Shop local, be local

While traditional retail development may be dead in the water, one local project is steaming ahead.

The Fort Collins Downtown Development Authority has hired Market Ventures Inc. of Portland, Maine, to conduct an 18-month financial feasibility study of a year-round farmers’ market. The study began in January, and has progressed to the point of Market Ventures drawing up conceptual designs for several potential locations, according to DDA executive director Matt Robenault.

“I can’t say where the locations are, but they are all within the DDA’s footprint,” Robenault said. “We’re looking at the economics of both renovating existing structures or starting…