From the Weekly‘s own Rita Connelly via her Facebook:
Just got an email saying that on March 31st, the 17th Street Farmers’s Market is closing. I didn’t shop there as often as I should have, but this is sad news. You could always find great international choices there and usually more than one option of whatever you were looking for. They’ve been there for 20 years! I guess the parent company has to spend more time with their other entities as they are doing well.
What a shame.
We were able to get a copy of the email sent out to the market’s newsletter subscribers, and it included this note from Tucson Food Service President and CEO Tom Kusian:
“It has been our pleasure, and our honor, to serve our grocery customers in Tucson for the past 20 years…Our loyal customers have enjoyed our eclectic, sometimes exotic, often surprising inventory, and local music and entertainment features over the years, and we want to sincerely thank them for their patronage.”
What a shame! 17th Street Market was one of the places I actually saw whole fish for the first time. Another local business gone, leaving a vacancy in town and a hole in my heart.
One more thing: The newsletter also notes that all dry grocery goods will be marked down 20% until everything is gone, effective immediately.
This article appears in Feb 7-13, 2013.
This IS sad news; loved the place for 20 years and will miss it!
Really sorry to see this happen. Not many places you could go to hear a great group play while you shop for things you never even knew existed ot needed…
This store blew me away the first time I entered it.. never saw so many different fish to choose from.
Best of luck to the owners… you will be missed
pds
Oro Valley
I went in there two weeks ago and it looked like a shell of its former self. They only had about a third of what they normally carried. It looked like they were turning it into a warehouse.
While the news of any local place closing is tough for us all, I am not shedding any tears over 17th Street.
I too was blown away the first time I set foot into 17th Street Market. I was a loyal customer from 2008 until they closed the fresh fish counter. From that point on (I think that was a few years back…I want to say 2011?), the once-fabulous selection of international food products began to shrink. What was left of their meat selection ended up in a small freezer, and I started noticing that the fresh produce that I would buy would barely last 2 days without showing significant signs of rot.
I last went into the market a month ago, as I was in the area and needed shaoxing wine. They did not have any, and what was once 10+ aisles of Asian groceries had been whittled down to 1.5.
I’m not surprised in the least that they have closed.
At least we have G&L, Grant/Stone, Babylon, Kimpo Oriental, and the behemoth Lee Lee (even though they’re not local – at least they are an AZ chain).
I went there a LOT when I moved back to Tucson in 2010. Then I discovered a few other places and the co-op became my main grocery store. But I’d go back to 17th St Market for Asian packaged food/Asian produce, and eclectic music just next door.
It seemed like things were growing when they started the lunchtime food truck….but then it seemed to start going downhill. The fish went away, the food truck stopped, the music store had shorter hours, the market had shorter hours…. and I stopped shopping there during the decline. Meat and produce just didn’t look as fresh as it once did, sometimes bordering on downright nastiness. Wasn’t worth going anymore.
Such a shame. Was an awesome place.
I have no idea about the reasons for the decline, but I am definately sorry to hear about the 17th St. Market closing. It’s a unique place and you could find many things that aren’t available elsewhere, particularly their Asian products.
There’s nothing in town to replace its particular combination of international products, organic produce, fresh fish, excellent meats, music and musical instruments, kitchen gadgets, bulk foods, and eclectic surprises, all at bargain prices. There was nothing like it in Tucson, and nothing to replace it. Some of its products aren’t available anywhere in the city, and we’ll pay triple the price for seafood that is inferior. Shopping there was always an adventure. A huge loss for Tucson!
Perhaps they meant well, usually egocentrically, originally, but high overhead, lack of buying-power, too niche. That’s why these businesses get chased-down and eventually fail.
This place was awesome, but it hasn’t been for the last 2 years. You could always get good fish, no matter what your budget. Then they got rid of the fish counter. Every time I went in there all anyone said to the employees was, “you got rid of the fish counter?!”, or “You need to bring back the fish” but I still came back because I could always find great, weird, amazing Asian food items in their massive Asian section. Then they got rid of it. Then they wondered why the place was empty. Then they started whittling down their produce section, and then there was really no reason to come at all. I needed some veggies and I was in the neighborhood about a year ago, and I saw a guy walk in and grab a basket like he had shopped there before. Then I watched him take a quick confused circle around the store, put down his basket and walk out.
Nooooooo! Yet another diamond lost in Tucson. Before they expanded (and hardly anyone knew about them), 17th St. catered to the Asian/Middle Eastern market as they still do today. Yes, there are some terrific, family run markets throughout town, but this is a shame. A real shame. R.I.P. 17th St. You will be sorely missed.
maybe you could have given an address for people who don’t know about it.we could go and see it. to many stories always seem to assume people know a lot of facts that they might not know.
I’ll miss this place as it used to be. Used to shop for the best produce & seafood. It’s really gone downhill recently. Too bad.
Apologies, Henry. 17th St. Market is at 840 E 17th St.
WAKE UP AND SMELL THE COFFEE!! WE need to support LOCAL! Check out Local First AZ. They support local and have a list of local merchants from which to choose from. http://www.localfirstaz.com/
Where else can we now buy local grocery?? Food Co-Op on 4th?
Is our nostalgia only skin deep?
I was told by a cashier at the now lost hidden treasures market that the market was closing so the company could focus on it’s, ostensibly more profitable, service and provision of food and service to local prisons.
So, @scott, don’t worry, the 17th Market is still “keeping it local” servicing the prison industrial complex, and @pammy_culhane, it is a real shame, indeed.
there was a lot of people that loved the 17 th street market , but I guess not enough because they are closed or is closing. tell me what can we do to help you to remain open? this store carried thing that you do not see in other stores such as the fish