Polish sausage, pierogi, placek, pussywillows, butterlambs, and every kind of chocolate imaginable to fill those Easter baskets. But market officials are trying to change its image of being just Buffalo's Easter destination.
"We do an event for Polka month. We do a Christmas festival. We do an event for Valentine's Day. So we're really have been trying to bring more festivals into the market and some new things to get people to keep coming during the year," said Interim Broadway Market Manager Brandye Merriweather.
In order to attract visitors year round though, some visitors themselves say the neighborhood itself has to change. Others suggest taking the Market out of the neighborhood.
Some have actually suggested moving the Market downtown to Canalside. The idea is unpopular with both East Side residents and some market vendors themselves.
"We don't have very many food places that's convenient for people to get around that doesn't have transportation so this helps out a lot," said Mrs. McKinnon, an Eastside resident.
"The Broadway Market here on the Eastside of Buffalo is in such a historic background that I think moving this building and these vendors and everyone out of here would really hurt what we have going on here, especially this week," said Adam Cichocki of Camellia Meats.
But Merriweather said as far as she knows, the Broadway Market is staying on Broadway.
If it remains where it has been since 1888, it'll suddenly have to watch out for competition. Deep-discount grocer Aldi just bought part of the lot across street with plans to build a supermarket there by summer.
But the Broadway Market officials says they're confident its deep-rooted traditions will keep its customers coming back. "We offer specialty items, specialty crafts, things that you can't find at your typical grocery store," said Merriweather.