New Amsterdam Market

7,000 NEW YORKERS VISIT THE SEAPORT TO SUPPORT NEW AMSTERDAM MARKET, THE PRESERVATION OF NEW YORK'S HISTORIC MARKET HALLS, AND THE CREATION OF A NEW SEAPORT MARKET DISTRICT

NEW YORK, NY - JULY 2, 2008 - On Sunday, July 29 2008, an ongoing stream of 7,000 enthusiastic New Yorkers and visitors crowded the aisles of New Amsterdam Market, which met in New Market Square - the public plaza fronting the historic New Market Building at the Seaport in Lower Manhattan. By attending the market they expressed their support for:

• preserving and rededicating the Seaport's two public owned market halls - Mayor LaGuardia's New Market Building (1939) and the adjacent Tin Building (1908) - as a civic institution dedicated to regional and sustainable food systems; and

• transforming the Seaport into a vibrant market district, where private retail is anchored by public commerce.

Over 1,200 market goers signed a petition supporting a request that the next New Amsterdam Market be held within the New Market Building, in the fall of 2008.

"The ongoing popularity of New Amsterdam Market proves that New Yorkers support regional food and innovative distribution channels, and that they also value the legacy of historic, public spaces which give soul and character to our city" says Robert LaValva, Director of the New Amsterdam Public Market Association - the non-profit organization spearheading the transformation of the Seaport into a world-class civic, cultural, and retail destination. "By preserving the New Market Building and Tin Building and continuing their use as public markets, we can create a unique and compelling market district that will become a home for the regional and sustainable food movement and bring New Yorkers back to the Seaport."

"I was reminded of London's Borough Market" said Jacob Dickson, proprietor of Dickson's Farmstand Meats, one of more than 60 vendors present on June 29th. "When I lived in London I would travel 40 minutes by subway to Borough Market at least once a month, making a day of visiting the market as well as neighborhood shops and eateries. As a distributor of regionally-sourced products, I see a market like this as the perfect venue to connect NYC's food-lovers with nearby farmers and producers."

"The New Amsterdam Market was a huge success from our perspective and from the view of many who attended. I can't tell you how many people asked us if we were coming back next weekend" wrote another vendor, Judy Gifford of St. Brigid's Farm, Kennedyville Maryland. And Mo Frechette of the famed Zingerman's Deli of Ann Arbor signed the petition by stating "New York should have as great a food market as London, as Barcelona, as any of the world's capitals."

New Amsterdam Market included visitors from all five boroughs, upstate New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Spain, Italy, Japan, and Britain, including traveling delegations from Borough Market and specialty food retailer Marks and Spencer.

An alternative proposal for developing the Seaport was recently released by General Growth Properties, the Seaport's tenant. It calls for the demolition of the New Market Building and removal of the Tin Building from its historic site, the 1836 birthplace of the world-renowned Fulton Fish Market, to make room for a 42 story waterfront residential tower. The Seaport neighborhood has been a public market district since 1642, when New York was still New Amsterdam.