The Warren County Farmers Market has five regular Saturdays left at the Warren County Health Department parking lot: October 17, 24 and 31, then November 7 and 14. After that, the market is set to move to a permanent home at the former Warren County Fairgrounds, 429 Ridgeway St., next to the Warrenton Lions Den. Construction there is on its last stretch.
What the new site really changes is the calendar. For years the market has closed in November and come back for one Saturday-only Holiday Market. The pavilion was designed with a kitchen, restrooms, fans and Wi-Fi, which is what a longer season needs. The market manager has said publicly that she hopes the season will run into December there.
The last weeks at 544 W. Ridgeway St.
The Warren County Center of NC Cooperative Extension runs the market, and Extension describes it as producer-only, which means the people behind the tables grew, raised or made what they're selling. For 2026, the Extension's season announcement set the hours at Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon, April 25 through November 14, at the Health Department, 544 W. Ridgeway St.
The two sites are on the same road, a short drive apart. The difference is in what each one offers once you've parked.
How a parking lot became a pavilion
This project has been in the works longer than most people realize. Here's the sequence as reported by The Warren Record and WIZS:
- January 2022: The project starts. That same year, the county buys the 8.78-acre fairgrounds with a North Carolina Department of Commerce Rural Transformation Grant. WIZS reported the acquisition grant at $300,000.
- April 2023: Tamara Small is hired as Farmers Market manager.
- November 2023: The N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission awards Warren County a $500,000 grant for the market, as reported by WIZS and The Warren Record.
- December 2025: A groundbreaking ceremony marks the fairgrounds as the market's future home.
- January 2026: County commissioners approve the site plan for the pavilion, a second building behind it and a paved parking lot.
- September 8, 2026: County Manager Crystal Smith tells commissioners the pavilion and office building are on schedule. Substantial completion is targeted for October 2, final completion for November 2, and the project is expected to come in under budget.
The site didn't come from the county alone. The Warren Record reported that it was found through the work of the community-driven Warren County Farmers Market Committee and Warren County Cooperative Extension staff, who went looking for a place to put a permanent structure. Smith told commissioners that The Wooten Company, which designed the project, and county staff "worked closely to maximize shelter and land grants," keeping the cost to county taxpayers down. Separately, a 2023 county action moved $1.05 million from the general fund into the project budget. That money was a county appropriation, not a grant.
What the new site adds, item by item
The county's September update listed what was spent on top of the main structures. Those line items show what kind of place this is meant to be.
| Health Department lot | Fairgrounds pavilion | |
|---|---|---|
| Address | 544 W. Ridgeway St. | 429 Ridgeway St., beside the Lions Den |
| Cover | Open parking lot | Open-air pavilion with three large fans, $32,718.45 |
| Restrooms | None reported | Three, in the building behind the pavilion |
| Kitchen | None reported | Stove, ice machine, refrigerator, sink and tables, $13,599.74 |
| Connectivity | None reported | Wireless internet equipment, $8,955.79 |
| Parking | Health Department parking lot | More than 100 spaces |
| On-site staff space | None reported | Market manager's office and storage room |
A few smaller changes are already visible from Ridgeway Street. The metal fence that stood at the site for years is gone, and new fencing is coming. Lake Gaston Signs designed and installed a Farmers Market sign for the pavilion.
When commissioners agreed on the design concept in 2023, the Lake Gaston Gazette-Observer reported that the pavilion would fit around 30 vendors in 12-by-12-foot spaces and could work as an event venue for up to 150 people at other times. The same story said a porch area separate from the vendor section was expected to host workshops and other activities. WIZS reported that the county also intends to bring the former fairgrounds back into community use for private events, public gatherings and festivals. No rental policy or booking process has been published, so for now those uses are plans, not something you can reserve.
Why the fans and the kitchen matter in December
A paved lot works fine on a June morning. It's harder to keep a market going in the second week of December, when vendors and shoppers want shelter, a restroom and somewhere to plug things in. Until now, the season has ended with one Holiday Market Saturday after the regular closing date. Small spoke to that directly in The Warren Record:
"With the pavilion, I hope that vendors will continue to go through the second week of December."
That's a hope, not a schedule, and it depends on which vendors decide to keep coming. But it's the clearest sign of what the building is for. Fans, restrooms, a kitchen and Wi-Fi are what a Saturday market needs to keep going into the holidays.
The people deciding how it runs
The market has a new advisory board for the move. It first met in April 2026, and the seats are split among the groups that use the market most. According to The Warren Record, it includes four vendors, three regular shoppers, and one representative each from the Warren County Senior Center, Warren County Health Department, Board of County Commissioners, Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District and Tourism Development Authority, along with Small.
The vendor seats belong to Tummy Pleasers, G&D Produce, Elkhead Farm and Pawvision. A separate 2026 Warren Record report named the season's expected vendors, a list that covers produce, poultry, baked goods and crafts:
- Tummy Pleasers
- Foul Play Poultry Farm
- Elk Head Farm
- Oliver Family Farm
- Cedar Hill Farm
- G&D Produce
- Henderson Natural Farm
- Lake Gaston Paw Visions
- Stars Heavenly Sweets
- Dillard's Creations and Champ's Creations
- Mom's Creative Door Décor and More
- Material Blessings
With patrons on the board alongside the Senior Center and Health Department seats, the people who decide hours and events at the new site include the people who shop there.
What hasn't been announced yet
As of October 11, 2026, no grand opening, ribbon cutting or first market day at the pavilion has been announced. A summer Warren Record report said the advisory board would pick a grand-opening date at its August 13 meeting and expected an October opening. The county's later update set final construction completion for November 2. Nothing published since then confirms the October 2 milestone was met or names a date.
One more date is out there. Extension's event calendar lists a Warren County Farmers Market on Saturday, November 21, from 8 a.m. to noon. That's a week after the regular season's last day, and the listing doesn't give a location or call it the Holiday Market. Until the market says otherwise, the confirmed schedule is Saturdays at 544 W. Ridgeway St. through November 14.
I've been following this pavilion since the old fairgrounds fence came down, because a market people can actually stay at changes how Saturdays feel in Warrenton. If you're thinking about a home within an easy drive of Ridgeway Street, or just want to talk about where Warren County is heading, reach out to Pamela Hale. Start Your Lake Gaston Journey with someone who keeps track of what's opening in town.
