The A.C.E. Flea will span eight Saturdays this spring. (P.S. 290 PTA)
March 28, 2019 By Laura Hanrahan
The A.C.E Flea Market will be returning to Ridgewood for the fourth year in a row starting Saturday.
The annual PTA-run flea market benefiting the students of A.C.E. Academy for Scholars will take place on Saturday April 6, and several other Saturdays in spring and summer months. Proceeds from the event will go toward purchasing new playground equipment for the Pre-K to 5 school.
This year, the event will span eight Saturdays—a substantial change from the typical two weekends the market would last in previous years. The event will be held the first two Saturdays in April and May, as well as the first four Saturdays in June.
From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. inside the school at 55-20 Metropolitan Ave., the market will feature between 30 and 50 different vendors selling everything from jewelry to vintage clothing sellers to handmade soaps and body care items. This year, PTA Co-President Linda Byszynski says they are hoping to add Green Market vendors to promote healthy foods to the community.
The first market was held four years ago, after the PTA began looking for ways to raise money for the then-bare playground at the school that lacked any kind of play equipment other than basketball hoops.
“The PTA wanted to find new ways to fundraise for the school and at the same time embrace the diverse community of the families attending the school and the local community which has been changing throughout the years,” Byszynski said. “It gives the local artist, entrepreneurs and ‘spring cleaners’ an opportunity to get together, support one another and support our school at the same time.”
Money raised from previous years has gone towards the purchase of equipment such as a set of Imagination Playground Blocks—a variety of differently shaped building blocks that fit together to form a wide range of structures.
The A.C.E. Market, sponsored by Ridgewood Market, is still accepting new vendors. Spots at the market are $35 for a 10×10 area.
