SAINT PETERSBURG, Fla. — The St. Pete Indie Flea Market took over the Coliseum in St. Petersburg on Sunday.
Thousands came through for over 100 local vendors, giving those local businesses who may not be able to afford rent right now, a platform to showcase their brand.
WATCH: Indie Flea Market comes to St. Petersburg
"St. Pete has become really popular, and with rents going up, it's really tough to have a brick and mortar. So having a space like this where it's an affordable buy-in for a vendor to come and bring everything they can, and then also it's kind of a one-stop shop for people," says Jamie O'Barry, brand manager at Indie Flea.
Indie Flea puts on markets like this one, around Florida.
"We really believe in creating spaces for like our community to come and support local small businesses, so we get people that have been doing this for like 14 years, and then people who just started, and it might be their first flea," says O'Barry.
For local artists, like Clancy Riehm, this market gives her a chance to continue to grow in doing what she loves.
"It is such a great little incubation of community and creativity," says Riehm, "It's my passion, it's my joy, and it's amazing that I can share that joy with other people as well."
“You know, it might just be time we take a look if HOAs are really even necessary.
Maybe we should just do away with homeowner associations as a whole.”
South Florida lawmaker Rep. Juan Carlos Porras (R-Miami) says it may be time to do away with homeowners associations altogether, as more Floridians speak out about rising fees, costly lawsuits, and even arrests tied to HOA disputes. He said this week that he is considering filing legislation in the next session that would abolish HOAs statewide.
