EAGLE, Idaho — The Eagle Saturday Market is coming back, but this time at City Hall. Business owners are concerned that the move will lead to less foot traffic and business.
- The first Saturday Market of 2024 is May 4th.
- The market was moved to the Eagle City Hall parking lot due to heavy traffic flow from road construction.
- Many business owners are concerned that the move will take away the usual foot traffic they see in their shops.
- The current road construction is part of a multi-year project for ACHD.
- For more information on the Downtown Eagle Mobility Project, click here.
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
The Saturday Market is making its return to Eagle but with downtown construction disrupting traffic flow, the market is moving to the parking lot at City Hall. I'm your Eagle neighborhood reporter Alexander Huddleston and I talk with business owners in this area often. A few weeks ago they told me about the adjustments, worried they won't see their typical Saturday morning foot traffic.
The main entrance into downtown Eagle has now been closed down for a month. The intersection shutdown has diverted all traffic to 2nd Street.
"There is a lot of traffic now on this street and it will back up significantly because they have to go one at a time," said Melissa Reche, owner of Fusion Glass Studio.
But this is not the kind of traffic business owners are looking for.
Toni MacClain of Donovan James said, "Over a hundred people will come on Saturdays."
"Sometimes they will bring their kids and they will make a project, so we get a lot of foot traffic when the Saturday Market is happening," said Reche.
But this year, the Saturday market is moving. With the heavy traffic flow, the city decided that it would be hosted in the parking lot of City Hall. This move concerned many business owners downtown.
Reche added, "It is a little concerning because we won't be getting as much walk-in traffic, and we pretty much rely on walk-in traffic."
But Reche said they are already feeling the drag in business from the lack of shoppers in downtown Eagle.
"What happens with the construction is that people just kind of avoid downtown in general because it's kind of a hassle to get around," explained Reche.
Reche is worried that shoppers at the market will not make the half-mile trek to the strip and instead just go home.
But MacClain explained that even though the traffic and construction deters people, she knows folks who are regulars will find their way.
"The city is going to do things to mitigate it, and help send people our way. But our regular customers are going to be coming," finished MacClain.
Many business owners I spoke to say they are indeed concerned about the lack of foot traffic they will see for this time of year but at the end of the day they understand that the infrastructure needs to be adjusted.
