There will be Beetles everywhere at the Marketplace this Tuesday! Not quite like there were dogs everywhere last week! The 5th Annual Dogs on Parade was again a huge draw for our four legged friends. The Bonnie L Hays Animal Shelter and Charlie Girl from Charlie FM, got the parade underway with his Honor Mayor Willey leading the pack for a quick stroll around the Marketplace and back to the Plaza for some Prizes.

Getting back to Beetles though; I am up for a little British Invasion from my hometown. Local Beatles tribute band, The Oregon Beetles will be rocking the stage under the Sequoias and the Rose City Volksters are bringing their Beetles and other classics to show off. If you have a classic British motor car or motor cycle, feel free to bring it to the Cruisin’s Tuesday’s Street of Classic Cars Dreams. The Street opens for parking at 4:45

Still half a market season to go and we will be sporting some Youth Performing Arts on the Plaza Starting with the Stages Academy along with other planned events so keep a watch of the web and Facebook pages for updates.

I am still looking for people who like to write and would like to contribute to our blog pages. Maybe you have an interesting story from the Market, enjoy a certain vendor or event, or have a special recipe from some produce or food you found. Write it up and send it from the webpage contact form or e-mail to visitor@tuesdaymarketplace.org

Meet at the Tuesday Marketplace, 5:00 – 8:30 pm E. Main between 1st and 2nd. Downtown Hillsboro.

The plaza was so alive with activities last week. The water tables from the Children’s Creative Center art projects looked cooling, the Martial Arts students looked hot and the toddlers in the 30 minutes of freedom playroom had all the shade! I want to be little again!

The plaza will again be filled to over flowing on the 13^th as the 5^th Annual Dogs on Parade takes to the streets of the Marketplace, then back again, for contests and prizes. A fundraiser for the Bonnie L Hays Animal Shelter, a $1 donation gets you lined up to stroll to the sounds of the Trouble Makers and their annual marathon rendition of ‘Walk the Dog’!

There was a lot of new art on Tuesday as First Tuesday Artwalk joined us and to keep them all entertained, Gayle Ritt played a little guitar. This is the third area we have added music to and its kind of nice to move from street to street from music to music. They are just far enough away to not compete. Gayle had so much fun she will be back. So go take a listen and maybe buy a cd. First Tuesday Artwalk joins us again on August 3^rd.

If you are a regular to the Marketplace you will notice we moved things around on the Courthouse Lawn to allow for more seating under the trees; the best place to be when the temps are high! Lots of people bring blankets and chairs, claim a space, and make a night of it… I love it!

When we have a busy night at Market we have a lot of cleaning up. A team of local teens, who just like ‘hanging at the Market’ joined the crew last week and worked really hard to pick up garbage and help fold chairs for free sodas and t-shirts. A small price to pay for getting me home before midnight! My crew and I really appreciated that. Thanks.

And to David, who has spent many, many Tuesdays helping in the sponsor area, we will miss your smiling face. Our hearts are with you and your family.

You can find all event information about the Hillsboro Tuesday Marketplace on the web at www.tuesdaymarketplace.org. Meet at the Marketplace every Tuesday evening from 5:00 – 8:30 pm through August 31.

People…travel down our street.  We get lots of traffic, but not as much as at the center of the Market.  We have great music down at our end and lovely jewelry, crafts, natural goodies, beer, ices and A Blooming Hill Vineyard wines.  The addition of vendors this week moved our spots around a bit but I was there with my same nice neighbors.  Waved hello to familiar faces and made some new friends.

I had lovely Indian food for my own dinner and persuaded someone who was eating fried, spicy pickles to try our Pinot Gris – a good pairing!  I found a Henna artist for the bride getting married at our Vineyard at the end of August and Jim bought lovely raspberries.

The end of the evening came too soon.  Looking forward to next week and, maybe, two hours of summer.

The nice weather is also bringing more farmers to market with local fresh produce. Cherries and berries and all things green can be found throughout the market and I do believe even the lavender is waking up. Do not forget to support our farmers who work so hard to bring all their wonderful farm fresh produce to your neighborhood.

