Harrington Park closed for construction on April 6, 2026, and the City expects the Harrington Park Refresh to be finished in early 2027. That leaves a gap of about a year in the middle of the 700 block of Laurel Street. The City has filled it by moving downtown's gathering space a short walk over, to the corner of Laurel and Cherry and the Wheeler Plaza parking lot behind it.
The changes came in small pieces over the spring and summer: a statue moved, a market layout redrawn, a parking lot turned into a watch-party venue. Together they amount to a new downtown map. The fall and winter calendar, from the Art & Wine Faire on October 10 through Night of Holiday Lights on December 4, is set out on that map.
How the Corner Took Over, Change by Change
The first change was the farmers' market. Since 2021 the San Carlos Farmers' Market had used a curbside "promenade" layout built around emergency access. On May 3, 2026, after downtown businesses asked for changes, the City, the Urban Village Farmers' Market Association and fire officials moved the vendor booths away from the curbs. Vendors also spread into the Wheeler Plaza parking lot, which let Cherry Street reopen to traffic and parking. The City added seating, umbrellas and games at the same time. The market still runs every Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., year-round and rain or shine, at 600 Laurel Street, near San Carlos Avenue and El Camino Real.
Four days later, on May 7, Balancing Act moved too. The blue figure that had been part of the downtown streetscape now stands near Laurel and Cherry. Public seating followed. Adirondack chairs went onto Laurel Street after Hometown Days in mid-May, and the City added more on August 18.
Then Wheeler Plaza showed it could hold a crowd. The City's Life on Laurel series held a Silent Disco there in April, in the rain. In June, about 500 fans gathered at Wheeler Plaza for the World Cup watch party for the USA's opening match against Paraguay. Fans bought takeout from downtown restaurants to eat during the game. A second watch party, for USA vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina, used the same setup. For a parking lot, 500 people is a lot. It also shows how the City has run these evenings: the plaza provides the space and the restaurants on the block provide the food.
The Hometown Days parade still came downtown. The construction team laid steel plates over an open storm-drain trench on Laurel Street for the May 16–17 weekend so the parade could get through safely. By May 22, most of the storm-drain installation on Laurel was done and the sidewalk had reopened.
The Fall and Winter Calendar Follows the Same Map
Each event below runs along the Laurel Street corridor. The holiday event's main stage is on Cherry Street, a block from the closed park.
Art & Wine Faire, Saturday and Sunday, October 10–11, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The faire takes over San Carlos Avenue at Laurel Street with more than 200 artists, plus beer, wine, food and entertainment. The farmers' market is closed on Sunday, October 11, for the faire. It is the one 2026 date when the Sunday market doesn't run.
Spooky Streets entry deadline, Friday, October 23. The City's Halloween decorating contest is for homes and businesses, so it takes place across town rather than downtown. Winners will be announced October 30.
Goblin Walk, Friday, October 30, 4 to 5:30 p.m. Laurel Street from San Carlos Avenue to Arroyo Avenue becomes a trick-or-treat route for children 7 and under, who must come with an adult.
Night of Holiday Lights, Friday, December 4, 5 to 8:30 p.m. The free event fills Laurel Street from San Carlos Avenue to Cherry Street, with the main stage on Cherry. The City lists kids' activities, arts and crafts, hot chocolate, beer and wine sales, a holiday show, musical performances, festive lights and snow.
Downtown Wine Walk, Friday, February 12, 2027. The City has already set the date for the event's return. The 2026 Wine Walk, held February 13 on Laurel Street and San Carlos Avenue, was the first event in the Life on Laurel series.
Life on Laurel itself has quieted for now. The most recent listing is a KO Fitness obstacle-course session on Thursday, October 1, from 5 to 7 p.m. The City says more events are planned for fall and winter but has not posted later dates. Watch the City's events page for October and November dates.
The Businesses Along the Fence
The plaza-and-takeout setup matters most to the storefronts right next to the work. In late February and March, City staff met with the owners of Mama Coco's and Faith & Spirits and spoke by phone with the owner of Bow Wow Meow before construction began. On March 26, a second coffee chat inside Harrington Park drew representatives from Faith & Spirits, Mama Coco Cocina, Town, Spasso and Stamp Bar & Grill, along with Mayor Venkatesh. The main topics were employee parking, parking enforcement and wayfinding signs in the garages.
The City's construction plan was built around those concerns. Construction vehicles use the alley behind Laurel, entering and leaving from Cherry and Olive Streets. Contractors park their own cars in the SamTrans garage, and equipment is staged off-site. The City has said customer access to storefronts on Laurel Street is not affected. Most of the work-related notices since then have been about Cowgill Alley, north of the 700 block. The City sent business notices for alley work in April, May, July, August and again for September 23.
The City has also brought groups to the block on purpose. In June, the Lunch Bunch program run with the Friends of the San Carlos Adult Community Center chose Mama Coco's for its monthly outing, a restaurant right next to the park work. During the week of September 28, the City scheduled two Downtown Revitalization information boards for the 700 block of Laurel, one in the raised planter near Diddams and one near U.S. Bank. They are the newest additions to the block.
What Returns to the Park in 2027
The Laurel and Cherry arrangement is temporary by design. City Council awarded the project, Downtown Plan Implementation Phase 1A, to Azul Works, Inc. on February 9, 2026. The planned park includes:
- a new paving layout that keeps the existing memorial bricks, moved into the new design
- new trees and landscaping
- new public seating
- a multipurpose building with restrooms, storage and a utility room
- a mass timber pavilion attached to that building
- a staging area and multipurpose curb zone next to the alley
Silva Cells are already in place underground. They give tree roots room to grow and capture and filter stormwater, which the City expects to mean larger trees and more shade in the finished park. Every existing memorial brick is being stored and will be reinstalled, and the new layout has room for more. Some of the old planting has been moved elsewhere in town. Two crepe myrtles and two camellia bushes now grow at Burton Park, and five more camellias went to the City Hall dog park.
The four public parking spaces directly behind the park will not come back as parking. They are becoming a designated drop-off and loading zone. Work runs 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, with occasional off-hours utility work announced in advance. Early 2027 is the City's target date, not a promised opening. Until then, Night of Holiday Lights and the Sunday market both operate around the Laurel and Cherry corner. To follow the project, sign up for the City's Downtown Revitalization e-news at cityofsancarlos.org/enews, or email [email protected].
At Real Smart Group, we track changes like the Harrington Park Refresh block by block, because a new pavilion, a loading zone or a busier Cherry Street changes how the homes and storefronts around downtown San Carlos are valued. If you own nearby and want to know where your home stands as the park nears completion, get your free home valuation.
