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By Mike Esposito
In his 1989 book "The Great Good Place," Ray
Oldenburg reminds us of "those happy gathering
places a community may contain where unrelated people
relate. Much to the detriment of our lives," he
says, "these great good places are vanishing from
the urban American landscape."
Residents who live in the area around Troy's former
Public Market on Hill Street have vivid, happy memories
of "the market" and easily agree that it qualified
as a "great good place."
There are several stories that can be told of the 1.2-acre
plot of land between Liberty, Hill, Washington and Fifth.
From 1848 to 1899 it was the location of the Troy Gas
Light Company, complete with coal sheds, a retort house,
and two circular structures called "gasometer buildings."
The company sold the property to the city of Troy in
July 1899 after they relocated their complex. The buildings
were eventually demolished although for a time one was
used as a city stable.
Between 1905 and 1920 several successful produce establishments
opened on the west side of Hill from Liberty to Washington.
Women of the city expressed a great interest in a retail
farmers market for the huge vacant lot. On July 5, 1918,
500 women anxiously awaited the opening of the Troy
Public Retail Market which contained 150 stalls. The
retail farmers market was popular for almost 50 years.
With the advent of supermarkets, the number of vendors
quickly diminished and the space became truly public.
In recent years the successful Troy Farmers Market reestablishes
the popularity of the earlier farmers markets. The complete,
colorful stories of the property's use by Troy Gas Light
Company and the Public Retail Market is still to be
told.
South Central neighbors recount many memories of this
good place especially when it became public space. La
Salle Institute cadets would often assemble at the market
for an afternoon of drill, band practice and marching.
It was not uncommon to see dozens of young neighborhood
children viewing the cadet's maneuvers with their grandparents.
The Troy Boy's Club Drum and Bugle Corp also used the
grounds for practice sessions. The market was a frequent
staging area for many Troy parades including the City
Recreation Department's popular annual Halloween parade.
In the summer of 1950, Kay and Al Bruno, Alfie Ciccarelli,
Louise Marchese and other neighbors of Father Joseph
Keyrouze, sponsored a carnival/block party in the market
to celebrate his ordination. The event also raised funds
to purchase a car for the young priest from Havermans
Avenue.
A huge bonfire in the center of the market was an election
night tradition for many years. Youngsters would remove
campaign signs immediately after the election and gather
scraps of wood and other material for the fire.
Jean Cavallo recalls that the city recreation department
supervised a playground for several years complete with
swings, sliding boards, and other equipment at the south
side of the market along Washington Street.
Pat Zucaro, a ball player in his younger years, has
fond memories of the baseball games attended by hundreds
of neighbors who would cluster along Liberty Street
or view the games from Fifth Avenue during the summer
months. Teams were sponsored by local taverns and community
organizations. A popular treat at the games was Italian
ice sold for five cents a cup by a vendor.
A makeshift skating rink would be formed in the winter
months by city workers who would flood a portion of
the market after piles of snow were dumped in the huge
lot. Frank Piscitella and his boyhood friends would
use a banana stalk and a tin can in place of a stick
and puck to play ice hockey. Residents fondly remember
the market as their playground, full of activity in
any season. Its huge space was an open invitation for
neighborhood kids, perfect for bicycle riding and handball,
a place for youngsters to meet their friends and just
"hang out."
The area remained a public space until November 1975
when the city sold the property to the Troy News Company
for $10,000. Chain link fencing topped with barbed wire
to protect trucks that were parked overnight eventually
surrounded the lot. When Troy News closed several years
ago the property was placed for sale. This once great
good place is now an eyesore, a dismal, deserted, uninviting
lot with an uncertain future.
The lot is within a block of the Vanilla Bean Bakery,
the Bella Rosa Italian Import Store, the Pottery District
and the Italian Community Center, each an important
asset to the South Central neighborhood.
The former public market space has the potential to
be re-established as great good place again, possibly
as a combined passive park/village green, neighborhood
playground and site for community events. One of the
essential elements of community revitalization is the
need for green space. South Central has no public green
space. The neighborhood needs a place where people of
all ages can gather to enjoy once again an informal
public life, in the center of one of Troy's oldest and
most historic neighborhoods.
Many thanks to the dozens of neighbors who shared their
colorful stories about "the market."
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