From early November through Thanksgiving weekend, most of downtown Redwood City's calendar fits on a few blocks of Middlefield Road. The Zoppé Italian Family Circus sets up its Big Top in the Main Library parking lot at 1044 Middlefield. Día de los Muertos fills Courthouse Square, the block of Broadway between Hamilton and Middlefield. The newest sit-down restaurant on the corridor is a few doors from the city garage at 900 Middlefield.
The city has other plans for some of the ground under that calendar. It is collecting feedback on putting 100% affordable housing on Library Lot B at 1016 Middlefield Road. Its capital plan targets construction of a new park on Library Lot A in fiscal year 2028–29. This November looks like every November on the corridor, but the parking lots around it are being studied for other uses.
A 19th November for the Big Top
The circus runs November 6–29, 2026, its 19th year in Redwood City. The tent is small enough that every seat sits within 20 feet of the ring. Giovanni Zoppé directs the circus and performs as Nino the Clown.
Each show lasts about two hours, and a preshow starts 30 minutes before showtime. The schedule follows a steady weekly pattern:
- Saturdays: noon, 3 and 7 p.m. on Nov. 7, 14, 21 and 28
- Sundays: noon, 3 and 6 p.m. on Nov. 8, 15 and 22; the closing Sunday, Nov. 29, has noon and 3 p.m. only
- Fridays: 6:30 p.m. on opening night, Nov. 6; 4 and 7 p.m. on Nov. 13 and 20; noon, 3 and 7 p.m. on Nov. 27
- Midweek: noon and 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 11; 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 12, 18, 19, 24 and 25
- Thanksgiving Day: no shows
Prices vary by week, and weekends cost more than weekdays. Here is the city's ticket table:
| Show type | Front row | Adult, 12+ | Youth, 2–11 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weekdays, weeks 1–3 | $22 | $17 | $12 |
| Nov. 11 and week 4 weekdays | $25 | $20 | $15 |
| Week 5 Tue/Wed | $28 | $23 | $22 |
| Fri–Sun, weeks 1–4 | $24–37 | $17–30 | $12–25 |
The cheapest seats in the whole run are weekday evenings in the first three weeks. The circus FAQ says front-row seats start at $24, which doesn't match the $22 weekday front row in the table, so confirm the price at checkout. Tickets are sold online until showtime unless a show sells out. There are no door sales, refunds or exchanges. A box office at the tent opens 45 minutes before each day's first show and takes cash and cards.
The two days the circus and the library disagree
The Downtown Library's posted hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. During the circus run it is closed Nov. 11, Nov. 26 and Nov. 27, and it closes at 5 p.m. on Nov. 25.
The circus has shows on two of those closed days: noon and 4 p.m. on Nov. 11, and noon, 3 and 7 p.m. on Nov. 27. Anyone planning to combine a library errand with a matinee on those dates will find the building closed. On Nov. 25, the 6:30 p.m. show starts after the library has shut for the day.
Parking takes a little planning. The city directs circus guests to three garages.
- Box/Crossing 900 garage at 900 Middlefield Road, closest to the tent
- Jefferson garage at 850 Jefferson Avenue
- Marshall garage at 750 Marshall Street
The city's parking page lists the first 1.5 hours free at these garages. A two-hour show plus a 30-minute preshow runs past that window, so a full visit will go beyond the free period. Caltrain stops downtown, and the city's guide lists several SamTrans routes as well.
Nov. 8 is the corridor's fullest day
On Sunday, Nov. 8, the circus and Día de los Muertos run at the same time, a few blocks apart. Día runs from 3:30 to 8 p.m. at Courthouse Square, 2200 Broadway. Casa Círculo Cultural organizes it with the San Mateo County History Museum and the Redwood City Parks & Arts Foundation, and the 2026 theme is Tlaxcala.
The program includes community altars and an altar competition, a sugar-skull workshop, Catrina face painting, a cemetery installation, chalk art, children's activities, live performances and a food court. Casa says the full performer lineup will be announced closer to the date. The city calendar says the welcome speech and procession usually begin around 6 p.m.
