For most of 2026, the corner of Third Street and Huey P. Long Avenue was a construction site behind a fence. The city closed the Gretna Marketplace completely starting May 1. It warned at the time that the work would take about four to six months and that the pavilion would be off-limits for safety the whole way through. When FOX 8 covered the start of Gretna Festin' on October 2, the station reported that the pavilion "does not open until October 31."
Halloween fell on a Saturday this year, so the scheduled reopening landed on a market morning. The roof over that market has new equipment. The project was designed to make the pavilion work as a lit, amplified, shaded event space, and the city's holiday calendar is the first stretch of dates that will use it that way.
What four to six months bought
The clearest description of the work comes from the October 14, 2026 Gretna City Council agenda packet. A draft resolution in it says the Gretna Marketplace Renovation Project was meant to "modernize and harden the structure for future use as well as provide lighting, audio system, and shade protection for multi-purpose use."
In practical terms, the packet lists four things:
- A hardened structure. The city's stated goals for the project include reducing hazard risks.
- Lighting. The same packet's capital projects report says light fixture installation was set to begin "this week," after a delay in materials from the vendor.
- An audio system. It's built into the pavilion, so an event under the roof no longer has to bring in its own sound.
- Shade protection. That makes a difference on the many warm market mornings a Gretna year brings.
Pillar Building LLC was the low bidder and got the contract. The architect, GOAT studio, LLC, recommended that the city accept substantial completion as of October 9, 2026. In that packet's status report, the job was still "nearing substantial completion, pending punch list and inspections." Expect a few finishing touches to show up over the first weeks.
The council's consent agenda included a mural approval at 740 Third Street, Gretna Marketplace. The agenda doesn't name the artist or the subject, so the design is still a surprise.
The Saturday market keeps its regular schedule. The city lists it as 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. under the pavilion. Before construction, Mayor Belinda Constant described why the space mattered in the city's announcement of the renovation:
"The Gretna Marketplace is truly the heart of our downtown. It's where the Saturday farmers' market occurs. It's where families gather, where small businesses grow and where our community comes together to celebrate events throughout the year."
The renovation was paid for with that second half of the quote in mind.
The first bookings run from a Wednesday in November to a Sunday in December
The city's posted 2026–27 events schedule already has the renovated pavilion and the blocks around it booked through the holidays. Here are the dates in order, with where each one happens:
| Date | Event | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Wed., Nov. 11 | Veterans Day celebration | Farmers Market Pavilion |
| Fri., Nov. 27 | Lighting of the Oaks begins, nightly at dusk through Mardi Gras | Huey P. Long Ave. |
| Nov. 28 – Dec. 18 | Passport to Christmas | Participating downtown businesses |
| Dec. 4–6, 11–13, 18–20 | Picnic Under the Lights | Huey P. Long Ave. neutral ground |
| Sat., Dec. 5 | Olde Gretna Christmas Market | Farmers Market Pavilion |
| Sun., Dec. 6 | Tree Lighting and Christmas Parade, 5 p.m. | Huey P. Long Ave. near 6th St. |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | Shop the Huey Holiday Market, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. | Gretna Cultural Center |
| Sat., Dec. 19 | Passport to Christmas drawing | Farmers Market |
| Sun., Dec. 20 | St. Joseph Church Living Nativity, 6 p.m. | Huey P. Long Ave. near 6th St. |
The Veterans Day celebration on November 11 is the first named event the city has put under the renovated roof. The schedule doesn't list a start time for it or for the Olde Gretna Christmas Market on December 5. The Welcome Center at 504-363-1580 is the place to confirm both.
Look at the "Where" column. Most of the season happens on the Huey P. Long neutral ground, on the blocks a short walk from the pavilion. The roof at Third Street is now the covered anchor at one end of a holiday route.
Passport to Christmas runs through the Saturday market
Passport to Christmas ties the season back to the market. From November 28 through December 18, shoppers pick up a Passport to Gretna and collect stamps at participating businesses, which offer deals and discounts. Enough stamps gets you an entry for a gift basket worth more than $1,000. The city says it will draw the winner during the Farmer's Market on December 19. The schedule doesn't list the participating businesses. The Heritage House Welcome Center at 1035 Huey P. Long Avenue has the details, and it's open Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
So the busiest promotion of the shopping season wraps up on a market Saturday, under the renovated roof, in its first holiday season back.
Picnic Under the Lights is the other event to plan ahead for. Over three weekends in December, the city rents clear bubble tents set up under the lit oaks on the neutral ground. Rental sign-up opened October 26 by phone at 504-363-1580. The city hasn't posted 2026 prices. For a rough idea, its Christmas events page for the 2025 season listed tents at $100 to $125 a night, in two sizes for six or eight people, with rentals running 6 to 10 p.m. Treat those as last year's terms until the city confirms this year's.
The parade starts on a street that's still being rebuilt
The December 6 Christmas Parade connects the holiday season to downtown's other big project. According to the city schedule, the route starts on 5th Street near Richard Street and heads down 5th toward Huey P. Long Avenue. From there it turns right, u-turns at 1st Street, runs up Huey P. Long toward 10th Street, u-turns again and ends at 6th and Huey P. Long. It rolls at 5 p.m., and free photos with Santa follow the tree lighting.
That first stretch of 5th Street sits inside the city's $8 million Fifth Street Revitalization Project. NOLA.com reported in August that the work covers about half a mile between Richard and Franklin streets. Plans include a median, sidewalks, on-street parking, drainage work and an extension of Holly Drive, with the full project estimated to finish in 2027. The status report in the city's October 14 council packet says road excavation on the westbound side was underway toward Richard Street, with curbs in progress. Utility relocations by AT&T and Atmos were still pending, along with a fix to Entergy pole placements that conflicted with the plans.
If you usually watch the parade from the 5th Street end, check with the city closer to December 6 about how the route will run through the work zone. The posted schedule is the city's plan as of now.
In 2027, the festival comes back through the Marketplace
Gretna lost its usual fall festival this year because of the renovation, and it plans to bring it back through the new space. The April announcement said Gretna Fest would be "disrupted for 2026 and then improved in 2027 by the newly renovated Marketplace." The Gretna Economic Development Association, which hosts the festival, worked with the city on the stopgap. Jefferson Parish District 1 Councilman Tim Kerner Jr. committed renewed funding to the festival. Starting in 2027, Gretna Fest is set to return to its three-day format, with its main gate entrance inside the renovated Marketplace.
The stopgap was this October's Gretna Festin', four free Saturday concerts at the Gretna Riverfront Amphitheater. WGNO reported the lineup as Third Eye Blind, The Spinners with Irma Thomas, Shane Smith and the Saints, and Gretchen Wilson. GEDA board president Renee Ferrera explained the decision in the city's announcement: "we need to allow time for the Marketplace construction project to be completed and come back next year with the best Gretna Fest ever."
That's why the next few months matter for the pavilion. From the Veterans Day ceremony through the Christmas Market and the December 19 drawing, the holiday season is the first steady run of public events under the new lighting and shade, ahead of the 2027 festival using the Marketplace as its gate. Our earlier post on what was happening in downtown Gretna this fall covers how downtown worked around the closed pavilion. For more on the area, see our Gretna neighborhood page.
At Armstrong Realty, we've watched this corner of Huey P. Long go from a fenced-off construction site to having a full holiday schedule, and projects like the Marketplace and Fifth Street are part of what downtown Gretna will look like for years. If you own nearby and are wondering how downtown's changes might show up in your home's value, ask us for a free home valuation. We're happy to talk it through in English or Vietnamese.
