"Unfortunately, the nonprofit doesn't have the funds to really host events for the upcoming fall and winter season as much as we would like to."
Market manager Cherri Parks-Taylor said that to TheBurg in early September. She said it in a story about the market's courtyard, which had just reopened with new pavers after a six-month closure. The Broad Street Market Alliance applied for a Dauphin County tourism grant this year and didn't get it. Without that money, many of the alliance's plans for events in the courtyard are on hold. She also offered a way around the gap. Outside organizations can rent the space through the market's pop-up vendor application, and she said the market would be "happy to partner."
So the market's winter rests on two things: vendors keeping their own hours, and outside groups booking the space. Every other piece of the market's situation right now points the same way.
Two Buildings, Two Clocks
The fire-damaged brick building is still closed, so the market runs out of the stone building and the temporary tent. They keep different schedules. The market's website lists these hours:
| Day | Stone Building | Tent |
|---|---|---|
| Wednesday | 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. | Closed |
| Thursday | 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. | 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. |
| Friday | 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. | 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. |
| Saturday | 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. | 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. |
The site also says select vendors are open between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. each market day, and many stay open longer. On a Wednesday, only the stone building is open. On a Saturday afternoon, the tent closes two hours before the stone building does.
The vendor roster splits the market this way:
- Stone building: Cheesesteak Corner, Damiens Fried Chicken, Honeybush Raw Smoothie Bar, Ougi's Cocina, Porter's House, Tasty Dishes, Tri Asian Taste, Yum, Yum!, Goblin Alchemy, Renfield's Jade Garden, Tep's Fresh Seafood, Zeroday Brewing Co., Elementary Coffee Co., Honey Bear Ice Cream, Marie's Kitchen Haitian Cuisine, Piper Belle's, Taqueria el Compadre and Yami Korean Food.
- Tent: Fisher's Delights, Cherished Treasures, Diaspora, Lil's Pretzels, Peach Ridge Produce, Two Brothers BBQ, Coffee and Crumbs and The Meating Place.
The roster page isn't dated, so the lineup may change. Since January, it has changed at least twice. The alliance said then that a new fried-chicken stand would open in the stone building by the end of the month, and Doggie Delights announced it would leave the tent at the end of January, citing how hard it was to keep a business going there.
The Tent Has Been Through Winter Before
This is not the tent's first winter. In December 2024, ahead of what local reporting described as the tent's first winter, the alliance told Local 21 News the tent would stay up through the season "if weather permits." It also said it was working through logistical problems, including fixing the thermostat so the tent would hold a proper temperature. That reporting covers a past winter, not this one. Local coverage so far hasn't laid out a 2026–27 winter plan for the tent. The city's project FAQ lists air conditioning, electricity and plumbing for the tent but doesn't describe its heating.
A Courtyard Built for Vendors, Furnished for Now
The courtyard between the two buildings closed in March. Crews needed access to the utilities underground as part of the brick building rebuild. It reopened on Thursday, September 3, with new pavers and flower pots. The eight old flat stone benches are gone.
For now, the seating is temporary. A board member donated Adirondack chairs, and Parks-Taylor planned to add more tables "to hold us over." Permanent patio furniture could arrive this winter or next spring. In the final rendering, the space is labeled "Central Plaza," with trees and built-in benches.
Shoppers TheBurg spoke with liked the open layout. One customer said that without the benches in the way, "you'll be able to put more things here." That fits the rental model. Groups that apply through the market's pop-up vendor application get a flat, open space, and those bookings will likely shape the courtyard calendar this season more than the alliance's own events.
Why the Money Is This Thin
The missed tourism grant hit a budget that was already tight. In January, the alliance adopted a 2026 budget of $921,999, with expenses running $87,231 ahead of revenue. The treasurer said state grant money carried over from earlier years and an unreceived county grant weren't counted, and that either could cover the gap.
The fundraising plans were modest next to that gap. The alliance planned to sell ads on an 85-inch screen in the market at $1,500 per six months, with a target of $20,000 a year. It also budgeted about $1,000 from Friends of the Market donations. Separately, the board planned to start spending a $500,000 state Fresh Food Financing grant on a new roof and updated HVAC for the stone building. It was also still waiting on a grant agreement with Dauphin County for $75,000 in gaming grant money, which depended on a new lease with the city.
That $500,000 is a good example of how the market is structured. The state awarded it in 2025, and as of September none of it had been spent. The city owns the buildings, so work the alliance wins grants for has to go through the city's procurement process. "We've had a really hard time just progressing the spending of this grant money forward," board chair Paul Gellerman told TheBurg. City Business Administrator Antonio Megna agreed that spending the money had been difficult.
The main reason money is short goes back to the fire. Losing the larger building meant losing its rent and much of the foot traffic. Gellerman said the alliance has long expected to lose money until the market is back to full capacity.
What the City Is Building, and When
The brick building burned in July 2023, and reconstruction started in September 2025. On a September 9 press tour, Mayor Wanda Williams and Facilities Director Dave Baker gave reporters this timeline. These are targets the city announced, not finished work:
- Done as of the tour: the roof on the half of the building closest to the courtyard, and repointing of the whole building's masonry.
- October target: window installation.
- Winter target: the roof on the more heavily damaged half, nearer 6th Street, with the building closed off to the weather.
- Underway: soil stabilization, trenches for mechanical systems, framing, and custom doors made to replicate the historic ones.
- Completion target: "next summer," which later reporting described as around mid-2027.
Baker called getting the building winterized "the rush for time right now" and said manufacturing and shipping times were the main obstacles. The rebuild is projected to cost $23.7 million in total, and a final $13.75 million settlement with Liberty Mutual Insurance helps pay for it. The city's project page still lists an estimated construction end of April 2027. The September reporting is newer and points to summer.
Vendors who plan to move back in are still waiting for details. Two Brothers BBQ owner Leon Glick has been at the market for 15 years and plans to return to the brick building. He told TheBurg he didn't yet know where his space would be. He said his business needs a cooler, a floor drain and plenty of electricity, and he hoped vendors would be consulted before the building is handed over.
The Lease Runs on the Same Calendar
The paperwork is on a deadline too. The lease that gives the alliance control of operations in the city-owned buildings dates to 2016. It expired in 2021 and continued month to month until the city extended it for one year at the end of 2025. In September, the board asked the city for help in its 2027 budget and voted to start lease talks. Megna said the city would likely approve an amended short-term lease for next year. He described budget support as "not off the table, but it's not looking likely."
Gellerman said the grant money that has covered revenue lost to the fire will run out by the time the brick building opens, and the new building won't be fully rented on day one. The board has raised longer-term options, including higher vendor rents, hiring an executive director and more fundraising. The months between now and the brick building's reopening are the stretch the alliance has to get through on its own budget.
What's Already on the Calendar
Some dates are already set. The market lists Third in the Burg, the monthly evening of local vendors, performers, food and family activities, on these Fridays:
- October 16: 6 to 7 p.m.
- November 20: starting at 6 p.m.
- December 18: starting at 6 p.m.
The day after the November date, the City of Harrisburg's Holiday Parade steps off at 10 a.m. on Saturday, November 21, along Front and 2nd streets. This year's theme is "A Season of Sharing." That's a market day, so the stone building opens at 7 a.m. and the tent stays open until 4 p.m.
Anything else that fills the courtyard between now and the brick building's reopening will most likely come from outside groups that book it.
The brick building's reopening is one of the bigger changes coming to Midtown in the next year. If you own a home nearby and want to know what it's worth before that happens, John Smith Team can walk you through it. Request a Free Home Valuation, and we'll base it on what's actually selling near the market.
