The popular City Market now takes plastic.
PHOTO FROM CITY MARKET WEBSITE

The Charlottesville City Market announced recently that it now accepting debit cards, including SNAP cards, the debit card system that replaced the traditional paper Food Stamp system.

However, the system is a little different from the one at the grocery store. If you’d like to use your debit card, you’ll need to go to the ‘token booth’ and tell them how much you’d like taken out of your account. You’re then given special City Market green tokens which you can spend like cash at the market.

For those with SNAP cards it’s sorta the same deal, though your tokens will be red, and vendors won’t be able to make change. So much for trying to be inconspicuous! However, there’s a program in place that allows SNAP card holders to double their money by shopping at the City Market— swipe your card for $10, and you get $20 worth of tokens to spend.

Look for the token booth, next to the Market Manager’s tent, on Saturday mornings.