Every Sunday at 6:30 a.m., farmers start setting up on the parking lot behind 2640 Main St. Education booths and musicians fill the driveway and the lawn between The Victorian and the California Heritage Museum. The market opens to the public at 8:30 and closes at 1:30, and the site is cleared by 3 p.m. The Main Street Farmers Market has run this way since 1995, with about 40 certified California farms. The city lists it as open year-round, rain or shine.
The building above that lot hosts its last party on Oct. 31. Most of the coverage has focused on the nightclub ending. The lease that ends it also changes the Sunday morning that has grown up around it. That change has been announced, but it still has no start date and no route.
A City-Owned House With a Market Out Back
The Victorian is a two-story house built in 1892. It was moved to Heritage Square in 1973, across from the California Heritage Museum. The city owns the property, which has operated as a restaurant and event venue for decades.
Because the city is the landlord, the market has always been tied to whoever holds the lease. The city lists the market as a joint effort of the Main Street Business Improvement Association, the Ocean Park resident group, The Victorian and the Heritage Museum. The lease change also means a change of host for the market.
The city's Oct. 9 announcement says the move started with the operators. Garner Gerson and Adir Tal approached the city in late 2025 about leaving the late-night model. City staff restructured the lease instead of losing the tenant, and the City Council approved it unanimously on March 24. The same operators will reopen the property as The Santa Monican, a family membership club. Plans call for:
- a pool
- a spa and fitness center
- a family and youth facility
- a coffee bistro
- a restaurant and bar
- gardens and gathering spaces on the grounds
The operators also plan to work with the city and community groups on seasonal events at the property, including free summer barbecues, Santa Monica Snow Days and holiday celebrations.
Two Sentences About the Market
The city's announcement mentions the market in two places. The lease summary says:
"Under the lease, the Sunday Farmers Market will transition to a weekly, open street event on Main Street."
A few lines later, Mayor Caroline Torosis lists what the city wrote into the lease: "Up to 20% of memberships will be free for qualifying Santa Monica residents, the lawn and public parking will stay open to everyone, and the Sunday Farmers Market will remain."
Taken together, the market stays and its format changes. Still unknown is how much of it stays on the Heritage Square lot and how much moves onto Main Street. The March council staff report covers the operator's support for the market. Per the city's commitments, the operator supplies restrooms, storage, power and water. The staff report does not name the blocks a weekly street market would close or the Sunday it would start. The scholarship memberships are open to Santa Monica residents, including families, educators and small business owners. The operators have not announced membership details or pricing yet.
August 23 Was the Trial Run
The best preview of a street market so far is the one Sunday it already happened. On Aug. 23, the Main Street Farmers Market, the Ocean Park Association and the Main Street Business Improvement Association moved the market into the street for a full day.
Santa Monica Next described the day in detail. The market ran its usual 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. hours. There was a Kids Play Zone on Heritage Lawn, the Sunnyside Chalkers drew in the Victorian driveway, and Alex Chaiet and the GM Jazz Quartet played. The Main Street Entertainment Zone was active, so cocktails and mocktails could be served on the street. In the afternoon, the Ocean Park Association and the business association took over with street seating and DJs into the evening.
The outlet also said the event was part of a larger effort to explore moving the market into the street regularly, and that organizers would share more about a weekly on-street market later.
That trial still used Heritage Lawn and the Victorian driveway. If the property goes into renovation in late 2026, the next version may not have those spaces available. The city has not said how the two schedules will fit together.
The Calendar Through Year's End
The Victorian and the farmers market share the same address, but their timelines don't line up. One closes on a fixed date, and the other changes on a date no one has set.
| Date | What happens | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Sunday, Oct. 18 | Day of the Dog at 2327 Main St., 12 to 5 p.m., free | Scheduled |
| Sunday, Oct. 18 | Main Street closed from Pier Avenue to Pacific Street, 5 a.m. to 10 p.m., for the 2026 Main Street Block Party | Scheduled |
| Saturday, Oct. 31 | The Victorian's annual Halloween party, its final event | Scheduled |
| Late 2026 | Renovation of 2640 Main St. expected to begin | Target |
| Undated | Weekly open-street farmers market on Main Street | Announced, no start date or blocks |
| Mid-2028 | The Santa Monican targeted to open | Target |
Pet-A-Palooza West's Day of the Dog page lists the festival as pet-friendly with free entry. The city's street closure listing gives the closure footprint and hours. Expect a long Sunday on the south end of Main Street. The closure starts before the market's 8:30 a.m. opening and runs until 10 p.m.
KTLA reported that the Halloween party will be the venue's last event. Our research found no event name, ticket link or price for it on the venue's homepage or in local coverage. Check with The Victorian directly. Mayor Torosis, in the city's release, said the building "holds 20 years of birthdays, dates and nights out with friends, and I understand why people are sad to see it go." The Santa Monica Daily Press followed up the next day with city leaders describing the plan as a way to keep the historic property in use.
What Opens on Main While 2640 Is Closed
From Halloween until mid-2028, the address that hosts the Sunday market will be closed for renovation, if the targets hold. The nearby blocks are already filling in, and several of the new openings are daytime businesses.
Across the street at 2651 Main St., restaurateurs Mindy and Vinny Kinne opened Met Her at a Bar, an all-day café, in August. It is their first Santa Monica location, and the city says it brought about 100 jobs. Farther north, Santa Monica Market at 2015 Main St. added a full deli counter under new owners this summer. SMDP reported it serves sandwiches, salads, smoothies and breakfast. Punch Bowl Juice & Smoothie recently opened at 2218 Main St.
Two more are coming from the south end:
- Bar Fortuna at 2917 Main St., an all-day wine bar from the team behind Crudo e Nudo, is set to open this fall. No exact date has been announced.
- Nameless at 2810 Main St., which closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, will be reopened by The Victorian's operators. No date has been given.
With Nameless, Gerson and Tal stay active on the street while their main property is under construction.
The city ties these openings to steps the council took in March. It eliminated the $1,000-per-seat fee for new restaurants and set up a $3 million economic development fund to attract and keep businesses. The Victorian lease was approved at the same March 24 meeting as the city's Realignment Plan update, which prioritizes economic revitalization along commercial corridors, including Main Street.
The city's own wording on 2640 Main St. has the Halloween party on Oct. 31 and the market staying, with its weekly street version still waiting on a start date and a set of blocks.
If you own near Heritage Square or the blocks between Pier Avenue and Pacific Street and want to know what the next two years on Main Street could mean for your property, The Dutchover Team follows this corridor closely and can show you how these changes may affect your home's value. Get a Free Home Valuation and we'll walk you through it.
