Downtown Renton market awaits summer opening

Published 7:30 am Saturday, February 21, 2026

The Renton Market and Piazza are expected to open this summer in the city’s HEART Block, alongside the Legacy Square.

Renton city staffers presented an update on the ongoing construction of the Renton Market and Piazza at the Feb. 9 Committee of the Whole meeting. The project, which began in 2019, is expected to finish in June or July 2026 and is located on the north side of Third Avenue between Burnett Avenue and Logan Avenue in downtown Renton.

The market building will have 11,783 square feet of indoor market space, with an outside extension space of 1,766 more square feet. The market will contain smaller central stalls and kiosks, with the capacity to expand, equipped with proper drainage and utilities for businesses like a fishmonger on the north side of the building. The east and west ends of the building will be reserved for the “anchor remnants,” likely restaurants, and will require their own specific build-outs. The building will also have a classroom kitchen to host cooking classes and other community programming.

Logan Market LLC will operate the actual market, while the city owns the facility, according to Renton Facilities Director Jeff Minisci. The planned 10-year lease with the company starts in April and the tenant will begin their improvements of the space for the vendors then.

The city expect the tenants to be “fully embedded” in the building and for smaller vendor booths to be operational by June.

“The intent is to activate the downtown and assist with a year-round public market that supports the small businesses, local food vendors and community programming,” Minisci said. “We don’t see this as just a lease, but it’s also an opportunity for economic development and aligning it with the city’s mission and goals.”

Logan Market LLC is an entity created for this project by Renton developer and entrepreneur Dave Brethauer. Brethauer, and his wife, Monica, were also behind the renovation of the Cortona Building in downtown Renton and won King County’s 2016 John D. Spellman Award for Historic Preservation for rehabilitation of the F.W. Woolworth department store.

They own and operate the building on the corner of Third Avenue and Williams Street, which is home to Boon Boona Coffee, Urban Sprouts, The Pencil Test and Ascendance.

With no lease agreement in place yet, the company has not yet been able to sign any tenants, according to Minisci. However, Minisci said the operator is aware of the timeline and the need to get vendors operational to take advantage of World Cup traffic this summer. Nearby Legacy Square is slated to host World Cup watch parties and other events throughout the summer.

Minisci said there is language in the lease that specifies the type of vendors the city expects in the market, but it does not dictate exactly who the operator should choose. Congressman Adam Smith (D-District 9) said the project will “provide opportunities for small, minority-owned, women-owned, and historically disadvantaged businesses to feel supported through space, resources, and retail opportunities,” according to his press release addressing a 2023 funding request containing the $1.5 million grant for the project.

“I am proud to support the City of Renton’s vision to redevelop the Pavilion building in downtown Renton into the Logan Place Market – a new space that will benefit the community and foster small business growth,” Smith said. “Small businesses have been under significant strain throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The Logan Place Market will be a crucial community space for the advancement of small businesses in our region, especially minority-owned and women-owned businesses.”

The proposed rent for the operator will escalate each year during the lease, starting at approximately $59,000 in the first year to around $177,000 in year five, after which the city will assess the fair market value for the space.

The piazza will be south of the market and operate as a public space with hardscape, grass areas, planted areas and a seating bench area.