The Sunday circus shows are at noon, 3 and 6 p.m. The 3 p.m. show, preshow included, lets out around 5, which leaves time to walk to Broadway before the procession. The 6 p.m. show overlaps the procession.
Two city Halloween events come before all of this. Halloween Spooktacular runs Saturday, Oct. 24, from noon to 3 p.m. at Red Morton Community Center, 1120 Roosevelt Avenue. Boo Bash runs Tuesday, Oct. 27, from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Chan Zuckerberg Community Space, 801 Jefferson Avenue, Suite 100. Boo Bash is free, but you have to register.
Eating between the Big Top and Broadway
The biggest dining change on this stretch of Middlefield this year is at 830 Middlefield Road, close to the Box garage. Dasbierhauz closed there on June 30 after two years, and The Almanac reported that Gangsan, a modern Korean restaurant, would take the space.
Gangsan opened in summer, run by longtime friends and chefs Ike Hwang and Jack Choi. The Mercury News reported that its most popular dish is galbijjim, beef short ribs slow-braised in ox bone broth with seasonal vegetables, at $88. The menu also has jeongol hot pots and suyuk, slow-simmered brisket.
Gangsan's hours matter if you're seeing a show. It's open all day on weekends, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. On weekdays it closes between lunch and dinner, serving 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5 to 9 p.m. A weekday 4 p.m. show, like the ones on Nov. 13 and 20, lets out after dinner service has started, which works well. Arriving early for a weekday show means arriving between services.
For a morning or early-afternoon visit, LUMA Coffee Lounge at 1305 Middlefield Road is inside Rise City Church. Redwood City Pulse reported its soft opening on June 5. The East Bay Times listed daily hours of 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and reported that the church plans a thrift store next door.
Mr. Pan Bistro is a little farther away at 711 El Camino Real, in the former Redwood Bistro space. It has been serving Taiwanese comfort food since Sept. 17, according to The Almanac.
What the lots become
On the city's Lot B page, 1016 Middlefield Road is described as a city-owned, central site near transit. The page presents it as a chance to use public land for housing. On May 11, 2026, the City Council looked at scenarios that combined affordable units, city office space and parking. The city is now asking for input on a 100% affordable development, including ground-floor uses, outdoor space and how much public parking the site should keep.
The page connects the project to the city's state housing targets. By January 2031, Redwood City still has 826 very low-income units and 340 low-income units left to meet its required goals.
The open house took place Oct. 6 in the Downtown Library Community Room. The online survey is still linked, and the city hasn't published a closing date for it. Here is the timeline the city has laid out:
- Later in 2026: staff report community feedback to the City Council
- Early 2027: a Request for Development Proposals, after the steps the Surplus Land Act requires
- After that: approvals and financing, so the city doesn't expect construction to start right away
The library's September eNews says the Downtown Library will stay open through the project. No date for losing parking has been published.
Lot A, at Middlefield and Main, is on a slower track. The Library Park concept would combine it with Rosselli Garden into one larger public park. A 2024 Redwood City Pulse report expected construction in 2025. The city's current capital improvement program lists the project as in planning, with no new funding for fiscal year 2026–27, construction in fiscal year 2028–29 and completion in fiscal year 2029–30.
The corridor has changed in a similar way before. On July 26, 2021, the City Council voted unanimously to close Middlefield Road between Broadway and Winslow Street to cars, apart from bicycles, commercial vehicles and emergency vehicles, using sliding bollards. That block is Theatre Way. Patch put the project at $260,000 and reported the block was already in use for outdoor dining.
The city now points to Theatre Way as an example of a temporary closure that became permanent. It did so this month, when it reopened Southgate Street through Lawrie Duncan Park on Oct. 7 after nearly 18 months closed. Redwood City Pulse reported that a community meeting is planned for late October, and that a decision on whether to close that segment permanently is expected by the end of 2026.
After the circus leaves on Nov. 29, the next date on downtown's calendar is Hometown Holidays on Saturday, Dec. 12, from 10 a.m. to about 6 p.m.
If you own a home near downtown and want to talk through how the Lot B and Library Park plans could change the blocks around you, The Lyn Jason Cobb Team can walk you through what the city has published so far. Schedule a Consultation, and we'll keep an eye on the city's next steps with you.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
