All was quiet at Beachport’s Pool of Siloam on Saturday when the iconic crowd attracting duck race was cancelled.
Just three days before the event was to be held the Beachport and District Development Association announced the colourful attraction would not go ahead, along with its summer market day.
Had the market gone ahead, Railway Terrace would have been closed to vehicular traffic to allow stall holders to line both sides of the street.
The announcement left some intending visitors and stall holders disappointed with comments being made on social media.
However, some stall holders announced on social media platforms they would continue to trade on the day.
Some stall holders chose to sell their products either online or by erecting a marquee at their private premises.
Beachport resident Heather Burdon advocated for the community to support stall holders who could still provide their goods even though the market had been cancelled.
Stall holder Grace Keatley used her tech savvy skills to set up an online market by uploading images of her stock which customers commented on to initiate their purchase.
Ms Keatley was grateful to those that supported the change in the way she traded.
“We thought it would be a great opportunity to still hold a market and offer everyone the ability to purchase our products,” she said.
Ms Keatley’s method involved uploading images of items on her social media business page throughout the day and offered postage options and contactless collection.
“Thank you to those who placed and picked up orders.
“We appreciate each and every one of you and we hope you enjoy your goodies,” she said.
A pop up market was set up under a bright pink marquee on Sargeant Street in the beachside town and another was set up on Burks Island Road.
Stall holder Ashlee Jolley thanked everyone who had visited, adding that she was blown away with the support.
The BDDA has not yet confirmed whether the summer event will be rescheduled this year or postponed until 2023.
Meanwhile the Kalangadoo Farmers Market will not continue for the remainder of January.
The decision was made last week following discussions by the committee.
The committee’s decision was due to the increasing COVID case numbers not just in South Australia, but in the local area.
“Regulations for our capacity and restrictions have changed, so only half of our market would have been running,” a spokesperson said.
It was also reported that due to several of the market volunteers have withdrawn due to medical and personal reasons.
The committee intended to reassess the situation at the end of January.
“We understand that many will not be happy about this.
“We want everyone to be as safe as possible during this outbreak, both visitors to our market and our volunteers who run it,” the spokesperson said.
“If we all keep wearing our mask, signing in and sanitising, we’ll hopefully get to see you in February.”
