Detroit City Council Committee on Eastern Market Operations and Budget - March 12, 2026
Detroit City Council Committee Meeting on Eastern Market Operations and Budget - March 12, 2026
On March 12, 2026, the Detroit City Council Committee of the Whole heard a presentation from Katie Trudeau, President and CEO of the Eastern Market Corporation, on the market's operations, capital projects, programs, and budget request. The meeting included discussion of the market's $300,000 general operating support request, an urban farmer grant program, and the sale of 21 properties in the district. Council members posed questions on food access, infrastructure, and community partnerships, and made two motions that were approved.
Presentation Overview
Katie Trudeau reported that Eastern Market is the largest public market in the U.S., covering 43 acres and drawing over 2 million visitors annually. Key capital projects include:
- Shed 7 Wholesale Distribution Center: A 40,000-square-foot cold-chain compliant facility under construction, funded by a $12 million state grant, $8 million from other sources, and expected to open in June 2026. It will provide dedicated dock and refrigeration space for mid-sized Michigan farmers and Detroit urban farmers.
- Shed 4 Redevelopment: A $15–$60 million project to add year-round vending, kitchen space, and a nutrition education center. About $5.25 million has been raised.
Programmatic updates included:
- A food box program (LFPA) that purchased produce from local growers, with 60% from Detroit black-owned farms. The federal funding has been cut, but Trudeau estimates the program can continue with about $100,000 annually.
- An urban farmer grant program: 80 applications received; $50,000 grants awarded to three farm cooperatives and $15,000 grants to six individual farms, totaling $240,000. The first payments were released in February 2026.
- A mobile market program expanding to all 43 municipalities in Wayne County, with a refrigerated truck and ability to accept SNAP/EBT.
- Food is medicine partnerships with four insurance companies (Aetna, Molina, and others) to provide vouchers for fresh produce.
Trudeau also noted that the 21 properties owned by FIRM Real Estate are being sold; 10 have interested buyers, one has sold, and the market is prioritizing tenants and food-based businesses.
Public Comments
- Betty A. Varner (President, DeSolda Els World Black Association) requested funding to help community organizations pay land use hearing fees and support corridor improvements.
- Owner Papa criticized the city council's decision to allow chickens citywide, stating they attract predators and pose health risks.
- Kahara Amad praised the Eastern Market presentation and urged more involvement with children, including school partnerships and teaching business operations.
- William M. Davis suggested the Building Authority should offer land to city workers and retirees at the same rates as the Land Bank, and proposed a smaller Eastern Market on the west side to reduce congestion.
- iPhone (caller) advocated for eating clubs near urban farms to reduce food waste, and recommended using stormwater for urban farms instead of city water.
Discussion Items
Council members asked questions and raised concerns:
- Councilmember Miller (new board member) asked about the food box program shortfall and the Black Bottom Archives museum build-out cost (estimated at $500,000). She moved to move the $300,000 operating support request to executive session; the motion passed unanimously.
- Councilmember Callaway asked about partnerships with community fridges, AI logistics hub feasibility, and preserving the character of Eastern Market during the FIRM property sales. She moved to add $240,000 to the budget for the urban farmer grant program; the motion passed.
- Councilmember Tate questioned the impact of Eastern Market's mobile market program on local farmers markets, noting declining sales at Grandmont Rosedale. Trudeau explained shifting to providing free produce to draw customers.
- Councilmember Santiago Romero asked about partnerships with commercial grocery stores and how Eastern Market can help connect real estate to food. Trudeau noted relationships with family-owned grocers and the role of Shed 7 in providing wholesale access.
- Councilmember Benson thanked Trudeau and had no questions.
- Councilmember Johnson asked about water access for urban farms. Trudeau said the grant program could not fund water hookups, but the Office of Sustainability has other resources. She agreed to lean into the conversation.
- Councilmember McCampbell (new board member) asked about square footage for urban farmers at Shed 7 (estimated 5,000 sq ft) and requested a list of District 7 markets. She also asked about monthly mobile market drop-ins for neighborhood associations.
- Councilmember Waters asked about staffing (five open positions, difficulty filling some) and revenue from evening events (private facility rentals important for operating budget).
