ALEXANDRIA, VA-When Jay and Edea Portlance cut the ribbon to officially open the Del Ray Farmhouse Market + Garden on May 10, it wasn’t just a celebration of a new business. It was a moment that captured a neighborhood rallying behind a vision and the emotional release of a couple who have put everything on the line to bring that vision to life.
What began a year ago as a side idea to sell a few plants at the local hardware store has now blossomed into a full-fledged garden center and community marketplace. But the journey from inspiration to inauguration was far from easy.
Jay Portlance and his wife Edea saved Del Ray Hardware from closure last year by buying the store on short notice to preserve its legacy. But that was just the beginning.
“I knew this community vision would grow from there,” Jay said in a quiet moment after the ribbon-cutting. “But it’s not been easy to realize it.”
The Portlances took possession of the Farmhouse Market and Garden, formerly Bellies & Babies, on Feb. 1, with the garden center opening on March 22. In just a few months, they transformed it into a welcoming space overflowing with color, abundance, and character. But the physical transformation of the venue was only part of the story…