CB 11's Transportation Committee Recommends Permit for Green Market

Community Board 11’s transportation committee has recommended a street activity permit that would allow for a green market to be operated near Douglaston’s Long Island Rail Road station.

The full board will vote on the matter during its May 2 meeting, said Susan Seinfeld, CB 11’s district manager.

Community leaders have been in discussions with GrowNYC, which operates the massive green market in Union Square, to create a market in the traffic circle at Douglaston’s LIRR station.

On April 13, CB 11’s transportation and Douglaston zoning committees unanimously supported the proposal during a joint meeting.

Douglas Montgomery, vice president of the Douglaston Garden Club, said he expects the board’s May meeting to be “standing room only.”

“It was enlightening to see Community Board 11 wholeheartedly support this,” said Montgomery, who has been pushing for the creation of the market for several years.

He said he has been working on a proposal for subsidized parking at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s parking lot at the LIRR station.

GrowNYC, which was founded in 1976, would operate the market on Sunday mornings from July through November. An estimated eight to 12 vendors would sell everything from fresh fruits and vegetables to honey, wine, cheese, meat and fish.

The nonprofit also runs markets in Glendale’s Shops at Atlas Park, Corona, Astoria, Jackson Heights and Long Island City.

Hours of operation at the Douglaston market would likely be from 8 a.m. or 9 a.m. to mid-afternoon.

Local community groups would be able to set up tables at the market free of charge and cooking demonstrations would be held regularly, said Cathy Chambers, who oversees intergovernmental affairs for GrowNYC.