Discovery West's Neighborhood Market Is Aiming for Thanksgiving. Here's Where Locavore West Stands

"We are close enough now to see this marketplace come to life, and we don't want funding to be the thing that keeps the doors closed." Nicolle Timm-Branch, executive director of Central Oregon Locavore, said that to The Source in September, when the nonprofit started a public campaign to raise the last $100,000 needed to finish its Discovery West store.

Her wording matters if you live within walking distance of Discovery West Plaza. The permits are in hand and construction is underway. The goal is to open before Thanksgiving, which falls on Nov. 26. The remaining question is money, and that piece runs on community donations, not on a contractor's schedule.

With Thanksgiving close, the open question is money

Here is how the project got to this point, in order:

1. July 2026: Central Oregon Locavore announces a second location. It's a 600-square-foot marketplace in Discovery West Plaza with year-round local meat, produce and pantry staples, which Cascade Business News reported the neighborhood didn't have.
2. Through the summer: A $200,000 community campaign gets within $15,000 of its goal, enough to move the project forward.
3. Mid-September: Locavore gets its building permits from the city, The Bulletin reported.
4. September: With construction further along, the nonprofit has a clearer picture of the finish cost. It launches a $100,000 campaign to complete the build-out and open before Thanksgiving. The Bulletin wrote that rising construction costs put the fall opening date at risk.
5. Oct. 1: Discovery West's business directory lists Locavore as "coming soon," with construction underway and an opening planned for late fall 2026.

No opening day, store hours or grand-opening date has been announced yet. "Before Thanksgiving" is a goal. Locavore's westside campaign page is the best place to watch, and it currently advertises a $20,000 match.

Why a grocery store needs donations to open

Locavore sells local food on consignment, and about 65 cents of every dollar goes back to the farmer, rancher or producer. Cascade Business News pointed out that this is about what farmers earn at a farmers market, minus the booth fees and the day away from the farm. That leaves very little for Locavore. "The markup that we charge at the marketplace right now is very low, like unheard of in the grocery industry," Timm-Branch told The Bulletin. "We don't make profit at the marketplace so when we want to expand or increase access like this we need to turn to the community to help us."

The same model is why producers want the second store. Locavore paid local producers more than $1.4 million in 2025 and more than $8.7 million since it began tracking sales in 2014. It projects that the Discovery West store will raise annual producer sales by 25 to 30 percent. Timm-Branch summed it up in The Bulletin: "Farmers don't need more passion. They need more sales, and customers want to eat local but access is difficult, especially if they live across town."

For anyone who lives in Discovery West, "across town" means the flagship at 1841 NE 3rd St.

What the shelves are built to cover

The westside store will be a smaller, neighborhood version of the NE 3rd Street marketplace, with the full lineup staying at the flagship. Locavore described the focus in a Discovery West Q&A as "produce, protein, and pantry," meaning seasonal produce, locally raised meat, eggs, dairy and pantry staples.

That focus fits around what Discovery Corner already has on Ochoa Drive:

When Sparrow Mercado opened in August 2025, The Bulletin described it as a grab-and-go shop that also stocked ice cream, beer, cheese and pizza dough. It handles the morning pastry run and the forgotten-ingredient run. Locavore's plan adds what neither shop carries: the week's vegetables, meat and eggs, from a store Discovery West describes as within walking or biking distance of home.

Here is how products get on Locavore's shelves, according to the Q&A. Producers grow and raise within about 200 miles of Bend whenever possible. Meat and eggs must come from pasture-based operations with humane handling and traceability back to the ranch. Produce should be grown with organic or organically aligned practices, including from small farms that aren't formally certified. Discovery West's listing says the store will draw from more than 185 regional farmers, ranchers and makers. Specific producers for the westside store haven't been named yet.

One detail is still undecided. Locavore is "still finalizing" whether CSA boxes, farm shares, preorders or special orders can be picked up at Discovery West, and says it will share pickup details closer to opening. If you already pick up a farm share somewhere else in Bend, that answer will decide whether the new store replaces your weekly trip or adds to it.

Until the doors open

The flagship is open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, according to Locavore's marketplace page, so you can find out now what the westside shelves will feel like.

Closer to home, Put a Cork in It has three dates on its events calendar before the end of November:

• Nov. 20 and Nov. 21: Dominio IV wine tastings. The listed start times differ between the bar's page and the Discovery West directory, so check before you go.
• Nov. 30, 4 to 8 p.m.: Meet Your Wine Match, Red Wines, by Curious Vine Collective.

The bar's regular hours are 4 to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 4 to 9 p.m. Friday, 2 to 9 p.m. Saturday and 2 to 8 p.m. Sunday. Form Pilates also operates at Discovery Corner, which makes a morning class and a Sparrow Mercado pastry an easy pairing.

For scale, Discovery West's larger commercial project, the Skyliner Club, is expected to open in summer 2027 with a pool, fitness and sports spaces, a café and a community park. Locavore West is the smaller project, and it's the one that could open this year, depending on how the $100,000 campaign finishes. Timm-Branch told The Source that the project is past the idea stage: "The space is here. The work is happening. The farmers and ranchers are here. We need to finish the marketplace and open the doors."

Locavore has also said that after Discovery West, it will look at other parts of Bend that need better access to local food.

At Bend Lifestyle REALTORS®, we follow Discovery Corner closely, and we're watching for Locavore's opening date along with you. If you're curious how a walkable market fits into Discovery West's buildout, or what it might mean for your home's value, reach out to Rachel or Shana. Book a Free Consultation & Home Valuation and we'll go through it together.