By ALBERT VILLEGAS
Special to the NEWS
The City of San Benito is considering taking over the monthly Market Days event held in the Historic Robertson St. District.
Organizers, who agree that Market Days has grown significantly, will bide their time while City of San Benito leaders evaluate over the next 90 days what control over the event entails and which department(s) will help coordinate the event, which was privately founded and run.
As explained to the San Benito Commissioners during their Jan. 6 regular meeting, the plan was to place the program initially under the Cultural Arts and Tourism Department, which, according to a city memo, has “staffing capacity, operational experience, and department coordination necessary to successfully oversee all aspects.”
That department is partially funded by hotel-motel taxes, which the City of San Benito could theoretically use to cover Market Days expenses.
The meeting memo to elected leaders also stated that the City of San Benito would “include vendor management, event logistics, cultural programming, and public engagement.”
City Manager Fred Sandoval told commissioners that no Market Day funds are budgeted. The city staff would need to assess the financial impact on the budget, including effects on operational needs, staffing, and event programming.
All commissioners and staff agreed, in some form, that Market Days should continue, but they differed on which department should oversee it and on whether waiting three months was viable.
The Economic Development Corporation and Parks and Recreation were among the San Benito entities and departments cited.
Also, Commissioner Pedro A. Galvan suggested that Market Days could be expanded to include the Texas Conjunto Music Hall of Fame and Museum, which is nearby at 402 West Robertson Street.
During the Public Comments portion of the meeting, one of the Market Days organizers, Linda De La Rosa, noted that Market Days has grown significantly under the vision of Iris García, who pioneered the event in 2019.
She told commissioners it started inside La Villita dance hall and has since spilled onto the adjacent roadway, requiring Robertson Street to be closed to oncoming traffic for the mid-month event.
“Through Iris’ vision, this came to life when we started small, and we were blessed enough that we began to grow,” De La Rosa said.
Vendors, some of whom have gone on to become business owners, would total over 20 inside La Villita, but on the street, the number mushrooms to more than 50, and with it, attendance reaches the hundreds. Many come from throughout the Valley, too, organizers said.
“We’ve been managing it under Iris Garcia for six years, and right now we feel we need help. We’ve done all that we can do, and a lot of great things have come out of it.”
During her time to speak during the meeting’s Public Comments, Co-organizer Norma Boland spoke about the impact the event has had.
“We wanted to revitalize Robertson Street, and I think we’ve done a great job of doing that; we have businesses around there, and of course, there’s room for improvement,” Boland said. “There are other people who are showing interest in coming.”
She said it would be a “win-win” for the City of San Benito to take the reins, with input from current Market Days organizers, if warranted.
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