Every Saturday from early May until late December, the Ave. gets a little pick-me-up in the form of the U-District Farmer’s Market. A staple of the area since 1993, this farmer’s market is the largest one in the state.

There are questions, however, as to how long it may be around.

The fate of the U-District Farmer’s Market is tied to the fate of the historic University Heights Community Center on 50th Avenue and University Way Northeast. The center is the home of the Farmer’s Market and hosts numerous community events including daycare and youth programs, as well as Experimental College courses, which are sponsored by ASUW.

The University Heights building is now faced with the possibility that the Seattle Public School District will triple or quadruple their current rent, effectively shutting down the entire operation.

“Because of what Seattle Public Schools is trying to do, there is no way that U-Heights would be able to maintain our current facility if our rent goes up,” said Kent Wills, an active community member and former University Park Community Club president.

University Heights served as an elementary school from 1903 until 1989, when it was foreclosed amid much protest. To pacify the public outcry, the school was turned into a community center in 1990, said Richard Sorenson, executive director of the U-Heights Center.

“The school district is now in financial chaos,” Sorenson said. “They are scrambling to find solutions for a recovery.”

In response, the University Heights Center for the Community Association (UHCCA) is actively talking about buying their property. UHCCA is involved in Seattle City Council’s ongoing budgetary hearings in the hope of getting $2.5 million added to the budget next year for acquisition of the U-Heights property. Many UHCCA members and other concerned citizens went down to City Hall this past week to plead their case.

Chris Curtis, the director of the Neighborhood Farmer’s Market Alliance, was one of those who went down to City Hall to plead for the city’s acquisition of the property.

“The Farmer’s Market obviously plays a huge role in the strategic planning of what U-Heights will do,” Curtis said. “As the most visible aspect of the community center, people think of the Farmer’s Market when they think of U-Heights, and we wouldn’t have a home without them.”

Curtis said she believes that connecting a public face with the issue will help council members to decide whether or not to approve their proposed budget.

“The council members are aware of how important the Farmer’s Market plays in not only our community, but in our economy as well,” she said. “We are a vital economic piece because we support small local farmers.”

Closing the Farmer’s Market could have a dramatic impact on some local farmers, she said.

“The majority of these farmers are making their primary source of income from this market,” Curtis said. “Cultivating and protecting farmland is what is important to Puget Sound. It would not be feasible for the market to close — the stakes are high.”

City Council Member Richard Conlin said he believes there is good support for the proposal on the Council, but the question really becomes whether people will commit actual dollars, and if so how much. Those working closer to the project say it really comes down to where the money will come from and where other funds are planning to go.

Other projects up for financial consideration include a variety of issues like Proposition 1, the transportation levy and the efforts to add more police officers to the Seattle Police Department.

Sorenson said he hopes the $2.5 million will be in addition to another $1.8 million coming from the Pro Parks levy fund and the Conservation Futures Fund of King County, both of which are earmarked for acquiring open spaces in the U-District.

“The School District and the City Council have been really supportive,” Sorenson said. “The issue is now being forced into the forefront, and it’s coming down to the wire,” he said. The Seattle City Council will vote this Thursday.

The actual lease on University Heights doesn’t end until 2008, but University Heights needs a viable plan by March 2007, when the Seattle School District will look further into which facilities it wants to maintain.

Reporter Arla Shephard: udistrict@thedaily.washington.edu