PEACHLAND — Ignoring the controversy swirling around them, the owners and representatives of the proposed Peachland Flea Market have quietly set about forging a livelihood in the long vacant, tranquil fields of the Burnsville area of Anson County.
With determination and grit, attributes long respected as representative of the ingredients integral to carving out one’s American Dream, the father and son duo, Jose and Tona Diaz, are painstakingly weaving their family legacy into the landscape.
“The middle is going to be for food trucks and parking is going to be out back, ” shares the son of the business team, Tona Diaz. He is proud to display the hard work already taking place at the site.
In addition to parking, an anticipated and widely publicized animal auction will be housed in the back, offering livestock options such as chicken, goats, and rabbits.
The proposed flea market is expected to accommodate upwards of six hundred people, and the Diaz’s are confident their freshly graded parking area will function under the burden of a heavy traffic flow pattern, should the venture take off as the Diaz’s envision.
Previously, a poultry farm operated on the site.
Now, one can hardly tell from the newly constructed joist beams, to the cleared away debris from the former dilapidated buildings, that the place was ever a home for fowl. With the sides of the abandoned barns now removed, sunlight can stream in, its rays lighting on various tools and neatly stacked planks of wood.
Gesturing towards the wide open spaces yawning down the length of neatly swept flooring, Tona Diaz confides, “Eventually these buildings will all be enclosed. We still have to put up a fire wall, I know the fire marshal has already mentioned that.”
The Diaz’s have steadily graded the site, aesthetically seeded areas for grass and peach trees, as well as designed an office operational for part-time hours during the week for the ease of customers desiring to rent booth spaces.
In a nod to their new community, the Diaz’s are planting peach trees around the flea market, good naturedly promising not to charge for any of its fruit.
“Before we open we want to invite our neighbors to come out and visit,” shares the elder Diaz, eager to foster goodwill. He is looking forward to breaking bread with their adopted community and building bonds through shared commonalities.
Diaz adds that, “We hope to one day offer horse or donkey rides here for kids. We really want to be a part of this community, a fun place for the people.”
The flea market plans on having ten restrooms, including handicap accommodations. Regular parking is located in the back, but handicapped parking is marked for the front area of the market.
Aware there are rumors circulating in the community, the Diaz’s want to assure residents that no one will be residing on the grounds of the facility. The flea market plans to operate as does any other standard business in the area.
Knowing that safety is of great concern to area residents, the Diaz’s hope to allay these concerns by confirming that Sheriff Howell will allow for at least two off-duty deputies to patrol the flea market’s perimeter, even granting a patrol car to be present at the facility during hours of operation. Should deputies be hired, the Diaz’s confirm that compensation for their security services will come from the flea market, and will not be passed onto tax-payers.
Hours of operation for the flea market are Saturday and Sunday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., though Jose Diaz does apologetically caution, “We have to open exactly one hour early for vendors to come and set up.”