- Councilmember Young asked about the AI logistics hub proposal; Trudeau said she would look into it, especially for Shed 7.
Key Outcomes
- Motion 1: Councilmember Miller moved to move the $300,000 general operating support request to the executive session; the motion passed unanimously.
- Motion 2: Councilmember Callaway moved to add $240,000 to the budget for the urban farmer grant program; the motion passed.
- Trudeau committed to following up on water access, farm locations, Black Bottom Archives funding, and District 7 market details.
- The committee recessed at the end of the morning session, to reconvene at 2:00 PM for public hearings.
Meeting Transcript
Thank you. I am overboard. Ms. Trudeau. Director, thank you so for joining us. We appreciate you being here. We're going to uh see if we can get your lap your um PowerPoint up on the screen. I just raised my hand to be promoted. Okay. Jackie's making a way back there to help with the promotion. Good morning. My name is Valley. So make sure to make Jackie the amount of today. Right. Good morning again, President and CEO Trudeau. Floor is yours, ma'am. Good morning. Thank you for having me here this morning. Uh Honorable Counsel. I'm Katie Trudeau. I'm the president and CEO of the Eastern Market Corporation. We are the 501c3 nonprofit that manages, has the privilege to manage the market facilities on behalf of the city of Detroit. The Eastern Market has uh over two million visit visitors annually that shop in the market on uh a uh Saturday market at the height of our growing season. We'll see over 40,000 visitors to the Saturday market. Um we represent as an organization not only the facilities that uh house the market but six square blocks and 43 acres of land, making us the largest public market in the United States of America. Um we also in the neighborhood oversee or we see over 360 million dollars in in wholesale food um coming in and going out of of the neighborhood. Um then we we run several mobile market programs where we're we're bringing pro fresh produce out into city of Detroit neighborhoods and throughout Wayne County. A couple of uh we we like to think that we operate as an organization according to three different uh pillars. We're a marketplace that's critical to Michigan and Detroit's regional food economy, um, and this includes several major projects that we have underway that I'll get into a little more detail on. Um we're also we also transact over 250,000 dollars in SNAP and EBT transactions at our Saturday market um on an annual basis. Um we're also a place to start and sustain a business. Um, as it gets more expensive for small business owners to start and sustain their business, we offer programs around small business incubation acceleration and our Saturday market as well as our Tuesday and Sunday markets in the summer are great opportunities for small businesses to grow their customer base. We also provide district services for brick and mortar businesses that operate in the neighborhood. We do a lot of advocacy, community engagement, and things of that nature to ensure that those businesses um are represented and have what they need to succeed. Um we're a dynamic commercial district where we are very proud to say everyone is welcome and encouraged to be a part of the eastern market. We facilitate affordable access to high quality food, we support our local and regional food economy, we uh ensure access to food through our programs and our markets to to uh food to vulnerable households, and we lead planning efforts to encourage responsible growth throughout the neighborhood. So a couple of highlights of the work that we currently have underway. Um these are the the first few are more related to capital projects. We have our Shed 7 wholesale distribution center under construction currently. I gave an update on this last year. Um this is a project that has multiple funding sources, the primary source of which is the 12 million dollar allocation from the Michigan Department of Agriculture. It's a 43 40,000 square foot 100% cold chain compliant facility, which has never existed in the eastern market, especially under our operation. There's dedicated dock and refrigeration space for mid-sized Michigan farmers as well as Detroit urban farmers who we work with through our programs. And we'll we're working currently with that co-collaborative of urban growers to ensure that they'll have that. The thing we hear most from the urban farmers who sell in our Saturday market and participate in our program is they have a lack of refrigeration space. So they're really they're literally having to pick the product off their farm in Detroit and drive it to the eastern market, and this will allow them to expand their offerings and have dedicated space right in their city. The programming will also include the maintaining the existing restaurant, which is Frank Stelly, as well as two large-scale wholesale distribution tenants, which are mid-sized Michigan farmers. As I already mentioned the funding source, the cons we expect this to open in June, and a majority of the space is under lease. Here's a rendering of the facility. It's an existing facility that we bought that was built approximately in the 1970s.
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