Arvada's biggest public event of the coming weeks is a Fourth of July fireworks show, set for a Friday evening in November. That fits the rest of the season. Most of what is worth planning around in Arvada between now and the holidays traces back to something the year took away earlier. A dry July canceled the fireworks. A March fire closed one of Olde Town's best-loved restaurants. Low water at Arvada-Blunn Reservoir damaged its fishing dock badly enough that repairs have to wait for next season.
So this fall's calendar is mostly makeups, relocations and endings, plus a few beginnings that haven't quite arrived. Here is how they fit together and when each one happens.
The Fireworks Moved to the Stenger Fields
On July 2, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office declared a Stage 2 fire ban. Soon after, Arvada canceled its July 4 fireworks. As the Arvada Press reported, the city cited "extremely dry vegetation, current and forecasted weather conditions, the number of recent vegetation fires, ongoing wildfire activity across Colorado and the reduced availability of regional firefighting resources." Arvada had company. Parker, Alamosa, Montrose, Ouray and Woodland Park also canceled or rescheduled shows this year.
The makeup is called Food Trucks and Fireworks. It runs Friday, Nov. 6, at Stenger Sports Complex, and it is free. According to the city's event listing, parking lots open at 3:30 p.m., food trucks are on site from 2:30 to 6 p.m., and the fireworks start at 6:30 p.m. The Arvada Press gives a 7 p.m. end time for the trucks and lists the venue at 11250 W. 58th Avenue. The city lists 11200 W. 58th Avenue. If you're timing dinner around the trucks, check the city's event page the week of the show.
The city's website says the show moved to November because "cooler temperatures and seasonal conditions" make it more likely to go ahead without environmental delays. Adelle Burton, Arvada's Special Events and Public Arts Manager, told the Arvada Press that the city leaned into the odd timing:
"Obviously, fireworks on a random Friday night in November is a little unusual, so we decided to embrace that and have some fun with it."
The food truck lineup, per the same report, is Dude Bro Taco, OG Burgers, Travelin' Tom's Coffee, The Captain Tacos and Sushi, Fanwich Food Truck, CO Berliner Haus, BBQ on the Bayou and La Michoacana VIP Denver. Professionals will run the show, and Arvada Fire will oversee it, just as planned for July. With the trucks scheduled to wrap up around the time the show starts, plan to eat first and then find your spot on the fields.
The Same Dry Year Shows Up at Arvada-Blunn Reservoir
The fire ban is the dry summer's most visible effect. Arvada-Blunn Reservoir shows the slower one. In an Oct. 9 park update, the city said the fishing dock is closed because extremely low water levels damaged it. Repairs can't happen until the water rises, which isn't expected until after this season.
The boat ramp and boat dock were still open as of that notice. The city warned that if water keeps dropping, they may close before the reservoir's scheduled seasonal closure on Oct. 31. Shoreline fishing remains available, and the low water has exposed more shoreline than usual.
The same notice covers a separate trail closure. A section of the reservoir trail about 500 feet west of the boat ramp is closed because of ongoing bear activity. That closure, along with restricted access to the north side of the reservoir, stays in place through Oct. 31. That leaves nine days of the 2026 season after this post goes up, and a smaller loop than usual.
North of the reservoir, the city is building a 1.7-mile segment of the Colorado Front Range Trail that will connect to the Ralston Creek Trail. In mid-September the city posted a temporary detour for the work, estimated at three to four weeks starting the week of Sept. 14. City Council records call the project the Blunn-Pioneer Segment. Unlike the dock, this change at the reservoir adds trail access rather than taking it away.
Olde Town's Fire, and the Ramen That Moved to Sheridan
The year's other big disruption in Arvada was a fire. On March 3, fire severely damaged 303 Ramen's longtime home at 5725 Yukon Street in Olde Town, where the restaurant had operated since 2017, the Arvada Press reported.
Six months later, on Sept. 11, 303 Ramen reopened at 8025 Sheridan Boulevard in northeast Arvada, less than five miles from the old building. It is open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Owner Natenapa Bunkrong told the Arvada Press, "It's not far from our old location, so we're really happy to still be in the same community and close to many of our longtime customers."
If you were a regular on Yukon Street, Bunkrong said some of the menu will change but many longtime favorites will stay. The ones regulars mention most often are the panang curry ramen, shio ramen, duck cheese wontons and Thai iced tea, and the focus is mostly ramen and Japanese food. Shortly after the fire, Westword named 303 Ramen one of Denver's top ramen restaurants, so the restaurant reopens with an outside endorsement it earned while closed. The restaurant posts updated hours on its Facebook page.
A Last Season on Grandview Avenue
Some of the changes in Olde Town this fall are endings. Silver Vines Winery at 7509 Grandview Avenue will close at the end of 2026, after 15 years in Olde Town. Owners Jeff and Kristin Chayer announced the closure on Facebook on June 29. According to the Arvada Press, the winery opened in December 2011. Its Arvada location stays open through December, while the Boulder tasting room on 13th Street was set to close in late summer or early fall.
Kristin Chayer told the Arvada Press that the winery became a place "for Tuesday-night regulars who became some of our closest friends." The same July report said the winery would hold a 15th Anniversary Party on Sunday, Dec. 6, from 2 to 6 p.m. Silver Vines' online event directory lists Arvada programming into December, including events on Dec. 4 and Dec. 7, so check there before building a Sunday around the party. The December calendar is the last chance for anyone who has meant to bring friends to Grandview Avenue for a tasting.
What Is Still on Its Way
Olde Town is also gaining businesses this year, though more slowly. My Book Cellar is planned as a bookstore, café, bar and community space at 5715 Upham Street. In its latest update, the Arvada Press reported that the owners were waiting on the city's response to their permit resubmittal and hoped to open before the holidays. Their website says only "Coming Winter 2026 to Olde Town Arvada."
A few blocks away, TeeLee Floral and Events has moved into the former mayor's residence at 5613 Olde Wadsworth Boulevard, according to an Arvada Press business listing updated Aug. 10. Between the two, Olde Town picks up a florist in a historic house and a bookstore with a bar, in the same year it loses its winery.
The Dates, in Order
From the morning this post goes up, here is Arvada's calendar through mid-December:
- Saturday, Oct. 24: Unsettling Tales of Edgar Allan Poe at the Arvada Center.
- Friday, Oct. 30, 5 to 7 p.m.: Trick or Treat Street in Olde Town Arvada.
- Saturday, Oct. 31: Halloween Drag Queen Storytime at the Arvada Center. This is also the last day of the season at Arvada-Blunn Reservoir and the last day of the bear-activity trail closure.
- Friday, Nov. 6: Food Trucks and Fireworks at Stenger Sports Complex. Parking opens at 3:30 p.m. and fireworks start at 6:30 p.m.
- Nov. 20 through Jan. 3, 2027: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Arvada Center.
- Sunday, Dec. 6, 2 to 6 p.m.: Silver Vines' 15th Anniversary Party, as reported in July. Confirm it with the winery before you go.
- Friday, Dec. 11: Stories On Stage: Making Merry at the Arvada Center.
Olde Town's own holiday events, including the tree lighting and Lagniappe, don't yet have 2026 dates on the Olde Town Arvada events page. Check there in November.
The fire ban and the empty dock both forced plans to shift in Arvada this year, and a move can call for the same flexibility. If you're weighing a sale or purchase and want a plan built around your timing rather than the market's, John Chrisbens is glad to talk it through. Let's Connect.