I hope you enjoy the 4^th July weekend. Some of our ‘Friends of the Marketplace’ will travel all over Hillsboro Saturday in the Hillsboro 4^th July Parade represented by many volunteers on a wagon, pulled by a tractor, followed by red, white and blue Mustangs, flanked by walking volunteers, serenaded by some great music all while handing out goodies and generally having a great time.

Holiday weekends also unfortunately brings the need to have lots of blood on hand. The Tuesday Marketplace has teamed up with the Red Cross to host a blood drive in town this Tuesday, July 6. They will be stationed on Main St. at the Civic Center from 12:00 – 7:00PM.  So please come down and donate. If you come to the information booth with your Red Cross donation sticker, will we give you a market pin and a free entry in our Market Basket raffle.

The annual Dogs on Parade event will fill the Plaza the following week, which always brings out the crazy in man’s best friend, or is it the owners who are crazy? Either way, you will get a kick out of the costumes they show off and prizes for best bark or slobbery kiss or sheer size are up for grabs

If you have a pooch who likes to parade in public proffered in pink or dressed in a matching owner/pet outfit, or even in their birthday suit (the pet preferably), come on down and support the Bonnie L Hays Animal Shelter with your $1 donation and win goodies and prizes. You can go to the website www.tuesdaymarketplace.org for all the information, how to enter and where to go.

I want to give a huge shout out to Market sponsors Spencer and Aaron at NW Insulation. They generously offered up their large truck to help us load and unload all the equipment it takes to run the Marketplace and allowing us to store it all in their warehouse. Thanks guys. You can find them on 2^nd Ave giving away free cotton candy that looks remarkably like the insulation they install! Deliberate? I think so.

With the weather getting better each week, we are starting to see the crowds coming out and vendors are happy. We have some new vendors joining on Artist Row this week, so make sure you trek down 2nd to take a look. July 6 at the Marketplace coincides with the Hillsboro First Tuesday Art Walk and we will have about 11 extra vendors on 2nd  so lots of art to look at.

Art is becoming such a focus of the Market that we are also planning an Art and Wine evening on August 10, which is also our Side Walk Chalk Art contest. Look for information on that coming up soon.

We have so much planned for the Market each week there is always something new to do. So Meet at the Marketplace every Tuesday Evening from 5:00 – 8:30

Oh My Gosh, it is great to be back! Thank you to everyone for joining us for our first Marketplace season. The weather behaved nicely just long enough, allowing everyone to enjoy the short break in the persistent rain, right up until everyone had to pack up, then my hair was just ruined!

Almost all of our planned vendors were present, but we are still waiting for some crops and flowers to get a little sun, then the farmers will be filling the spaces. Which was just as well this week–we always have a car or two who forget, or do not read, the No Parking After 4:00 pm signs, so with a full market, we really have no choice than to build booths around stray vehicles.

What happens when you park after 4:00 pm!

This added to the conversation topics for Peace of Soap and Ungers Farm who shared space with a car that was parked by the owners’ son! I feel bad for the son but Dad was ok with the ensuing raffle Heatherleigh offered to hold, so long as they split the profits!

So just be warned, if you do forget to pick up your car on a Tuesday, you might have to shop until 9 and buy a raffle ticket to win it back.

June 8 Crusin' Tuesday Winner

Where we do not mind cars is on the ‘Cruisin’ Tuesday’ street of classic car dreams. Marv from Garland Griffiths and Kendra, one of our newest Board members from West Coast Bank, awarded a prize for the sweetest ride to a ’29 Model A Tudor owned by Norm and Dalice Sawyer of Banks.  Norm built the car from the ground up and has pictures of the car when he started.  It is powered by a 4.3 liter V-6 that fits nicely in the engine compartment without extensive modifications. Garland Griffiths will be awarding prizes to winners each week, winners for each month then the entire season.

The Washington County Fair Boosters had a Strawberry Shortcake Social planned for the 15^th but again the weather had other plans and their strawberries are not ready. They will be moving to June 29, so join us to enjoy that little treat.

The plaza was also a little quiet last Tuesday, Mother Nature had a lot to do with that and school a little more. This week you will find it full of excitement with the Sonrise Church offering ‘30 Minutes of Freedom’ in its toddler play house which has expanded its’ space the meet the demand of all those little climbers. The School of Respect Martial Arts team from right here on Main street will be holding classes and giving demonstrations on the Plaza also and of course the weather will invite many to the fountain and the nearby Shaved Ice booth for a Sweet Sno Cup.

