Maine Avenue Fish Market, View NE

The fish market late Saturday afternoon in August after rain showers. This is one of the dealers in the main pier area. The markets themselves are on barges. Most of the buyers are local; some buying cooked products or raw oysters to eat at the market. A few of the "lookers" are obviously tourists.

Long ago, before the Southwest "redevelopment" the waterfront was back some distance, the famous Washington seafood restaurant Hogates was across Maine Avenue and actual boats, some arriving from the Chesapeake, tied to the Maine Avenue seawall to sell fresh fish, crabs and Bay oysters. The Bay has long been in trouble, oysters are scarce and even crabs are dwindling. Much of the wonderful Bay seafood is gone.

Unfortunately new "redevelopment" plans show this colorful market replaced by some sort of sterile, developer's dream, waterfront mall. Personally, I hope they fail and this market survives as a "real" place and not some poor reproduction as seen in so many "seafront village" tourist traps.