SAN LUIS — The historic R&R Market in San Luis, now rebranded as the San Luis Peoples Market, has reopened its doors after a transformative 20-month renovation. This unique market, which first opened in 1857, offers a full-service grocery store experience, a strong commitment to community health, and a vision of becoming a community food co-op. 

 The reopening of the San Luis Peoples Market is a testament to the power of community. Led by Dr. Devon Pena, with the nonprofit Acequia Institute, which now owns the market, has worked tirelessly to bring this essential service back to the town. Now, seven days a week, residents will have a grocery store open in town from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., a true community effort. 

The market opened in 1857, almost two decades before Colorado became a state, and was operated by generations of the Romero family until they sold it to the institute in 2022. In 2023, after discovering asbestos and lead-based paint, the market closed pending cleanup. Since then, the toxic substances have been removed, and the entire market has been remodeled.  

Pena, who taught at Colorado College for many years and is on the faculty at the University of Washington, founded the Acequia Institute in 2006. The organization is a nonprofit foundation that supports environmental food and justice. Pena will soon be retiring from the university. 

Under his leadership, the store was renovated, and a specialized contractor, Adept Solutions of Colorado Springs, worked on removing lead-based paint and asbestos. With the help of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment's Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund, the Acequia Institute, which is working on behalf of the market, received a grant for $200,416. The grant covered the cost of asbestos abatement and lead-based paint and mold removal, making it possible for the market to reopen. 

"As the only full-service grocery store in San Luis, Colorado, the reopening of San Luis Market will help ensure Coloradans in the valley have access to healthy food in a safe store, and I am glad the state could provide a grant to help reopen this community landmark," said Governor Jared Polis in a statement last year. 

"We're committed to supporting disproportionately impacted and underserved communities in Colorado," said CDPHE's Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division Director, Tracie White, at the time. "The Colorado Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund transforms properties and helps small businesses, like the San Luis Peoples Market, keep their community healthy by providing essential services." 

Pena said the market's soft opening is due to "equipment stuck at the border for two weeks. The staff is just so happy we opened. We had a fire inspection and a health inspection that we passed with flying colors. We are finally there; it took us 20 months to get that building up to par. We are very happy."  

The market is unwavering in its commitment to providing healthy, locally sourced food. "When we bought the market, it had hundreds of cans of Campbell's soup, and we still have them, and we won't be selling them," Pena stated. Instead, the market will be stone-grinding tortillas, offering heirloom bolita beans, and growing new drought lentils, all part of a mission to provide nutritious, locally sourced food. 

The market's future is bright, with exciting plans to expand its offerings and become a community food co-op. As part of local branding, the market is now called the San Luis Peoples Market. The vision is to turn the market into a community food co-op. Earlier this month, the eleven 2025 Next Generation Acequia interns attended a tutorial session and learned how to operate a new walk-behind tractor to prepare planting beds. This forward-thinking approach gives hope for a healthier, more sustainable future for our community. 

"We are finally able to carry out our mission of not becoming a food apartheid situation, but to bring healthy, nutritious food to the people," said Pena.  

"We have such an extraordinarily skilled staff; we have a new butcher," Pena noted that several other new employees are talented and natural-born leaders. "I feel very blessed at the quality of the staff that we have, and they believe in the coop mission." The market will soon change from a Limited Liability Corporation to a Limited Cooperative Association. 

Pena said cooking classes are scheduled from July into September with an indigenous chef from Guatemala, a Mayan cook, "as we try to re-indigenize our cuisine." 

While the store has had a soft opening, the San Luis Peoples Market plans to host a grand reopening ceremony during Santa Ana Fiesta days, which fall on the last weekend of July. "We will be inviting dignitaries and supporters. There will be mariachi music, food, and other things going on. It will be a big celebration," said Pena.