One of the guiding lights of Houston’s best farmers market is about to get his Saturday mornings back. Tyler Horne, the market manager for Houston nonprofit Urban Harvest, is leaving his position after 17 years for a new job in commercial real estate. His last market will be this Saturday, May 31.

During that time, he’s seen a lot of growth at the market, which is held every Saturday from 8 am-12 pm. Back in 2008, the market only had about 30 vendors that occupied a parking lot behind an office building in the Upper Kirby area. Horne helped lead the market’s move to the campus of St. John’s School in 2018, which paved the way for substantial growth.

In his role, Horne oversees both the market’s day-to-day operations — collecting rent, coordinating with security (mostly traffic management), making sure people used tent weights on windy days, etc. — and searching for the right mix of compelling vendors to lure shoppers to the market. He’s a jovial presence who greets regulars warmly and offers assistance to first-timers by helping them navigate the almost 100 vendors who sell everything from farm fresh produce and locally-raised meats to pastries and sauces.

"Tyler has been a great cheerleader and connector of people at the Farmers Market since his arrival,” Urban Harvest executive director Janna Roberson tells CultureMap. “He has a gift for meeting interesting people, learning their stories and bringing them into the Houston food community. Tyler is a true renaissance man, knows everything and anything about details most people have no idea about, he is a true, kind and generous soul. We will miss his smiling face and endless stories here at Urban Harvest!"

Horne has also had a keen eye for up-and-coming culinary talent to serve hot food at the market. Urban Harvest offered a home to chef Benchawan Jabthong Painter before she become a James Beard Award winner and chef Emmanuel Chavez long before he earned a Food & Wine Best New Chef award. Their time at the market allowed both restaurants to build a following that helped drive their success.

“The vendor development piece was a big part of my success,” Horne tells CultureMap. “In any given year, I could find 20-30 vendors to cycle through.” Later, he adds, “We serve as an incubator to these small businesses to grow and go on to do something else. That’s why the challenge of keeping a steady stream of new people is so important.”

Horne contributed to the environment in more subtle ways, too. Urban Harvest hosts live music every week the market is open, and Horne acknowledges that he devoted considerable time to finding the right mix of performers to suit the environment.

Now he’ll be taking those skills to Ironbridge Realty Partners. The Houston-based firm will provide Horne with the opportunity to grow in an industry he dabbled in before joining Urban Harvest.

“It’s a great shop with a small team. It’s the kind of place I can learn the business and grow,” he says. “That’s what I need is mentorship to help me learn how to take the skills from running the farmers market to making a successful go in commercial real estate.”

While he’ll primarily be focused on representing landlords, Horne says he aspires to work with a few restaurants, too. After all, he’s watched several of the market’s former tenants go through the process of finding a brick-and-mortar space.

Of course, leaving Urban Harvest doesn’t mean he won’t be present at the market. It’s still his favorite place to shop for produce. But it will be nice not having to be there at 7 am every Saturday.

“Seventeen years has been tremendous,” he says. “It’s going to be great to be on the other side of the tent.”

Urban Harvest declined to respond to CultureMap’s questions about if or when it plans to hire a new market manager.