‘You never think something you are doing is going to take off’: Greensburg Night Market returns for 6th season

When Jessica Hickey launched the Greensburg Night Market in 2019, 28 vendors lined half a block of South Pennsylvania Avenue.

Starting its sixth season Thursday, the night market series has expanded to feature food trucks, live music and more than 150 food, beverage, art and craft vendors.

Each market — which typically takes place one Thursday evening per month from April to December — now draws about 5,000 people, said Hickey, owner of the Downtown Greensburg Project.

“To see it grow like this, it’s kind of crazy,” Hickey said. “You never think something you are doing is going to take off.”

Hickey started the Downtown Greensburg Project in 2015 to promote businesses in the Greensburg area. The night market has helped accomplish this goal, she said.

This Thursday’s market will start at 5:30 p.m. and run until 9 p.m. Food, beverage and craft vendors will be accompanied by four live musicians, a DJ and a photo booth.

A shuttle system will also be introduced to the night market this season, Hickey said. Shuttle buses will run from Nicely Elementary School on McLaughlin Drive to the corner of South Pennsylvania Avenue and West Pittsburgh Street.

Buses will pick people up from the elementary school starting at 5:15 p.m. The last shuttle will depart from downtown at 9 p.m., Hickey said.

“We wanted to make sure that people, if they can’t walk or don’t want to walk far, they can get dropped off in the middle of town,” Hickey said.

Vintage Market to start next month

The Downtown Greensburg Project is also hosting a Vintage Market series on select Sundays from May to September, Hickey said.

About 50 vendors will sell vintage wares, antiques, collectibles, upcycled items, books, records, vintage decor, flowers and plants. Food trucks and live music will also be available.

Secondhand clothing store Stone Age Collections, which opened on South Pennsylvania Avenue in February, will fit right in with the market vendors, Hickey said.

“I love vintage shopping and going to estate sales and stuff like that. We don’t really have a vintage market in Greensburg,” Hickey said. “I think it kind of goes hand in hand with the night market.”

The first vintage market event will take place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 19 at St. Clair Park.

The other markets will be held July 7, Aug. 3, Sept. 1, and Oct. 6 at St. Clair Park and June 9 at the Westmoreland Museum of American Art. A holiday-themed vintage market will be held Nov. 3 at Live Casino Pittsburgh in Hempfield.

Watching it grow

Greensburg business owner Suzanne Ward, who recently moved her RSVP Gifts and More store to South Pennsylvania Avenue from Route 30, has been renovating properties downtown since 2018. She has watched the night market grow from the ground up, she said.

“To watch it grow from a small parking lot space to an entire street that covers four or five blocks now, it’s insane to see,” she said. “Now you have lines to get in.”

The market doesn’t just draw traffic to Greensburg one night a month, Ward said. It raises awareness for the city’s brick-and-mortar businesses.

“(Jessica) does a phenomenal job, and I hope it never goes away,” Ward said.

Returning vendors to the night market series include The Pickled Chef, Valley Rose Craft BBQ, Big Buns Cinnamon Rolls, Glass Jewelry by Ashley and The Golden Tee.

Among the new vendors this season are Animal House boarding kennel, El Chucho food truck, Wednesday Snacks and GS Sando.