West Reading Farmers Market

The community of West Reading is experiencing a transformation … spirited by the growth of the Penn Avenue shopping district and the expansion of its larger companies and institutions. Over 35 new retail and restaurant businesses have opened on Penn Avenue since 1999 and two short blocks away, a $70 million expansion of the Reading Hospital and Medical Center is providing a built in market for the growth. The West Reading Community Revitalization Foundation has sparked much of the improvement by applying the widely successful strategies of the “Main Street America” program with the added support of a Borough-wide, long-term strategic plan for revitalization. Major companies located in the Borough include The Reading Hospital and Medical Center, the region’s largest employer with over 4,000 employees, R.M. Palmer, a world-class chocolate novelty manufacturer, Narrow Fabrics, a global textile corporation and headquarters for Edwards Business Machines with retail outlets throughout the eastern seaboard. The major anchor for small business in West Reading is the VF Outlet Center located just one block from Penn Avenue. The outlets attract 4 to 5 million visitors eac