March 28, 2024
Local News | Kane County Chronicle


Local News

Kane County Flea Market to return in August

Market will be held Saturdays and Sundays in St. Charles

ST. CHARLES – After a four-month absence, the beloved Kane County Flea Market will once welcome treasure hunters on Aug. 1 and Aug. 2 at the Kane County Fairgrounds in St. Charles.

The Kane County Flea Market is usually held on the first Sunday of each month and the preceding Saturday, March through December. Following its last show the weekend of Feb. 29-March 1, the flea market was forced to shut down because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Show times are from noon to 5 p.m. Saturdays and 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays. As the pandemic continues, several health and safety guidelines will be in place when the flea market reopens next month.

Customers, dealers and employees will be required to wear masks at all times and follow social distancing guidelines. Sanitizing stations will be located throughout the flea market and customers are being asked to limit the amount of items they physically touch.

"We're in compliance with the Kane County Health Department and we're going to try to follow all of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines." said Chris Robinson, whose family operates the Kane County Flea Market. "We're going to try to be as cautious as we can."

Robinson's grandmother, Helen Robinson, started the Kane County Flea Market in 1967. She passed away in 2000.

The flea market's office has been deluged with calls and emails from people wondering when the flea market will reopen.

"The response has been very positive," Robinson said. "We're going to give it a go. The response from customers and vendors has been very, very positive."

The area is in phase four of Gov. JB Pritzker's Restore Illinois plan, which allows for gatherings of no more than 50 people. Robinson noted the flea market is spread out across the fairgrounds, so there won't be more than 50 people in one spot.

"Everything is pretty spread out," Robinson said. "Everybody is in the same boat. Everybody wants to be safe, vendors and customers included."

He anticipates that the majority of the flea market's vendors will be participating in the flea market when it reopens. Robinson looks forward to welcoming customers back to the flea market, including many familiar faces.

"A lot of the vendors and customers have been coming to the show for 30 or 40 years," he said. "You do see a lot of the same faces. You kind of miss them. A lot of these people are like family."