During the week of September 28, the city put up two new signs on the 700 block of Laurel Street. One stands in the raised planter near Diddams and the other near U.S. Bank, and one of them carries a rendering of the finished Harrington Park. Behind them is the construction site at 753 Laurel St. Work began in April 2026, and the city expects to finish in early 2027.
So the downtown park will stay fenced off for all of this year's Halloween-to-holiday season. That has almost no effect on the city's big seasonal events, because they don't happen in the park. They happen on the Laurel Street pavement, the same blocks they've used for years. The one documented change is small and useful to know if you have a trick-or-treater.
The Calendar, Block by Block
Here's what the city has posted for the rest of the season. Every date below falls after this post goes up.
| Date | Event | Time | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri., Oct. 30 | Goblin Walk | 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. | Laurel St., San Carlos Ave. to Arroyo Ave. |
| Fri., Oct. 30 | Spooky Streets winners announced | Time not posted | City website and Parks & Rec social channels |
| Fri., Nov. 6 | Diwali at the Adult Community Center | 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. | Adult Community Center, registration required |
| Fri., Nov. 13 | Youth vendor applications due | 11:59 p.m. | Online |
| Sat., Nov. 14 | Diwali Downtown | 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. | Laurel Street |
| Fri., Dec. 4 | Night of Holiday Lights | 5:00 to 8:30 p.m. | Laurel St., San Carlos Ave. to Cherry St. |
Each of these events uses Laurel Street or a city facility. None of them needs the park.
The construction schedule helps too. The Harrington Park project page lists working hours of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Diwali Downtown is on a Saturday. Night of Holiday Lights starts at 5:00 p.m. on a Friday, when the posted work hours end. Only the Goblin Walk overlaps, by its first hour. The city also says storefront access on Laurel Street stays open during construction.
Goblin Walk: Same Route, a New Bag Pickup
The Goblin Walk keeps its format. Children 7 and under, with an adult, trick-or-treat along Laurel Street from San Carlos Avenue to Arroyo Avenue and stop at businesses showing a Goblin Walk sign. The city's Goblin Walk page has a "Goblin Walk 2026" map of the businesses taking part.
The bag pickup is what changed. Here's the city's earlier Goblin Walk announcement next to this year's page:
| Earlier Goblin Walk | 2026 Goblin Walk | |
|---|---|---|
| Date | Friday, Oct. 25 | Friday, Oct. 30 |
| Hours | 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. | 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. |
| Route | Laurel St., San Carlos Ave. to Arroyo Ave. | Laurel St., San Carlos Ave. to Arroyo Ave. |
| Free trick-or-treat bags | First 450 children | First 600 children |
| Where to get a bag | Harrington Park or any volunteer | Parks & Recreation tent or any volunteer |
In that earlier year, the park was the meeting point. This year the city lists a Parks & Recreation tent instead, and it has 150 more bags to hand out. Volunteers carry bags along the route both years, so you can still get one without finding the tent.
The Spooky Streets decorating contest wraps up the same afternoon. The city plans to post the winners on October 30 on its website and on the Parks & Rec Facebook and Instagram accounts.
Diwali Comes Twice
The Diwali celebration has two parts on two different days.
- Friday, Nov. 6, 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The Adult Community Center holds a weekday Diwali celebration. You need to register in advance through the city's online registration system.
- Saturday, Nov. 14, 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Diwali Downtown moves the festival of lights onto Laurel Street. The city lists performances by students from the Kathakaars School of Dance and San Carlos Sitaras, says more performers will be announced, and promises music, crafts and food from local chefs.
The Diwali Downtown page also says the Special Events division is looking for help planning the event, at [email protected]. The Saturday event runs late morning to early afternoon on a non-workday, so it doesn't overlap with construction at all.
Night of Holiday Lights Has Used Cherry Street All Along
The city's page for the 2024 event put the festivities on Laurel Street from San Carlos Avenue to Cherry Street, with the main stage on Cherry. The Mountain View Voice's 2024 holiday guide listed that year's event as the 14th annual, on the same stretch of Laurel. The Community Foundation of San Carlos announced the 15th annual event for December 5, 2025, again on Laurel from San Carlos Avenue to Cherry Street.
That makes December 4, 2026, the event's 16th year on the same footprint. It runs 5:00 to 8:30 p.m. and is free. The city's event page lists kids' activities, arts and crafts, beer and wine sales, hot chocolate, a holiday show, festive lights, snow and live music. The same page names emcees Lori & RJ and the band Wild Child, along with The Tide Note Singers led by Emily Bender, Broadway Babies & Kids, San Carlos Children's Theater, Peninsula Lively Arts, the Tap Dancing Christmas Trees, a Tribute to Stevie Wonder, Santa Claus and the Snow Queen. Check the page again closer to the date in case the lineup changes.
The event is presented by the San Carlos Parks & Recreation Department and the Parks and Recreation Foundation of San Carlos.
The Youth Vendor Track Starts the Same Day as the Goblin Walk
Night of Holiday Lights takes youth vendors in grades 4 through 12 who are at least 9 years old. To get ready, the San Carlos Youth Center is running a free Entrepreneurship Workshop Series on Fridays from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m., October 30 through November 20.
For a family with a young seller, the order matters:
- Oct. 30: The first workshop meets at the same time as the Goblin Walk on Laurel. Kids join through the Youth Center's After School Drop-In Program.
- Nov. 13, 11:59 p.m.: Youth vendor applications are due, a week before the last workshop.
- Nov. 20: Last workshop session.
- Dec. 4: Night of Holiday Lights.
The application deadline comes before the workshop series ends. The city also says that taking the workshops doesn't guarantee a vendor spot. Sign-up details are at cityofsancarlos.org/scyc.
What Comes After the Fence Comes Down
The street events work without the park this year. But the finished Harrington Park is designed to support them. The city's Downtown Revitalization page lists a multi-purpose gathering plaza, a building with restrooms, storage and mechanical space, public seating, a rain garden and a tree grove. When the city awarded the construction contract in February, it also described a mass-timber pavilion attached to the building, plus a staging area and multi-purpose curb zone by the alley. The city's project FAQ says the building will have two public all-gender restrooms, one ADA accessible with a universal changing station.
A plaza, a pavilion, a staging area and public restrooms in the middle of the Laurel Street event zone will matter most to the events that bring families downtown for hours. The city hasn't said whether any of its holiday programming will move into the park once it opens.
Some smaller changes are already in place. In August the city added more Adirondack chairs along Laurel Street. Its Life on Laurel pop-up series says it has events planned through fall and winter. On October 8, city staff met with about 50 downtown business and property owners at West Park Bistro, 788 Laurel St., to give them an update on construction. For construction questions, the project has its own phone line at (650) 802-4310. You can also get updates by subscribing to the city's Downtown Revitalization E-News group.
This year, plan around the Laurel Street blocks between San Carlos Avenue and Arroyo Avenue for Halloween, and between San Carlos Avenue and Cherry Street in December.
At The Canlas Brothers, we track how downtown San Carlos is changing because those changes show up in the value of a home near Laurel Street. If you're weighing a move once Harrington Park reopens, or want to know how being close to downtown affects your home's value today, schedule your free Home Strategy Consultation.
