The blue juggling man has moved. Balancing Act, the sculpture that used to stand in Harrington Park, now sits at the north end of the 700 block of Laurel Street near Cherry Street. The city relocated it in May, about a month after construction fencing went up around the park at 753 Laurel.
The sculpture's move is one of several. Since April, San Carlos has handed the park's jobs to other spots along Laurel: the seating, the public art, the place to gather with takeout. Most of those jobs now sit within a block of Laurel and Cherry, or in the Wheeler Plaza lot. Halloween, Diwali and Night of Holiday Lights all happen on that temporary layout. The park itself stays closed until early 2027.
Where the Park's Jobs Went
The Harrington Park Refresh started on April 6, 2026, and the city still expects to finish in early 2027. Crews work 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. Construction trucks come in through Cowgill Alley, the alley behind Laurel, from Cherry and Olive Streets. According to the city's Harrington Park FAQ, Laurel Street stays closed to construction vehicles and pedestrian access is kept open throughout.
With the park closed, the city has moved its uses one at a time. The Downtown Revitalization Blog logs each change:
| What the park used to do | Where it happens in 2026 |
|---|---|
| Public art | Balancing Act moved to Laurel near Cherry, May 7 |
| Somewhere to sit | Adirondack chairs on Laurel after Hometown Days, with more added August 18 |
| Room to gather | Wheeler Plaza lot: Silent Disco on April 10, World Cup watch parties on June 12 and July 1 |
| Trees and shrubs | Two crepe myrtles replanted at Burton Park, camellias moved to Burton Park and the City Hall dog park |
Sunday mornings changed as well, for reasons separate from the park. Since 2021 the farmers' market had used a curbside "promenade" layout. After hearing from downtown businesses, the city worked with the Urban Village Farmers' Market Association and fire officials to move booths away from the curb starting May 3. The extra vendors went into the Wheeler Plaza lot, which let Cherry Street reopen to traffic and parking. The new layout also added seating, umbrellas and games. The San Carlos Farmers' Market still runs Sundays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Laurel between Cherry Street and San Carlos Avenue.
Wheeler Plaza has turned out to be the space that works. The city counted about 500 people at its June 12 watch party for USA vs. Paraguay, with fans eating takeout from downtown restaurants. The Life on Laurel pop-up series started with a Downtown Wine Walk on February 13. The city has said more of these evenings are planned through fall and winter.
The Late-Fall Calendar Uses the Same Few Blocks
The season's three big downtown events all stay on Laurel Street, and two of them center on the Cherry Street end where the sculpture and the farmers' market spillover now sit.
- Goblin Walk, Friday, October 30, 4 to 5:30 p.m. Children 7 and under, with an adult, trick-or-treat along Laurel from San Carlos Avenue to Arroyo Avenue. Stop at businesses showing a Goblin Walk sign. The first 600 trick-or-treaters get a bag at the Parks & Recreation tent or from any volunteer, and the Goblin Walk page has a map of participating businesses.
- Boo Bash at Devil's Canyon Brewing Co., also October 30, 4 to 10 p.m. It's at 935 Washington St., with a costume contest, live music and food trucks. It starts at the same hour as the Goblin Walk and runs well into the evening. The brewery's events calendar has the details.
- Diwali at the Adult Community Center, Friday, November 6, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. This weekday celebration requires advance registration.
- Diwali Downtown, Saturday, November 14, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Students from the Kathakaars School of Dance and the San Carlos Sitaras perform on Laurel Street, with music, crafts and food from local chefs. The Diwali Downtown page says more performers will be announced.
- Night of Holiday Lights, Friday, December 4, 5 to 8:30 p.m. It runs on Laurel from San Carlos Avenue to Cherry Street, with the main stage on Cherry. Emcees Lori & RJ open at 5 p.m., and Wild Child plays from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. The lineup also includes the Tide Note Singers, Broadway Babies & Kids, San Carlos Children's Theater, Peninsula Lively Arts, the Tap Dancing Christmas Trees and a Stevie Wonder tribute. Santa and the Snow Queen appear, and there's snow, hot chocolate, and beer and wine sales.
The Cherry Street stage predates the construction. San Carlos Life's listing for the 2025 event shows the same Laurel footprint with the main stage on Cherry. The Community Foundation of San Carlos billed that event as the 15th annual. This year the stage shares that corner with the relocated Balancing Act and the reopened Cherry Street.
