indoor market

When it comes to springtime fun in Batavia, everyone seems to be, ahem, hopping on board.

Batavia First Presbyterian Church recently announced its annual Easter egg hunt, brunch and visit from the Easter bunny beginning at 11 a.m. April 1 at 300 East Main St., Batavia.

And then, the church, led by Rev. Roula Alkhouri, and organizers of the Batavia Development Corporation Indoor Market, led by Director Tammy Hathaway, partnered to double the fun.

The market will be open with assorted vendors inside the City Centre concourse, plus there will be family-friendly activities such as face painting, a coloring contest, multiple games, and a bounce house.

The Easter Bunny is planning to look dapper and have pictures taken with visiting families, and perhaps also play some games. Easter Bunny fun begins at 11 a.m. at both venues and ends at 12:30 p.m.

Both sites will offer a passport for children to find specific Easter Bunny helpers to obtain stamps on their passports. Each stamp will earn the child an entry ticket for a chance to win an Adam Miller Toy and Bicycle shop gift certificate, Hathaway said.

Vendors are collaborating on a basket to raffle off during the event, and tickets and more details will be available that day at the market information table.

Pat Burk of Batavia Players, whose home theater is at City Centre, jumped on board as well. He said that he invited the Boy Scouts to participate and conduct their candy sale, and “I think we are doing popcorn and something else that day as well,” Burk said.

Add in some enthusiastic shoppers and energetic kids, and it’s “a recipe for a fantastically fun Saturday,” Hathaway said.

The indoor market’s hours are 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the downtown Batavia City Centre. 

File photo of the Easter Bunny during a past visit to Main Street, Batavia. 

In the ongoing quest to make good use of empty space inside Batavia City Centre, city officials are hosting a Saturday morning indoor market this year.

Set to run from 8 to 11:30 a.m. Saturdays from Oct. 29 through the end of this year, the market is to provide shoppers with an assortment of vendor goods for purchase. There will be spaces sectioned off within the concourse area, and it’s on a first-come, first-served basis, City Manager Rachael Tabelski said.

“We’re hoping people will come out on Saturday mornings to enjoy vendors inside City Centre,” she told The Batavian Friday.

Spaces are $40 per day, $100 for three days, and $150 for seven days. It is open to any Farmers Market vendor or anyone else who has goods to sell, she said.

The city will be issuing more details about the indoor market soon, she said.

Tabelski also shared this week that a redesign of the Centre entryways has been completed and will be put out for bid in the near future.

For more information, call the city manager’s office at 585-345-6330.

File Photo of the concourse inside of Batavia City Centre by Joanne Beck.