For three summers, Saturday mornings at the Taos County Administrative Complex have worked the same way. Vendor booths fill the parking lot at 105 Albright St., and shoppers look for parking in nearby lots and along town streets.
The market plans to fix that by moving its booths off the asphalt and across the Rio Fernando. So the market's last four Saturdays of 2026, starting this Halloween, are probably the end of the current setup. The plan is for 2027 to look different.
Three years of booths where the cars should go
Taos County has hosted the Saturday market at the administrative complex for the past three years. As Taos News reported, parking there has been limited the whole time, so visitors have parked in nearby lots and on city streets.
With more than 90 vendors overall and roughly 60 to 70 setting up on a typical weekend, according to market manager Waters in a Taos News season preview, that is a lot of booths for a lot that also has to hold shoppers' cars.
Moving around isn't new for this market. In the market's announcement, president Doug Patterson said it has moved "from location to location over the years" while supporting local agriculture for more than 50 years. What's new is that the next move is supposed to be the last one.
The parcel across the Rio Fernando
At the end of March, the market announced a lease-to-purchase agreement with property owners Morgan and Ana-Alycia Cunnyngham. The deal covers a 3-acre lot along the Rio Fernando on Paseo del Pueblo Sur, next to the county complex and across from Mantes Restaurant. The market worked out the agreement with the Northern Rio Grande Resource Conservation and Development District, Taos County and the Town of Taos. Town Councilor Genevieve Oswald, who sits on the RC&D board, helped lead the effort.
The plan targets the parking problem directly. Vendor booths and market vehicles would move onto the 3 acres by the river, and the county lot would go back to being a parking lot. The market's announcement also says the site connects to the Rio Fernando trail, which links walkable neighborhoods to the market grounds.
The timing explains why this fall matters. Here's what Waters told Taos News in May:
"We don't have plans at the moment to move this season, but we might be able to do improvements and use that as overflow parking sometime this season, with the intention to be there by the 2027 season."
The exact timing is still open. The market has said it will share more about next steps as the project moves forward. If the plan holds, though, the Saturdays left on this year's calendar are the last ones under the current arrangement.
What's left on the 2026 calendar
The season changes in two steps. Regular hours end on Halloween. Then come three shorter Saturdays in November, all at the courthouse lot at the corner of Albright Street and Paseo del Pueblo Sur.
| Saturday |
Hours |
What's different |
| Oct. 31 |
8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. |
Last day of regular season hours; Halloween on the Plaza that afternoon |
| Nov. 7 |
9 a.m. to noon |
First November market |
| Nov. 14 |
9 a.m. to noon |
Second November market |
| Nov. 21 |
9 a.m. to noon |
Final market of 2026, five days before Thanksgiving |
The November hours come from the Taos Farmers Market website. The spring preview in Taos News listed a 12:30 p.m. close for November, so check the market's site before you head out for an 11:45 run. Starting an hour later and ending earlier means you get about three hours in November instead of four and a half.
Halloween Saturday fills the whole day downtown
On Saturday, Oct. 31, the market and the Town's Halloween event fall on the same date a few blocks apart, so you can plan the day as one:
- Morning at the market. The last regular-hours market runs 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at 105 Albright St.
- Afternoon in the historic district. The free 2026 Taos Halloween Community Event runs 3 to 6 p.m. across Taos Plaza, Teresina Lane, Juan Largo Lane, John Dunn Shops and Bent Street. It includes trick-or-treating, decorated trunks, carnival games and prizes, with music at the Taos Plaza Gazebo.
- Costumes count. The first 1,500 children get free treat bags. The costume contest has categories for children, teens, families and pets.
Town of Taos Events presents the afternoon with the merchant groups from each lane and the Plaza, plus partners including the Taos Amateur Radio Club, Taos County, Taos High School Cheer and Taos Milagro Rotary Club. The gap between the market closing and trick-or-treating starting is long enough to get the morning's produce home before you go back downtown.
November is for the Thanksgiving table
The market pitches its November Saturdays directly: "get all your Thanksgiving meal locally!" With the last market on Nov. 21 and Thanksgiving on Nov. 26, that final Saturday is your last chance this year to buy from the market's growers and bakers before the holiday.
What's at the booths changes week to week, but Waters described this year's mix as produce, meat, eggs, honey, baked goods and prepared foods such as tamales and burritos. She also told Taos News, "We have a really dynamic mix of bakers this year with a lot of gluten-free options." One of those bakers is Wild Leaven Bakery, which sells sourdough bread and pastries from a Saturday booth. Turkey, pie and bread preorders depend on each vendor, so ask at the booths early in the month instead of waiting until Nov. 21.
The food assistance programs work the same in November as in summer. At the Info Booth, the market turns EBT/SNAP purchases into wooden tokens. Through Double Up Food Bucks, it matches that amount with silver tokens you can spend on fresh fruits and vegetables. Patients of El Centro Health Clinic can trade FreshRX checks for tokens at the same booth. Some farmers also take WIC and Seniors' Farmers Market benefits; look for the bright green sign at their booths.
What has to happen between Nov. 21 and opening day 2027
Moving from a parking lot to a permanent home takes money as well as land. In October 2025 the market became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and launched a $50,000 campaign toward what it calls a "forever home." At the time, its stated goal was to be operating at the new location in 2026. Speaking to Taos News in May, Waters put the intention at being there by the 2027 season. She told Taos News that nonprofit status "is allowing us to do some fundraising and receive donations to have more sources of funding for establishing a forever home."
The long-term plan goes beyond Saturday mornings. In the announcement, Patterson described the permanent site as a chance to build "a permanent location for a year-round market venue." For now, the 2026 season ends at the courthouse lot on Nov. 21, and the market is taking donations toward the Rio Fernando site through its Givebutter page.
Projects like the market's move to the Rio Fernando change how a stretch of Paseo del Pueblo Sur works week to week, and that kind of change is part of how Debbie Friday Jagers follows the town she grew up in. If you'd like to talk about how changes along the Paseo affect your corner of Taos, let's connect. Request a free home valuation or consultation any time.