Families with older kids have two dates to note. Youth vendor applications for Night of Holiday Lights are open to grades 4 through 12, ages 9 and up, and close November 13 at 11:59 p.m. The San Carlos Youth Center runs a free entrepreneurship workshop on Fridays from 4 to 5 p.m., October 30 through November 20. The city says the workshop does not guarantee a vendor spot.
Devil's Canyon also runs Beer Fridays with live music and food trucks from 4 to 10 p.m. on November 6, 13, 20 and 27 and December 4, 11 and 18. That includes the night of the holiday lights.
The Storefronts Along the Fence Are Open
The park's neighbors have taken the brunt of the construction. City staff met with business owners starting in February, held coffee chats in the park, and emailed the 700 block of Laurel, the 1100 block of Cherry and the 700 block of El Camino Real before each round of alley and storm drain work. On October 8, about 50 downtown business and property owners attended an 8 a.m. listening session at West Park Bistro for a construction update. The city has said construction does not affect customer access to Laurel Street storefronts.
From the corner of Laurel and Cherry heading south, these are the businesses on either side of the fence:
- Diddams, 700 Laurel St., which has its Halloween stock out this month. One of the city's new Downtown Revitalization information boards, with a rendering of the finished park, stands in the raised planter nearby. The second is near U.S. Bank.
- Town, 716 Laurel St., serving regional American food including wood-fired chicken, hand-cut steaks and seafood, plus weekend brunch.
- Bow Wow Meow, 737 Laurel St., open daily, with grooming, nail trims and weekly vaccination clinics.
- Mama Coco's, 753 Laurel St., which shares the park's address. In June the Adult Community Center's Lunch Bunch, run with the Friends of the San Carlos Adult Community Center, held its monthly outing here.
- Faith & Spirits, 765 Laurel St., a cocktail lounge with craft cocktails and live entertainment.
- Spasso, 769 Laurel St., serving Italian-style pasta and seafood.
- West Park Bistro, 788 Laurel St., serving contemporary American fusion built on local produce, with a deep wine list.
Stamp Bar & Grill also sat in on the city's March coffee chat about the project.
Two newer spots are a short walk from the fence. Casa Mia, a Mexican breakfast and brunch restaurant with locations in Mountain View, Milpitas and San Jose, soft-opened in September in the former LivinRoom space, according to The Almanac. WhatNow had reported the address in August as 677 Laurel St., Suite B. On El Camino Real, Zac's Bar & Grill opened September 1 at 1748 El Camino Real in the former Office Bar & Grill space, Palo Alto Online reported.
What Comes Back in 2027, and What It Adds
The finished park will take back the jobs that have been spread around downtown, and it adds a few the old park never had. The San Mateo Daily Journal described the approved design this way. A 674-square-foot multipurpose building, about 14.5 feet tall, will sit at the northeast corner with a mass timber pavilion over it. Under the pavilion go a drinking fountain and an outdoor hand-washing station. The building also has a mechanical room for a future fountain.
The city's FAQ fills in the rest:
- Restrooms. There will be two all-gender public restrooms. One is ADA accessible and has a universal changing station for all ages.
- Trees. The City Council approved removing 10 existing trees, and a city arborist found they had an aphid infestation and were leaking sap. Eight new trees go into the park and two onto Laurel Street.
- Memorial bricks. They are in storage and will be reinstalled near the end of construction, with room for new ones.
- Parking. The four short-term spaces in the alley behind the park become a drop-off and loading zone.
The trees will take years to fill in. In June, crews installed Silva Cells under the park. These underground structures give tree roots room to spread and filter stormwater, which should mean bigger trees and more shade once the park opens.
The park is Phase 1A. Phase 1B covers the 700 block of Laurel Street itself, and the city says its timeline has not been set. The Daily Journal reported that the future fountain belongs to that phase. To follow progress, sign up for the city's Downtown Revitalization E-News at cityofsancarlos.org/enews. Questions go to [email protected] or (650) 802-4310.
At Fallant Team, we follow changes like the Harrington Park Refresh block by block, because they shape what daily life on Laurel Street feels like. If you live near downtown San Carlos and want to talk through how the 2027 park and the coming Laurel Street work might matter for your plans, we'd be glad to sit down with you. Schedule a Consultation.
