IT’S not the first time the idea of a farmers market for local produce has come up in Ilkley.

The decision of the town’s council last time was to go ahead with a three-month trial as suggested by the local authority, although this never got off the ground. While there has been much enthusiasm from various quarters, not everyone has been in favour of such a market in the past.

Concerns were previously raised about how to keep such a market strictly ‘local’. Should there be a restriction on distance travelled by stallholders? And the effect of competition for businesses which are permanently based in town, and have pay rents and business rates, was also something that has been spoken of in the past.

In more practical terms, there are also the issues such as how will the market be run, and where will it be held? There has already been some disquiet in recent years about the number of times The Grove has been closed to traffic while special events take place. And although it is up to Bradford Council how it chooses to manage the South Hawksworth Street car park, the market could find itself in the very spot that its potential customers need to park in.

Exacerbating Ilkley’s parking issues would not be a popular move. There may well be very practical answers to such questions, but it is important that everything is taken into account and addressed in the forthcoming feasibility study, and that this information is shared with the town as soon as possible.