Hamilton Council Approves Overhaul of Farmers’ Market — Sets Five-Year Goal for Self-Sufficiency

Following years of consultant reviews recommending the same fixes, and subsequent indecision, Hamilton city councillors voted 11-0 Monday to implement a plan to make the Hamilton Farmers’ Market financially self-sustaining within five years, restructuring its board and overhauling vendor fees in the process.

The overhaul follows a cycle of hired consultants, public consultations, and visioning exercises, with the city engaging a new firm each time a previous report failed to produce action.

The latest report, by consulting firm Optimus SBR, makes recommendations similar to those of previous consultant reports: that Hamilton’s municipal market should operate similarly to those in other municipalities, that the Market needs to overhaul its governance to focus on reaching financial sustainability and improving the success of its vendor tenants, that its hours need to be convenient for the public, and that the Market should be open later to serve customers attending events at Hamilton’s arena and other nearby entertainment venues.

City council met Monday, June 29, 2026, to deliberate on the recommendations. Councillors supported the recommendations to focus the Market on serving customers and improving revenue for vendors as foundational to balancing the Market’s budget. However, they were divided on the recommendation to remove city councillors as voting members on the Market Board.

Under the new plan, the Market will be governed by a nine-person professional Board of Directors, selected based on the expertise they can bring to a governance and oversight role. In compliance with the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act, no vendors will be on the Board. To promote long-term non-political decision making, none of the voting members will be drawn from City Council.

The City will create two advisory bodies to advise the new Board: a vendor advisory group (12 Market vendors) and a community advisory group (12 Hamilton community members).

Ward 9 Councillor Brad Clark introduced an amendment to restore councillors’ voting rights, arguing that elected officials must have a formal say on a board that receives municipal funding.

“I can tell you, I have sat on many boards as a councillor, and I have always had a vote on those boards,” Clark said. “If there is city money going into this organization, the councillor should have a vote. I do not agree at all with the consultants’ suggestions that it creates conflicts or it creates competing interests. Because as I stated before, the councillors around this table and future tables are mature individuals, they are taught how the governance structure works.”

The Market is receiving a $426,260 levy subsidy for 2025. The Market’s overall budget is approximately $1.06-million.

Ward 10 Councillor Jeff Beattie seconded Clark’s amendment, stating that a non-voting position limits a member’s ability to participate fully.

“To fully participate in the process, I think that you need to be able to see it through from beginning to end and that includes the conclusion of any action which is ultimately a vote,” Beattie said.

However, Ward 2 Councillor Cameron Kroetsch, who currently chairs the Market Board, strongly supported the non-voting model, arguing that politicians disrupt the board’s operational focus.

“The councillor gets in the way,” Kroetsch said. “Their presence there as a voting member, as the chair, has a really disproportionate influence in a situation where most of the people involved, vendors, members of the public, aren’t involved in governance, don’t understand what a board does, aren’t there for those kinds of activities.”

Ward 7 Councillor Esther Pauls echoed Kroetsch’s sentiments, recalling the pressure she faced during a previous term on the Market Board.

“I remember struggling so much,” Pauls said. “I’ve had meetings with one side and then they would call me the other side, saying you gotta vote this way or you know, we see it my way. As a councillor, being there, you could see both sides, see how they vote, and then your opinion could be shared at council.”

The method for selecting the new Market Board was also debated, with some councillors concerned about a staff-led recruitment process being conducted this fall instead of waiting for the new Council term to begin in November and allowing the new Council’s selection committee to choose the new Board.

“I’m not sure why we wouldn’t let all manner of the process play out properly,” Beattie said. “This seems different than what we would normally do through the selection committee.”

Senior Program Manager of Market Programs and Initiatives Adam Watson explained that the staff-led approach is a one-time measure because municipal elections would cause significant delays if the standard committee process were used.

“The suggestion from the Clerk’s department was that we could undertake a staff-led recruitment process that would allow us to circumvent the delays that would come about through the upcoming election and allow us to get a board in place for the beginning of next year,” Watson said.

Acting Director of the Economic Development Division Ray Kessler added that the current Market Board has experienced attrition during the prolonged governance review, making it critical to constitute the new board in Q1 2027. The current board has dwindled to five members.

Under the approved five-year business plan, the market will implement a revenue model that gradually aligns vendor stall fees with commercial market rates. Premium stalls will reach 100 per cent of market rates, while standard stalls will reach approximately 90 per cent. The plan also establishes a targeted incubator program offering reduced rates for new vendors and emerging businesses.

Councillors voted 11-0 to approve the plan. The decision requires confirmation at the July 15, 2026, City Council ratification meeting.

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In Favour: Maureen Wilson (Ward 1), Cameron Kroetsch (Ward 2), Nrinder Nann (Ward 3), Tammy Hwang (Ward 4), Esther Pauls (Ward 7), Rob Cooper (Ward 8), Brad Clark (Ward 9), Jeff Beattie (Ward 10), Mark Tadeson (Ward 11), Craig Cassar (Ward 12), and Alex Wilson (Ward 13).
Absent: Mayor Andrea Horwath, Matt Francis (Ward 5), Tom Jackson (Ward 6), Mike Spadafora (Ward 14), and Ted McMeekin (Ward 15).

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Published: June 30, 2026
Last updated: June 30, 2026
Author: Joey Coleman

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