Swap meet project offers trinkets, treasures
From our weekly issue dated June 4, 2008
“If we build it, they will come” is the mantra of Larry Warnicke, as he plans a “Disneyland Adventure of Flea Markets” on 3 acres adjacent to Rough & Ready Lumber Co.
To celebrate their grand opening Saturday and Sunday, June 7 and 8, Warnicke offers free vendor spaces with a donation of two cans of food, which he will donate to SOOF. After that, space fees will be $10 per day and two cans of food.
School, church and other fund-raising organizations are offered free
spaces.
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Warnicke, his wife, Kim, and partner Mike Brewer hope to establish a community event resembling the valley’s Hope Mountain Barter Faire, with music, arts and crafts. Warnicke visualizes an “art-woodsy theme -- like a Renaissance faire, without the Renaissance.”
Buyers could watch craftsman glass-blowing, stringing beads and carving sculptures. A community garden is planned, where children can pull carrots, as well as a farmers market area.
Warnicke envisions a children’s playground and sandbox area. He and Brewer may even don their clown and gorilla costumes to entertain and promote a family atmosphere.
Billed as “Southwest Oregon’s Largest Weekly Swap Meet & Farmers Market,” the site off Hwy. 199 is 5 miles south of Downtown Cave Junction. It’s open Saturdays and Sundays.
Currently there is a rented outhouse, but plans include a three-stall restroom, with one handicap-accessible with a changing table.
Warnicke said that his specialties include stage lighting. So he envisions a stage facing east, with lighting for musicians and comedy acts. Landscaping paths will lead to the various areas, and there will be RV parking and eventually a designated spot for motorcycles, he said.
Warnicke would like to set up an information center, with a map of 199, spotlighting restaurants, shops, and points of interest. He does graphic design, and could help with brochures for visitors, he stated.
Given enough interest, he feels, the Hwy. 199 swap meet could rival those in Dayton, Ohio where swap meets were still held in below-zero weather, with furnace heaters and tents, Warnicke said.
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At the site, the Warnickes’ originally had a rental mobile home which burned. With no insurance, and the loss of rental income, the swap meet idea rose from the ashes.
ODOT states that between 18,000 to 20,000 drivers a day, on average, travel 199. Warnicke decided that if even 10 percent of them could be stopped, that could generate a lot of revenue for Illinois Valley.
He feels that with gas at more than $4 per gallon, many can no longer afford to leave Illinois Valley, and think that there’s nothing to do here. With their 3 acres, and 10 acres adjacent to expand, Warnicke decided, “Let’s put some people in there.”
Mark Camp provided excavation services, and John Plute helped with electricity as well as his water truck.
Between 15 to 20 vendors were set up during the first weekend on May 24 and 25, and approximately 100 people stopped.
Warnicke noted that Hwy. 199 Swap Meet & Farmers Market provides the signage, exposure, and a site for interaction with other vendors, as well as plenty of parking. It is great for folks that want a yard sale, but don’t have a good location, or don’t want people to know where they live, for privacy and security issues, he said.
With room for 100 vendors, more people selling will bring more customers, and there’s no admission fee for buyers, Warnicke said.
Phone 415-0773 or 592-2245 for more information or to reserve space.
-Zina Booth