You might also have noticed the extra seating we have out this year; lots of places to sit and enjoy dinner and watch WashCo BTC train little bikers how to ride safely on the streets. They have a full training course set up on Main Street near Starbucks.

On our Main Street food court you will find everything your hearts desires to eat. New this year is Mama’s Mini’s serving tasty little donuts and Earth Oven Pizza fires up all sorts of treats to put on dough that is fired in the oven, ever had dessert pizza? I have now!!

Cousin Kenny is BBQing his pulled pork, Beirut Café serves his famous elephant ears along with fish and chips, gyros and salads and next to him Coyote’s Bar and Grill grills up bison and regular burgers and fries, Across the way, Ochoas’s takes us south with a traditional Mexican menu and noodles, always a very popular fare, brings us Filipino, Thai and Japanese versions, all with their own little twist from J.P Cuisine, Thai Satay House, Oriental Place and Players. Katmandu totes the “Best Nepalese Food in Town” , S. Deezy fries just about anything you can think of, including twinkies and Fetzer’s grills up sausages of varying spiciness which you can cool down with frozen fruitiness from Alotto Gelato.

Check in again next week when I highlight vendors from other areas of the Marketplace including the Artist Row and some farm reports.

See all the information about the Marketplace at www.tuesdaymarketplace.org and Meet at the Tuesday Marketplace on Main Street between 1^st and 3^rd 5:00 – 8:30

by Holly Witte – TMP first blog contributer

I always have to explain to my friends in the East that when I talk about pouring in the Northwest, I mean wine.  They think rain with their stereotypical view of our paradise.  Okay, so lately they’ve been right.  Luckily, at the first Hillsboro Tuesday Market of the season, the rain didn’t start until the end of the evening and by then we had already had a great night!

We really had no expectations when we started but next week we’ll have big ones because the crowd was wonderful, people loved our wines and bought them and I met lots of interesting people whose wine knowledge ranged from some to a great deal.

I cajoled one woman who was across the street and looking over at our wine bar to walk over.  Not much of a wine drinker, she said, so I probed to see if she liked sweet wines, dry wines, red or white. She tasted, chatted, told me a lovely story about a trip to Italy, some high-alcohol homemade wine which gave her the giggles, and then she bought a bottle of wine to share at dinner with a friend.   One of my favorites was a man who came over and literally growled at me…told me he was in a bad mood.  I wanted to see if I could change that so we chatted and I got him to try our Riesling.  The next growl was more satisfied and he told me the wine made him feel like Tony the Tiger…then he gave me a Mickey Mouse balloon.  That was a definite highlight of the evening!   A surprising number of people either have a small vineyard of their own or want to start one.  I was happy to dispense advice, commiserate and extol the virtues of this romantic life.

This year, we have five wines to pour – four whites and a red. It was so interesting to figure out what people might like to taste.   I thought I would charge a tasting fee but, to tell you the truth, I think that discourages people from trying the wines.  Love to hear from patrons and vendors about how you deal with that.

We’re a little far away from the intersection of the action, so I hope people will look for us … or there’s the possibility of shuffling spots a little bit so everyone gets a chance to be in the hotspot .  I finally had a chance to walk through the Market myself when my husband got there toward the end of the evening and I know I am definitely going to enjoy some of the other vendor’s wares throughout the season!

Good first time out.  I even got over the fact that it was pouring on us and Jim kept lingering at the door of the truck instead of speedily loading because he was trying to catch the end of the Laker’s game in the NBA finals.  Thank goodness they won .  Now, rain, rain stay away.

Ah! the food smelled so good.

The weather held out just long enough before soaking all the wonderful volunteers cleaning up. They didn’t complain and left with promises of being back next week.

It is always tough the first night with new volunteers, who did a wonderful job, and new vendors finding there feet, and we had a few issues with spaces and cars being parked too long but other than that it was  great evening. Check out out some photos on our Facebook Page

Check back for more updates…

Is that an elephant ear I see?

Ice Cream... We all scream for Ice cream!

