On February 26 I presented at the Seattle Neighborhood Farmers Market annual vendor meeting. I wanted to connect with the Farmers Market Association early in my U District, Let’s Go program planning because I thought back to when I used to work for as small farm and how stressful it was for me to get to work. I lived three miles from the U District Farmers Market and drove. I didn’t think twice about how I would get there, what it would cost, where I would park, or what it impacts it would have on the neighborhood. It was always a struggle that involved me running to move my car mid-market and several parking tickets (there went my paycheck!) Flash forward about ten years (by this time I was driving a farm van) and I am training a new staff member and sure enough about midway through the market he has to run to move his car and on top of that his car was broken into. There went his paycheck!

Experiences like this along with constraints in the U District neighborhood, like limited customer parking got me thinking about what U District, Let’s Go could offer farmers that relied on seasonal, Seattle-based staff.

Here are the resources I shared:

1. Employee toolkits for farmers that included the following: commute planning intake forms, an ORCA card loaded with $5, an ORCA LIFT brochure and a way for vendors to connect with me. I made it small enough that it can easily fit into a vendor cash box!
2. Explained the different ways they could use the ORCA card, like registering it to their business through orcacard.com.
3. Using Commute Seattle’s Tax-Free Commuter Benefits Guide, I outlined how they can share in the cost of their employee’s commutes or fully subsidize their commutes.
4. The fourth resource was an open line of communication. U District, Let’s Go will be at the Saturday U District Farmers Market on select Saturday’s between May and October of this year sharing a tent with Seattle City Councilmember Rob Johnson (Thanks CM Johnson!) We will be answering questions and also sharing stories on how it is possible to bike with blueberries or take transit with turnips!

I had a great conversation with Art Stone, owner of Honest Biscuits,Who already provides a transportation benefit to his employees and understands the bigger picture and overall importance. “Parking is so scarce and expensive, that most of my employees take public transportation already. Making it cheap for them is a very popular benefit. As benefits go, this one is fairly reasonable. I also like making it easier for folks to use public transportation all the time, hopefully making a positive impact on the environment.”

Mary Young-Ness with Kittitas Valley Greenhouse  says  “when employees ask where they should park, we tell them anyplace they can find parking as long as it is 3 blocks away from market. We’ve had employees late to work because they couldn’t find parking, had their car broken into, or had to move their car because it was in a time sensitive zone. Giving them the option of the bus, especially with help determining the best route, is a great solution.”

I presented to about 50 vendors and Farmers Market Association staff (turns out they are about to hire several new staff for the season). A huge thanks to the Seattle Neighborhood Farmers Market for the opportunity!

If you would like to talk about providing a transportation benefit to your employees, connect with U District, Let’s Go!