The BTV Market

We plan to present 30 vendors each week. Booths will be located in the center of City Hall Park and the BCA patio area. All vendor booths will be on hardscaped surfaces, not on the grass.

Like the Vermont weather, it’s complicated. With a market that is four hours long, the weather can vary over that time frame. Here’s the plan:

• The market is, by and large, a rain or shine event, with the exception of extreme weather (heavy rain, high wind over 25mph, or lightning) or a combination of weather elements (rain + wind over 25mph). We suggest you travel with tarps, even when the weather looks to be decent.

• The BTV Market team will meet at 8 am on Saturday to review the forecast for the day, looking at radar and hourly weather predictions on numerous weather sites to make an Official Weather  Cancellation (OWC). Rain will need to have a greater than 70% chance, wind higher than 20 mph, or lightning to be in the forecast for us to consider a delay or close.

• If there is extreme weather at 9 am on Saturday, but it looks like it will be clear, we will delay the market by one hour, with the market starting at 12 pm instead of 11 am but still ending at 3 pm. At 10 am, if the forecast is still looking unfavorable, we will cancel the market with an OWC.

• We will track any potential lighting during the market. Any strike within 8 miles requires that the market cease operations, and we will encourage everyone to seek cover. We realize this is hard, given that you have your merchandise to look after. Make the best decisions you can at the time. The market will then be paused until 30 minutes after the last lightning strike in our 8-mile radius. This is standard life safety for outdoor events.

• If NOAA issues a severe weather warning for our area, we will follow the same procedure as noted above. This is only for a warning, which means the severe weather is imminent (as opposed to a watch).

• All market communications will be via email, including weather alerts and information.

Yes! Look for Burlington Telecom Guest and log on.

There is one outdoor restroom located between the College Street terrace and the BCA patio area. If the restroom is occupied or out of order, City Hall has available restrooms. To get to the City Hall restrooms, walk through the alleyway located between BCA and City Hall to Church Street, turn right, and enter the door that is under the stairs to City Hall. We also encourage our vendors to bring lots of water and sunscreen to the market every day. If rain or high winds are expected, please dress appropriately and bring tarps to protect your products.

Yes, the City has arranged for private security at the BTV Market all summer long. 

We held an information session with more details on the market. Watch the recording by clicking here or view the slides by clicking here.  Have another question? Email Aida Washburn, our BTV Market Coordinator at awashburn@burlingtonvt.gov.