If you drove down Western Avenue in Guilderland on Sunday morning, you probably noticed the farmer's market isn't where it usually is. The owner says he's in a dispute with the property manager, as well as the owner of one of the restaurants where the market is located, and now the vendors are suffering.

Several vendors say that the market Sunday was very slow compared to its usual traffic.

Scott Abraham, the owner of the Guilderland Farmer's Market, says he was forced to move to the back of the Star Plaza off Western Avenue, following a dispute with the owner of Orchard Tavern West.

"I'm going around to my vendors now and seeing what they made," said Scott Abraham. "They lost 75 percent of what they normally do when they're out front." 

Abraham alleges that Kris Monforte, the owner of Orchard Tavern West and Orchard Tavern in Albany, complained he was losing business due to the market, but Monforte says that's not what happened.

"I have staff going and bringing food out to cars and this is a congested little intersection," Monforte said. "Anyone's who's turned into this plaza knows it's a little goofy. So I had asked the landlord, 'Can we push the farmer's market forward and put it along Western Avenue?'

"One, it'll help the flow of traffic here, but two, it'll give all the vendors exposure to Western Avenue. That's all I asked." 

The property's landlord confirmed to Spectrum News that Orchard Tavern West's request was specifically to move the market towards Western Avenue, but when he couldn't reach an agreement with Abraham, he pushed the market behind the plaza, which was the original space agreed upon three years ago.

"The reason why we moved from out back our first year to out front our first year was because a lot of senior citizens said it was too much to walk around, it's too far, and they loved it up front," Abraham said. "So our first year when we moved it from back here to up front, vendor sales doubled."

Both Abraham and Monforte say they met to discuss the issue, but their recollections of how that meeting went aren't exactly the same. Monforte says he isn't trying to hurt the vendors' businesses. He says keeping the market out front is better for everyone.

"In that conversation, I repeat to Scott, 'Farmer's market is good for Guilderland, it's good for the plaza, and it should be in the front,'" Monforte said. "I never asked to have it moved, I don't have that power ... this is being blown out of proportion for what reasons I don't know, but all I wanna do is survive." 

Monforte has only been open in the Guilderland location since October and has 30 employees.

Abraham says to settle any possible issue, he offered to allow Monforte space in the market at no cost.

"I'm like, 'Hey, I'll give you a free booth, I'll let you sell food, you can give out coupons, do a raffle, I'll even set up tables and chairs and put out stanchions​ and let you have outdoor seating.' He declined," Abraham said.

For now, this dispute is ongoing, but all parties say they're hoping to resolve it soon. Several vendors indicated they believe the market will be along Western Avenue next weekend, but neither Abraham, Monforte, nor the landlord have confirmed its location.