The "Parking Corral" at First and Brown, where the Old Town Scottsdale Farmers Market set up for years, is now a fenced construction site. A Scottsdale Progress report on the relocation says shoppers who head there out of habit will find exactly that. Since October 3, the market has set up in the City Hall parking lot at 3939 N. Drinkwater Blvd.
That puts Saturday morning in Old Town inside the same few blocks as Scottsdale Civic Center, Scottsdale Stadium and the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art. The city's construction schedule for the Brown Avenue garage runs past the end of the market's 2026–27 season, so this is how an Old Town Saturday is laid out from now until June.
The Garage Timeline Outlasts the Market Season
According to the Scottsdale Progress, the market moved to make way for a new multi-level garage at its old site. The City of Scottsdale's Brown Avenue Parking Structure Expansion project page shows when that work is due to wrap up. Set those dates beside the market's own season and they don't overlap:
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| October 3, 2026 | Market opens its season at the City Hall lot |
| October through April | Saturday hours of 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. |
| Spring 2027 | City forecasts new garage stalls on Brown Avenue |
| June 2027 | Market season ends |
| Summer 2027 | City forecasts overall garage construction completion |
The market's listing on Arizona Community Farmers Markets gives the season as October 2026 to June 2027, with more than 100 local growers and specialty-food producers. Neither the city nor the market has said the Drinkwater site is permanent. Whether the market returns to Brown Avenue after the garage opens is an open question. On the current schedule, though, every Saturday market this fall, winter and spring takes place at City Hall.
What the City Hall Lot Adds
The city calls the new site "a new, larger location," and the City of Scottsdale announcement lists three upgrades over the old corral.
- Shade. The lot has two new solar shade canopies, according to the Scottsdale Progress. The city's project page for the canopies says they cover 49 parking spaces.
- Power. The voter-approved bond project added electrical access for the market and other community events.
- Parking. Visitors can park directly across the street in the One Civic Center surface lot.
The solar panels on the canopies aren't active yet. The city expects to turn them on later this year and estimates they will cover about 75% of City Hall's electricity use and save $46,000 a year in energy costs.
The electrical access also lets the market share the site with other events. In the same announcement, the city says the bigger site "creates opportunities for market days to complement concerts and other activities at Civic Center." City Manager Greg Caton made the same point in the city's release: "Shoppers can also make a day of it by exploring Old Town and enjoying events at Civic Center." In the same release, market producer Dee Logan said the city and market management worked together on the challenges of moving an established market.
If you're still walking over from Brown Avenue by habit, the city has Old Town ambassadors posted along the route from Brown Avenue through Civic Center for the market's first month, along with signs and a map.
The Market Now Sits Next to the Civic Center
The old corral sat on the shopping side of Old Town. The City Hall lot sits on the civic side, which has more to offer than it did a few years ago. The Scottsdale Progress reported that the completed $33 million Civic Center renovation added three outdoor stages, play areas, botanical exhibits, 140 shade trees and water-conserving turf. The city's Civic Center park page lists the 360 Stage and its lawns, the Children's Gardens, the Water and Fog Plaza, new restrooms and the East Bowl.
Shopping at Brown Avenue meant ending the morning in the middle of Old Town's retail streets. Shopping at Drinkwater means you finish close to:
- The Civic Center lawns and Children's Gardens, a shaded stop for kids before the late-morning heat.
- SMoCA at 7374 E. Second St., where Desert ArtLAB | What the Earth Keeps runs from September 19, 2026, through January 31, 2027. It's a site-specific installation and cyanotype-mapping project about land, ecology and cultural memory, according to Scottsdale Arts.
- Scottsdale Stadium at 7408 E. Osborn Road, home of the Scottsdale Scorpions during the Arizona Fall League.
How the Fall Saturdays Line Up
The market fills every Saturday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. What else is on depends on the date, and several of the season's biggest events land within walking distance of Drinkwater.
| Saturday | Market, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. | Later that day |
|---|---|---|
| October 17 | City Hall lot | Scottsdale Fall Festival at Civic Center, 5 to 9 p.m. |
| October 24 | City Hall lot | Scorpions play away; Eek at the Peak at Pinnacle Peak Park, 9 to 11 a.m. |
| October 31 | City Hall lot | Scorpions host Mesa at Scottsdale Stadium |
| November 7 | City Hall lot | Canal Convergence at the Scottsdale Waterfront, second night |
| November 14 | City Hall lot | Canal Convergence's final weekend |
October 17. The Scottsdale Fall Festival runs from 5 to 9 p.m. at Scottsdale Civic Center. It's free, with live music, food trucks, a cocktail garden, trick-or-treating, carnival games and arts activities. The festival is next to the lot where the market packs up at 1 p.m., so you can come back in the evening for it.
October 24. This is the one Saturday when the best-known fall event is somewhere else. Eek at the Peak, part of October Preserve Month, runs from 9 to 11 a.m. at Pinnacle Peak Park, according to the city's McDowell Sonoran Preserve page. Its hours overlap the market's, so on this Saturday you'll likely pick one or the other.
October 31. The Scorpions have two Saturday home games this fall. The first was the October 3 opener. The second is Halloween against Mesa. On the MLB Arizona Fall League schedule, the Scottsdale column lists 3:30 p.m. and the Mesa column lists 12:30 p.m. for the same game. The league also says all times are subject to change, so check the start time before you go. If the earlier time holds, the game starts before the market closes at 1. Tickets are $14 plus fees. This year's roster includes prospects from the San Francisco Giants, Milwaukee Brewers, Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros and Tampa Bay Rays, according to the City of Scottsdale.
November 7 and 14. Canal Convergence: Western Nature runs November 6 through 15 at the Scottsdale Waterfront, with large-scale public art, performances, activities and food vendors. Scottsdale Arts' Canal Convergence page describes it as a free, 10-night public art event. Hours vary by night, so check the listing for the Saturday you plan to go. Both of those Saturdays give Old Town a morning market at City Hall and an evening event on the canal, with the afternoon free in between.
A Saturday-Only Stop on the Old Town Side
At least one new opening this fall is built around Saturdays. Holla Brunch Girl, a Saturday-only rooftop "singalong brunch bar," opened at 7320 E. Indian Plaza in Old Town, according to Phoenix Magazine's September openings roundup. It's on the retail side of Old Town, away from Drinkwater, so it fits as a second stop after an early run through the market rather than as a detour on the way in.
Further north, the same roundup and a Phoenix New Times fall preview list Kuza, a robata-grill and raw-bar restaurant at 17767 N. Scottsdale Road, and the second, larger Vecina at 8300 N. Hayden Road in McCormick Ranch. Vecina took over the former Z'Tejas space. If you live up north, either one can serve as a Saturday dinner on the way home from Old Town.
The Old Town Scottsdale Farmers Market is scheduled to run at 3939 N. Drinkwater Blvd. every Saturday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. through April, and the city's own construction dates keep Brown Avenue fenced off past the end of the season in June.
If you're mapping out a season of Old Town Saturdays and wondering how the area around Civic Center is changing, Desert Luxe Team follows these shifts closely and is happy to talk them through with you. We bring the same attentive, hospitality-first service to every conversation, whether you're buying, selling or just curious, so reach out anytime.
