Linda Falkenstein
Work is now beginning on stall buildout at the Madison Public Market.
People are curious about what’s going on with the Madison Public Market. Several anticipated opening dates have come and gone — the latest missed goal was March 2026 — and little information is available about the vendor selection process. Isthmus has tried since late December to schedule an interview with market CEO Keisha Harrison, who came on board with the market in July 2024. All interview requests have either been ignored or declined.
The Madison subreddit is rife with speculation, with threads like “Is the public market actually opening this month?,” “Ok seriously, when is the Madison Public Market going to open?” and “Does anyone think the Madison Public Market already becoming a whopping failure could be the result of the leadership that has been hired to run the market?”
The Madison Public Market has a long history. There have been changes in concept, many proposed sites, and delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The market, located in the city’s former fleet services building at 202 N. First St., looks to be finished with exterior and basic interior construction. The city of Madison owns the building; the nonprofit Madison Public Market Foundation holds the lease, providing the operating funds and formally taking over the building from the city in November 2025. Practically speaking, the city of Madison is out of the market business now, and the Foundation is in.
The market has spaces for 28 merchants holding three-year leases and responsible for their own build-outs. (A recent Madison365 story reports on merchant frustration with needing to use specific contractors, which is the case if they are receiving city grant funds to help build-out.) Those 28 spaces vary in square footage from 133 square feet to 2,513 square feet. The two largest spaces, at 2,513 and 1,979 square feet, are thought to be earmarked for a restaurant and a brewpub. There will be multiple flexible spaces for kiosk vendors who may vend only part time, i.e., evenings and weekends. The market also includes event space for rental, commercial kitchen space, and outdoor spaces.
The MarketReady program, funded by the city from 2017 to 2020, helped new entrepreneurs with barriers to traditional access learn skills that would help them run a small business. Landing a spot at the market, however, was never guaranteed. Due to the long delay in market construction, many of the program participants have since found opportunities elsewhere, although the eighth announced market merchant, Carmell Jackson of Melly Mel’s, was a part of MarketReady.
In addition to food purveyors, the market will feature merchants selling clothes, accessories, art and homemade gifts like candles.
Several announcements have been made about when merchant stall buildout will begin. In August 2025, it was “fall 2025.” In January, with an announcement of the first seven merchants, the soft open goal was stated as March 2026. The foundation just recently issued a news release announcing that the first buildout, for Melly Mel’s, has begun and that the market would open in the summer.
In December, when Isthmus first asked CEO Harrison for an interview, she asked for a list of our questions, which we emailed to her. She never, however, responded to follow-up scheduling requests. Isthmus has also tried to contact multiple members of the foundation board with no reply. Our most recent request for an interview with Harrison, on March 31, was replied to by executive assistant Steve Sisson: “We will be reaching out to media who has [sic] shown interest in writing about the market sometime in April.” Sisson did not reply to a follow-up email noting that would not work for Isthmus’ May print deadline.
The concept for the market has changed over the years, from then mayor Paul Soglin’s original vision of a year-round farmers’ market, to providing opportunities for a mix of small entrepreneurs with an emphasis on equity. Now, while equity is still front and center in the market’s mission statement, there also seems to be more emphasis on curating the merchants and vendors for a product mix aimed at commercial success. When did this shift happen?
The market’s website discusses curation of vendors with the mission of “supporting small businesses and lowering barriers to entry, while also ensuring long-term operational sustainability. In public markets nationwide, this often means a thoughtful mix of emerging entrepreneurs and established local brands.” That explains the inclusion of Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream, which has operated in Madison since 1962 and therefore a business that would not seem to fall under the old concept of the market. Cervato Wine Bar is slated for one of the larger spots with almost 900 square feet. This is a woman-owned business that also runs Timber Hill Winery, with an eatery, in Milton, Wisconsin.
Harrison has alluded to fresh produce and other foods from local farms being a part of the market, but it’s not clear in what form.
The nuts and bolts of the process for choosing and vetting vendors remains opaque. What is the timeline for choosing the anchor tenants, the shorter-term kiosk renters, and participants in pop-up events?
What is the procedure for building out a stall? Is there a list of recommended or approved contractors?
How many vendors need to be built out and able to be open for a viable opening for the market overall? And why, in January, was March announced as the target opening date, when no build-outs had begun?
How many businesses are currently vying for these spaces? At a January 2026 appearance at Madison Rotary, Harrison stated the market had “a pool of over 400 interested businesses” for the kiosk spaces, but it was not clear if those were recent applications only or expressions of interest dating as far back as the MarketReady program funded by the city.
Harrison has spoken about the market at the Rotary Club of Madison as well as appearing on an hour-long chat about the market on WORT-FM’s A Public Affair on Feb. 25. But media access has been limited; most information is pushed out by the market. Its most recent newsletter announced staff have been conducting tours for donors.
In addition, the market appears to be creating its own media content, including, the recent newsletter says, “podcast previews from our inaugural lineup of merchants” that will be out soon. Video, too: “A short-form documentary series is in production, offering a behind-the-scenes look at the build, the people, and the purpose driving this forward. We’ll be sharing previews, clips, and premiere details here first, along with select moments on social.”
