Councilman Charlotte vows to find a flea market site

Charlotte City Councilman Tariq Bukhari pledged on Monday to find a new location for the former central outdoor flea market that was once on the site of the former Eastland Mall.

The flea market closed in February after the lease agreement between the market operator and the city expired. The city, which owns the land, also cited the sale of food trucks without proper licenses on market property.

Bukhari pledged to find a site in the next 60 days.

Vendors and family members spoke at the board meeting Monday evening and urged the board to find a solution.

“The way they closed the flea market was not fair without at least giving us the opportunity to sell during that week,” said Jorge Castaneda, a fruit seller, clutching his overdue credit card bills.

Several council members responded, but Bukhari vowed to find a solution and said he was already working with staff on a plan.

“Jorge can’t wait any longer. You don’t need any more rants, you need action, and it’s not going to happen around this podium,” Bukhari said. “We’re going to spend the next 60 days working this out.”

Assistant City Manager Brent Cagle said city employees have been working to find a new location for the land and are willing to help the sellers financially to re-establish their business.

“We’ve found some sites, but none of them are perfect,” Cagle told the council Monday night. “Most sites are too small to accommodate the number of sellers in one place as Eastland did.”

Cagle said the city is looking for a site with at least an acre, but sellers say they need at least 5 acres, which presents a greater challenge for the city.

Bukhari told The Charlotte Observer that he met with an East Side property owner and Simmons YMCA to identify potential spaces for relocating the flea market. He plans to balance the “realistic side” of what sellers want with “what’s acceptable to get them back in business.” He said he would also look at options that could expand the flea market.

Charlotte purchased the vacant 80-acre property in Eastland, once a bustling mall with a signature indoor ice rink, in 2012. In 2020, the city council unanimously approved a repartition petition from developer Crosland Southeast to convert The site is to a mixed-use center, with 1,050 homes, shops, restaurants, offices and a 2-acre public park.

This story was originally published July 11, 2022 9:31 p.m.