After a fire destroyed the main building of the St. Jacobs Farmers’ Market north of Waterloo, Ont., early Monday morning, management announced on Twitter that the outdoor section will be open for business this Thursday.


"We want to have the Thursday outdoor market open, as well as the Peddler's Village building -- which contains the flea market, as well as some food vendors," said Marcus Shantz, the president of Mercedes Corp. which owns the farmers' market building.


Investigators have cordoned off an area around the charred iconic main building of the farmers' market.


"We're going to have to move some of the outdoor vendors to different locations because [the fencing] takes up a bit of area," Shantz told The Morning Edition host Craig Norris on Tuesday morning.


"There has been an enormous outpouring from all kinds of people," Shantz said. "People are shocked and saddened and they are looking for a way forward and a plan to get back up and running."


Lonnie Schubert of the Ontario Fire Marshal’s office said the investigation into the cause is ongoing, but he could not say exactly when the search would be concluded.


“Will it take a few days? It might. Will it take one day? It might,” said Schubert. “Bottom line is we need to try and determine exactly where the fire started and how it started.”


The Woolwich Fire Department estimates damage to the structure could be as high as $2 million. Chief Rick Pedersen said if a sprinkler system had been installed, the building could have been saved or the damage from the fire could have been minimized.


Woolwich Mayor Todd Cowan said about 60 vendors were affected by the fire, and that the township is planning to do whatever it can to assist in a rebuild of the market.