New growers market brings fresh food to Albuquerque’s International District

The People’s Market is supposed to answer a basic question for Albuquerque’s International District: can families buy fresh food closer to home, at prices they can manage, without a long drive across the city? The project moved ahead after more than 1,150 residents voted it to the top of Albuquerque’s first participatory budgeting pilot, beating out 242 other ideas. City leaders say the site at Kathryn SE and San Mateo Boulevard SE will replace empty space with produce, local vendors and a place the neighborhood can use.

That question matters in a district that has spent years losing everyday retail. In 2023, residents reacted with concern when the neighborhood Walmart announced it was closing permanently, because many depended on it for healthy food and other basics. KOAT later reported that the area was also hit by a pharmacy desert after Walgreens, Walmart and CVS Pharmacy closures left some people more than a half-mile from a pharmacy and facing bus rides that could take 40 minutes to an hour. A 2024 report said the former Walmart building had been vacant for more than 16 months and measured 206,000 square feet, a reminder of how large the gap became after the store closed.

The city says the market is more than a produce stand. The plan includes local farmers, artists, food trucks and other vendors, along with shipping containers for storage, a stage, landscaping, a public bathroom and water-bottle filling areas. District 6 Councilor Nichole L. Rogers dedicated $1.5 million in council set-aside funds to the participatory budgeting pilot, and KUNM reported that about $950,000 in district funds was at stake in that round. The city’s first-ever participatory budgeting pilot drew 243 submissions, and the market came out on top.

At the June 10 ribbon cutting, Rogers, Mayor Tim Keller and members of the district’s community participatory budgeting team marked the project’s next step. The city has also opened applications for operators, with a June 30 deadline, as it looks for the businesses that will fill the space and shape how the market functions day to day.

The market is going up next to a 92-unit mixed-income apartment project with retail space and a food pantry, putting two neighborhood investments side by side. For an area long defined by disinvestment, the bigger test is whether this site becomes part of a daily grocery routine or simply a symbol of it.