Old Fisherman's Wharf Gets Repaired in the Same Weeks Locals Get It Back

The repair schedule on Old Fisherman's Wharf follows the same calendar as the visitor season. The City of Monterey's permits for the Wharf 1 structural repairs allow no work between Memorial Day and Labor Day. So the project stopped for the summer and was set to start again the week of September 14, 2026. Those are the same weeks the summer crowds leave and the fall calendar starts.

For anyone who lives here, late October through early November 2026 means the wharf is a working repair site and also the setting for four events in three weekends. The two don't get in each other's way much, and the reason comes down to geography. Most of what's on the calendar happens at the foot of the pier, around Custom House Plaza. The structural work is out on the timbers.

Why the work happens in fall

The City's construction update for the week of September 7, 2026 said the Wharf 1 project had paused for two reasons. One was material procurement. The other was a permit rule that allows no work between Memorial Day and Labor Day. The rule kept the busiest months of the year free of crews. It also means the repairs run right when the wharf goes back to being a local place.

The contract dates back more than a year. The Monterey Herald reported on September 28, 2026 that the City Council awarded a $983,389 contract to Sweetwater Construction Inc. in July 2025. The Herald summarized the scope as:

• Timber-pile repairs
• Concrete-foundation fixes
• Handrail replacements

Two weeks later, the Herald's story on the wharf's 181st birthday said construction was still going and the businesses were open. The City hasn't published a completion date, so plan around the crews being there for now rather than counting on a finish line.

Most of this work is easy to miss from the boardwalk. Pile repairs and foundation work happen below the deck. Handrails are the part you'd actually see change.

What's going on under the wharf's neighbor

Wharf II has its own long list. A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers public notice from December 2025 covers a maintenance permit program for both of Monterey's municipal wharves. It says a 2024 condition survey found Wharf II in poor condition. The survey pointed to repairs needed on the boat docks, on concession gangways including the support piles under LouLou's gangway, and on the asphalt deck. The same program allows pile replacement, sleeves and wraps, framing and concrete repairs, and utility relocations. The notice is a permit framework, not a construction schedule. Still, it shows that Wharf 1's repairs are one piece of a longer maintenance cycle on both piers.

Three weekends on the waterfront

Three of the four events sit at or start from the land end of the wharf, and the fourth is down the Recreation Trail at the aquarium, so the pier work has little effect on any of them. Here's how the next three weekends line up for a reader on Thursday, October 22:

The Seaweed Festival is the one to eat at

The theme of this year's California Seaweed Festival is "Dive In!" According to California Sea Grant's preview, it nods to the region's scientific and recreational divers, its history of underwater photography, and the work to restore declining kelp forests. The food lineup is all farmed and mostly local:

• Hog Island Oyster Co. from Tomales Bay is hosting and donating its raw oyster bar again.
• Monterey Bay Seaweed Company is showing the seaweed varieties it grows for chefs and bartenders.
• Monterey Abalone Company and Cultured Abalone round out the list, along with local urchin tastings.

Chefs will serve seaweed and seafood dishes to sample. Simona Augyte, a California Sea Grant aquaculture extension specialist and one of the festival's co-founders, told Sea Grant that the festival puts tastings and cooking workshops first so visitors "can easily incorporate seaweeds into their daily cooking." The wharf's event listing also mentions touch tanks, hands-on art and science activities, live music and guided tours. The two sources give different exhibitor counts, but both agree there will be dozens of booths. In the week before the festival, organizers are hosting ocean-themed film screenings, field trips and workshops at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories and other spots.

Halloween stays short and early

Halloween on the Wharf runs from 4 to 7 p.m. on Saturday, October 31, with trick-or-treating, a costume contest and music. The three-hour window keeps it an early-evening stop.

The aquarium opening sets up race weekend

The Monterey Bay Aquarium's bilingual exhibit, Ocean in Motion / La Danza del Mar, opens Saturday, November 7. It includes an expanded African penguin habitat, seahorses, coral reef displays and interactive play areas, according to the aquarium's September 8 press release. The aquarium is at the other end of the Recreation Trail, but opening day falls on the same weekend as the half marathon. That makes it the busiest weekend on this list.

The Monterey Bay Half Marathon starts at 7 a.m. Sunday, November 8, on Del Monte Avenue. The course runs along Cannery Row and the Pacific Grove shoreline and finishes at Custom House Plaza. The wharf's listing says the weekend runs November 6 to 8 and all 9,000 entries are sold out. The traffic page on the race site still shows information from an earlier year. If you live along the course, look for the 2026 closure notice before you plan a Sunday morning drive.

Getting there and parking

The parking setup changed in a way that's easy to miss if you haven't driven down lately. The old Marina and Waterfront lots now work as one self-pay Waterfront Lot. You pay at a station or through ParkMobile. The posted rates on the wharf's map page:

• Waterfront Lot: $2 an hour, $14 daily maximum
• Double spaces in the Waterfront Lot: $2.50 an hour or $22 a day
• Wharf II lot: 129 spaces, $2 an hour or $14 a day
• Enforcement: 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily

At $2 an hour, a three-hour festival visit costs $6, well under the $14 cap. The cap only matters if you stay most of the day. Enforcement ends at 8 p.m., after the Halloween event wraps up at 7.

If you're coming from New Monterey, one more construction item could matter. The City's September schedule had major paving on Wave Street between Hoffman and Dickman set for the week of October 21, along with no-parking postings for the ADA curb-ramp work. The schedule depends on the weather, so check the City's construction updates page before you choose a route.

Who's open on the pier

The businesses on the wharf are open during the repairs. The wharf's dining directory lists Rockfish Harbor Grill, Abalonetti Bar & Grill, Domenico's, Cafe Fina and Old Fisherman's Grotto, and it suggests calling each restaurant for its hours. For shopping, the wharf's retail page includes Harbor House Gifts, Sea & Tree Gallery and The Wharf's General Store. On festival day, Custom House Plaza will fill up first. The restaurants out on the pier are close enough for a sit-down lunch between the tasting tables and the walk home.

The handrail work is the repair you'll see most easily, and it shares these weeks with farmed abalone at the foot of the pier, trick-or-treating on the wharf, and a race finish line on Custom House Plaza.

I grew up with this wharf, and I like seeing it get fixed in the season when we have it mostly to ourselves. If you're thinking about a second home or a move within walking distance of the waterfront, and you want to talk through how a place like this fits into everyday life on the Peninsula, Ben Ottmar is glad to help. Get in touch.