Along with the incredible weather forecast for this Tuesday, (fingers crossed) the business community of Hillsboro has really stepped up this year to help make the Hillsboro Tuesday Marketplace shine, and we could not be happier and more proud of our sponsors for their continued support to ensure that Historic Downtown Hillsboro and the Tuesday Marketplace is the best place to meet friends and family on a Tuesday evening during the summer.

Our Presenting Sponsor, Tuality Healthcare, has been supporting the Hillsboro community for many years and proudly partners with Tuesday Marketplace each week, informing our visitors on a wide variety of health and wellness programs, and provide quick and easy tests for blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose, all while they paint the faces of happy children.

We also welcome back our Co-Sponsor Solar World who presents our ‘Friends of the Marketplace’ program. You will find them near the information booth on Main and Second handing out more sunshine. And joining the family this year, Coyote’s Bar and Grill presents our Main Stage. They will also be serving up bison burgers from their booth next to the beer where they will also bring a refreshing selection of summer brews.

Partners from State Farm Insurance will be on the corner being neighborly and the green team from Northwest Insulation explains ways to keep warm, cool and green. The Hillsboro Argus makes sure you all know what’s going on each week and City of Hillsboro lets us mess up the streets for a day. You will find their representatives at the market each week. Please stop by and thank them for their continued support.

Our ‘Downtown’ sponsors are involved in many ways. Let’s Play Toys host a children’s play table outside their store, Hillsboro Pharmacy & Fountain serves us Umpqua ice cream outside theirs. Marv Garland from Garland Griffiths Attorneys sponsors and manages Cruisin’ Tuesday’s, our street of classic car dreams, and gives away prizes for the sweetest ride.

Walt Sheridan Crawford Insurance agent John DiFalco puts a claim on the stage when his band Beadhead plays in August. There is also a day of free milk from the Washington County Dairy Women in June. Warm welcome back to Hillsboro Eye Clinic, Whole Brain Creative, Verizon and Hillsboro Garbage and welcome Pack First Properties.

Visually speaking, if it’s printed, posted or hanging from a pole Millennium Graphics or the The Sign Company had a hand in that, or if you are looking at it from the web or on a video, ImageWise Productions puts it there and Global Network Support, makes sure it stays working. The new stage at Third and Main is there because of the talented folks from Influence Gallery.

At any level you look at it Crane Point Industrial, Fordham & Goodfellow, Oregon First Credit Union, Columbia Community Bank, Pacific College of Health Professional, West Coast Bank Band, Macy’s Tanasborne and Hillsboro Free wi-fi make it look better, and we have a growing family of ‘Friends of the Marketplace’ with  Associated Property Management, Earthscape Landscape design, Marv Garland, Dan Aberg, Linda Stewart, Diana and Bruce Franklin,  Aaron Eichenbaum and the support of the Hillsboro Downtown Merchants.
All these generous people ensure the Marketplace can continue to provide an entertaining family friendly place to shop local, choose fresh, buy art, crafts and gifts and visit our ever expanding Art community while enjoying quality, free entertainment, delicious international foods, local beer and wines, and of course, each other.

Meet at the Tuesday Marketplace, June 8 from 5:00 – 8:30 pm. E. Main and 2^nd Ave. Downtown Hillsboro. To see all the events and link to our sponsor businesses go to www.tuesdaymarketplace.org

It’s summertime and that means two things:

1) There are loads of delicious farm fresh produce available at Hillsboro Tuesday Marketplace farmers market every week; and

2) American Farmland Trust’s America’s Favorite Farmers Markets™ contest has kicked into gear and we need your votes to win!

The process is simple.  To vote for our market, all you have to do is:

1.)    Go to www.farmland.org/vote

2.)    Type in Hillsboro Tuesday Marketplace; and,

3.)    Click “Vote”

That’s it. That’s all it takes to bring Hillsboro Tuesday Marketplace one step closer to being America’s favorite farmers market!

According to American Farmland Trust (AFT), the purpose of this contest is to re-connect local consumers to local farms, with the ultimate goal of keeping our nation’s farm and ranch land productive and healthy!  Buying at the farmers market keeps money in the local community and helps farms and ranches remain economically viable. By voting, you’re helping support farms and communities across the nation. As American Farmland Trust says, “No Farms No Food™!”

So don’t forget to vote for Hillsboro Tuesday Marketplace at www.farmland.org/vote and spread the word!  Big thanks to everyone who has already voted!