Photo: Green Massachusetts/Flickr

Environmentalists, foodies and locavores, rejoice! 2012 will be the year that Boston’s long-anticipated, year-round farmers market opens downtown.

“We understand that the public is looking for a place to find and buy local products,” said Agricultural Commissioner Scott Soares. Starting this fall, the public market will provide just that.

No contractors or vendors have yet signed on, Soares said, but public meetings about the project are ongoing (the minutes and documents from those meetings are available online).

The market will be different from other farmers markets in the city, Soares said. For one, the store, at 136 Blackstone Street, will be open up to seven days a week. What’s more, all the products sold there will be local — something of a challenge for Massachusetts, which doesn’t have the diverse growing season of warmer climates (i.e., unless you’re surviving on root vegetables and kale this winter, you’re probably not eating food grown entirely in-state). The market will also be distinct from nearby Haymarket, which sells conventional produce at low prices, Soares said. Despite the obvious difference, some Haymarket vendors are concerned.

“I wasn’t surprised to hear Haymarket’s concerns, but we’ve been clear that this effort needs to be complimentary,” Soares said. Products at Haymarket will be cheaper, so the two markets won’t be in direct competition, he said.

Interested in getting involved? You can share your ideas for the public market online here.