Where: Outdoors, Plaza de la Raza, 24th and N Streets.
Hours: Noon-7 p.m
For information: Nebraska Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, 933-0384
Hispanic merchants in south Omaha are returning to their roots by selling wares at an open-air market typical of those found in the town squares of Latin America.
Sunday, 20 to 30 businesses with fare ranging from Mexican pottery to snakeskin boots will gather at the Plaza de la Raza near South 24th and N Streets.
The backdrop will be cultural entertainment, including mariachi music.
The goal of the summer South O! Market, said Ricardo Castro of the Nebraska Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, is to boost bustle and sales during the economic slump.
Moreover, he said, the area's small businesses want to introduce visitors to a neighborhood where they otherwise might not shop or dine.
“We would love to show what south Omaha offers,” said Castro, the chamber's executive director. “We want them to stay around and see the architecture, eat at our restaurants.”
The outdoor market will be held two more times this summer, on the last Sundays of July and August. Hours are from noon to 7 p.m.
Among the merchants will be established business owners like Juan Gonzalez, whose World of Mexican Pottery store offers hard-to-find imported clay pottery.
“We'd like people to see that they have something special in their own town,” he said.
In the mix also will be budding entrepreneurs such as the at-home jewelry-maker seeking a venue to peddle her crafts.
The combination, said Castro, serves to replicate colorful markets typical in countries where many of the business owners were raised.
Now settled in south Omaha, their Latino businesses have replaced many of the old department stores, furniture showrooms and shoe shops occupied by earlier waves of European immigrants.
Such demographic change often is accompanied by fear of the unknown, Castro said.
Even Castro, who settled farther west when he first moved to town, said he was unaware of the area's diverse offerings until he began working in south Omaha.
The chamber's hope, he said, is for visitors to gain a comfort level that will prompt them to return to an area that is largely untapped by the broader Omaha community.
“We want to bridge the gap between the Latino business community and the traditional community,” he said.
With Sunday being a family day, organizers also are trying to create a family-oriented atmosphere by offering games and entertainment for children.
Also at the event will be service-oriented businesses seeking to publicize their product.
Castro said the market builds on other efforts by the 80-member Hispanic Chamber, a statewide organization established four years ago to assist and promote Latino businesses.
The chamber's largest celebration will be held in September to commemorate Mexican Independence Day and Hispanic Heritage Month. That three-day celebration, Sept. 11 to 13, will include a marketplace as well as entertainment stages and local celebrities.
“We would like to increase traffic in south Omaha,” Castro said. “And show that it is a safe place to bring the family.”
Contact the writer:
444-1224, cindy.gonzalez@owh.com
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