(Mission Open Air Flea Market owner Joel Dauley, left, with vendor Robert Sanchez. Photo by Steve Valdez) Mission Open Air Flea Market Contrary to rumors, Mission Open Air Flea Market is not being sold to H-E-B. Also, no one from U.S. immigration has ever set foot on the 23 year-old flea market, said its owner Joel Dauley. "The rumors about H-E-B, and immigration, not true," Dauley said with a chuckle on a recent summer day. What is true is that the flea market located at the intersection of Loop 410 South and Moursund Boulevard is expanding. Mission Open Air Flea Market recently leased about 8-acres of land next door. The land previously belonged to Lozano Trucking Company. Dauley said they are moving the flea market’s administrative offices to the new property. The land will also house maintenance facilities and additional parking for the flea market. "We opened in 1985 with a half-acre," Dauley said. "We had to buy 14 different properties over the years to get to where we are now. Today, the market has 45-acres." On weekends, people come for the bargains, but also to share "local" gossip, taste the food and visit with friends.
"This is the South Side mall," Dauley said. "It’s a mall without walls. It’s a little bit of Mexico, 10 miles from downtown."
(Brenda DeHoyos shows off her merchandise at the Mission Open Air Flea Market off Moursund Boulevard. Photo by Steve Valdez)
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