Visiting Farmers Impacted: Yeng Lee Cha of Cha Farms
After weeks of devastating flooding across western Washington and the eastern Cascades in December, Pike Place Market farmers are among the thousands of individuals and families beginning the likely years-long process of recovery. Although the water is only recently beginning to recede, damage assessments and rebuilding plans are still in early stages.
For many farmers, the challenges are intensified by limited or nonexistent insurance and the complexities of farming on land they do not own. These factors make recovering the full cost of damages feel nearly impossible.
One Market farmer facing severe impacts is Yeng Lee Cha of Cha Farms. Cha Farms has sold flowers at Pike Place Market for 17 years. Yeng Lee’s farm properties in Snohomish County were inundated with floodwaters, leaving her land in disarray. At 67 years old, with no plans to retire any time soon, Yeng Lee tends her fields all on her own. Returning now to her properties, Yeng Lee is fearful of how she’ll be able to mend her farm and put the pieces back together.
“It’s a lot to process,” she said, stepping over debris strewn about the property, dumped there by the rushing water.
Left: yards of plastic used to wrap hay barrels tangled throughout Yang Lee’s eight acres of farmland.
Right: a tractor tire, heavy plastic tubing, and miscellaneous equipment from neighboring farms pile up on her property.
Flood Damage at Cha Farms in Snohomish County
A walk through her fields reveals an assortment of items that don’t belong: buckets of golf club heads and balls from a neighboring golf course, water-logged haybales from nearby farms, a large tractor tire, a ladder, piles of trash and packaging material, and even a pumpkin lodged nearly 9 feet high in a tree. What you won’t find are two of Yeng Lee’s small greenhouses, two portable restrooms, and the sheds that protected her water wells. Some structures were swept away into nearby ditches, while others were pummeled beyond recognition. Her large shipping container — weighing an estimated three to four tons — was lifted entirely off its foundation and shifted nearly six feet.
The smallest of Yeng Lee’s three greenhouses was the most important during the winter months. Now crumpled in a ditch, the small PVC pipe and heavy-duty plastic-walled greenhouse was used for flower and plant starters. Yeng Lee had planned to begin cultivating her starters in mid-January, but without a greenhouse, she doesn’t know when or how she’ll be able to begin preparing for the spring season.
Left: the remaining PVC pipes sticking out of the ground that once framed one of Yeng Lee’s greenhouses
Right: The rest of the greenhouse and plastic covering that was carried over 200 yards away into a ditch
She also fears that the roughly 500 strawberry starters she planted just before the flooding will not survive. Another major concern for Yeng Lee and many farmers affected by the floods is the potential for soil and water contamination. As an organic grower, she is especially worried that foreign substances left behind by the floodwaters could jeopardize her organic status.
On the Road to Recovery
Despite the sweeping damage and long road to recovery in front of her, Yeng Lee remains in good spirits. Picking her way through her property and chuckling at the random items, like the spoons and plastic buckets she finds along the way, a smile rarely leaves her face.
Looking forward to getting past this hurdle, Yeng Lee is eager for sunnier days. “The summertime here is really, really happy — lots of flowers everywhere,” she said.
Overwhelmed by the support, Yeng Lee shared: “I don’t want you guys to help me too much, but I need it.” Asking for assistance can be difficult, and the Market is working diligently to be there for our farming community impacted by these challenges.
Market Support in Action
After learning about the damage she faced, members of the Pike Place Market Preservation and Development Authority (PDA) Farm Team and the Market Commons, the Market’s community resource center, visited her properties. They documented her immediate needs and provided much‑needed moral and emotional support during a difficult time.
While the Farm Team routinely visits nearly 20 Market farmers each year for check-ins and to understand the challenges of their day-to-day work, they are now prioritizing farmers facing urgent flood-related needs. They are also cataloging the damage experienced by the Market’s 90+ farmers, helping create a roadmap for how best to support them as recovery begins.
In the early stages of response, the Market Commons and Farm Team have already connected Yeng Lee to resources for soil and water testing. The Commons is also working to secure a replacement greenhouse through funding provided by the Market Foundation’s Farm Fund.
The Pike Place Market PDA, Commons, and Foundation teams continue to collaborate closely with regional partners to develop, consolidate, and share essential flood‑response resources at local and state levels.
**Most of the damage to the large greenhouse was from past weather events, not just the recent flooding.
How the Community Can Support
The Pike Place Market Foundation works to raise funds for the multitude of social services and assistance programs available to Market tenants, residents, vendors, farmers, and the community at large. These programs include low-income housing, low to no-cost healthcare services, youth education, senior support services, and a community food bank. The public can support these efforts through the Foundation’s website.
One of the most direct ways in which people can support farmers during this challenging period is by shopping with vendors who sell weekly at Pike Place Market. The winter months are typically a slow time of year, and every dollar helps farmers recover and prepare for the seasons ahead. Check out who is selling each day at the Market through the directory.