What’s happening with the SLO Saturday farmers market? It’s ‘ruffled some feathers’
Things were a little different with San Luis Obispo’s Saturday farmers market this past weekend — giving rise to worries about the longterm future of the market at that spot.
Organizers say, however, that it’s a bit of a misunderstanding.
For more than three decades, the market has been held in the parking lot of the SLO Promenade shopping center off Madonna Road.
But on Saturday, the market was in a slightly different, seemingly smaller section of the parking lot, with vendor booths spaced closer together and a sign posted alerting visitors that the market was relocating.
More than half a dozen people reached out to The Tribune concerned about the changes and asking whether they meant their beloved source of fresh fruits, vegetables and other produce was going away for good.
Esther Rigoni, general manager of the SLO County Farmers’ Markets Association, said that’s not the case.
“Yes, there has been a slight change in location for the Saturday morning SLO farmers market that has caused some confusion,” she told The Tribune on Monday. “We have been asked by the property manager to move to a different area of the parking lot in order to open up more parking for the existing businesses.”
Rigoni said the change seems to have “ruffled some feathers” and given rise to rumors about what prompted the change — namely the assumption that a business in that parking lot pushed for the change.
“At this point, they are just rumors and I have no knowledge of any particular business complaining,” Rigoni said.
She added that the market has been held in the same parking lot for 32 years “due to the goodwill of the property owners of the parking lot.”
The shopping center includes longtime establishments such as Bed Bath and Beyond and Cost Plus World Market, newer additions such as REI and Sprouts and the brand-new Hobby Lobby.
Rigoni said the SLO County Farmers’ Market Association, which manages a number of markets across the county, plans to continue to hold its SLO market in the same space into the future.
“However, if we were suddenly to lose this location, many small local family farms, as well as the community of SLO, would be greatly impacted,” she added.
The farmers market is held from 8 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. every Saturday.
This story was originally published September 28, 2022 at 7:00 AM.
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