Farmers Market is returning to downtown SLO on Thursday nights! Here are the details
After more than a year of pause, the downtown San Luis Obispo Farmers’ Market will return in May in a limited form.
The market will return May 6 in a reduced capacity with farmers and essential goods only, according to Downtown SLO, the nonprofit fostering an economically vibrant downtown that hosts the weekly event.
The boundaries of the event also will be a reduced footprint, on Higuera Street between the cross streets of Osos and Chorro streets, every Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m. starting in May.
During pre-pandemic times, the Thursday night market was held on Higuera between the cross streets of Nipomo and Osos.
But entertainment and meals for purchase won’t be allowed in the first phase of the market’s return — and all visitors will be required to wear masks at all times, while remaining socially distance and not gathering.
“The Market will be an opportunity to support local farmers,” said Downtown SLO CEO Bettina Swigger in an email Thursday to The Tribune. “It will not be a street fair. Visitors to the Market can expect to purchase produce and some essential goods, and then they can go out and enjoy the rest of downtown, dine in restaurants, enjoy the pop up in Mission Plaza, and look around at the May Flower displays throughout the downtown. Vendors will have distancing signage and line control in place.”
Downtown SLO to bring back event in phases
Downtown SLO will bring back features of the event in phases over the coming year, monitoring the situation on a weekly basis, Swigger said.
“We will be monitoring the conditions of the Market and adding vendor categories and additional street closures as the months progress and as we receive proper guidance from the County and State,” the organization noted in a group email to constituents.
Swigger added that the re-opening month of May is a “good time for farmers as they are beginning to harvest many crops.”
“We have been working on plans for many months and with higher rates of vaccination and lower rates of disease transmission, we feel that it is appropriate to bring the market back to Higuera at a reduced capacity,” Swigger said. “The return of the Market will also coincide with our community public art program downtown, the May Flower Initiative, which will give visitors the chance to explore all of downtown and not be limited to the two blocks that the Market will occupy.”
Market will return after more than a year
The market was first suspended in March 2020 due to COVID-19 precautions and hasn’t reopened since. Earlier this month, Downtown SLO announced the event would open in a limited fashion.
Market visitors can expect to see the following types of vendors during its first phase:
▪ Certified farmers
▪ Sellers of pre-sealed to-go food items/ingredients made in-house such as bread, pastries, bagged coffee beans, and more.
▪ Sellers of craft/artisan/home goods created in-house such as soap, salves, pottery, and more.
Farmers’ markets have been permitted to operate as an essential business since the pandemic began, Swigger said.
The downtown SLO market will operate under those rules, as defined by the California Blueprint for a Safer Economy and the state Department of Agriculture, Swigger noted.
“The Market will not be what it was at first, but Downtown SLO hopes that the return of this beloved Thursday night tradition will allow locals to come downtown, get fresh, locally grown produce, while shopping and dining with you, our downtown business community,” Downtown SLO officials said.
This story was originally published March 31, 2021 at 5:28 PM.
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