Longtime buyers and sellers are concerned about the potential sale of the Saugus Speedway that would result in the closure of the Santa Clarita Swap Meet.
Christina Evans, former Canyon Country resident, has been a vendor at the swap meet for 15 years and said that her and others’ main concern is what will happen to their colleagues whose income primarily comes from their sales if the swap meet is shut down.
“I would say about 85% of the people that come and sell here, it is their only sort of income,” said Evans. “That is my concern, and I haven’t seen anyone address it.”
Evans said the vendor community within the swap meet is very close to one another. They often look out for each other, talk frequently about their sales, and discuss their lives away from the tables. For them it is hard to think of another vendor potentially losing their way to provide for their family.
During the Planning Commission’s monthly meeting in July, the commissioners were presented with a potential project that proposes to build 318 residential units with an industrial component on the Saugus Speedway property.
After hearing the proposal, commissioners asked several questions to the developer, Peter Vanek of Integral Communities. One being where would the swap meet would be relocated. Vanek said he understood the value of the swap meet but showed no concern about the relocation.
“The Bonelli family is not interested in operating a swap meet anymore,” said Vanek at the meeting.
Doug Bonelli, the current operator of the swap meet, said in a phone call Monday that his family is at the age where they can no longer manage the business. They have approached others in hopes of transferring the business but there has been no interest so far. They plan on keeping the swap meet open until September at the least.
Several vendors said they understood the Bonelli family’s right to sell the land and encouraged them to do so, but they would like to hear about a plan on what will happen to the swap meet if the sale goes through.
One vendor at the swap meet said they think the city should have bought the property and turned the Saugus Speedway into a historical site where they could continually host the swap meet.
Other vendors said that the College of the Canyons should take the responsibility for hosting the swap meet, even if it was just once a month.
Loren Beracci, a Valencia resident who has been a vendor since 1971, said keeping the swap meet open would be beneficial not just for the vendors but for the community.
“I just think if there’s some way they can keep it for the people who really need this place, and that doesn’t just include the people who sell. It’s the people who come in to buy who need this place because they can get stuff (groceries, tools and household items) they need for a lot cheaper,” said Beracci.
Beracci and Evans said they are often visited by a group of kids that will come have lunch and then walk around looking at the different tables. The kids are given a specific amount of money and told to put together items they can buy with their allowance. Some vendors let them buy items at discounted prices because they can see the joy on their faces as they are learning how to shop and are having fun.
One frequent buyer from Evans said she comes to the swap meets to buy merchandise at a reduced price for her business. She sells the merchandise as props to decorators, photographers, wedding coordinators and production studios because they want to buy from inexpensive sellers.
The vendors explained their system as a big circle, and if one part of the system goes away then it would affect multitudes of people.
“The ball is in the swap meet operator’s court. If they (the Bonelli family) would like to look at other locations, we can help introduce them and help them through the city review process,” said Patrick Leclair, planning manager for the city of Santa Clarita.
