The Promenade on Forest Is Finished. Who Fills It This Fall?
October 8, 2026
October 8, 2026
On Thursday, September 24, Sheila Bushard-Jamison stood in Bushard's Pharmacy holding a photo of her father, Joe, and his brother, Earl. The two started the pharmacy on Forest Avenue in 1946. The next evening, Mayor Mark Orgill, Mayor Pro Tem Hallie Jones and Councilmembers Alex Rounaghi and Sue Kempf cut the ribbon on the permanent Promenade on Forest a few steps from her door. Bushard's marked its 80th year that night and Moulin marked its 10th.
Those two anniversaries tell you how the plaza works this fall. Construction is done. The city's stage series is not running. The most reliable reasons to spend an evening on lower Forest right now are the businesses along it and the outside groups that have booked it.
The temporary promenade opened on June 15, 2020, as pandemic relief for downtown businesses. Construction on the permanent version began on February 17, 2026. The fences came down around part of the plaza just before the Fourth of July. City Manager Dave Kiff put the final cost at $7.2 million and said it came in under budget. The 2020 setup cost about $250,000, and $10,000 of that went to security. The Daily Pilot reported an estimated $7.3 million, built around a $5.5 million construction contract awarded to Superb Engineering in January.
That money bought a different kind of street. The roadway, curbs, sidewalks and parking spaces were removed. In their place:
The tree canopy is the part that will look unfinished for a while. A tree fell into the work area during construction, and the city then removed others for public safety and insurability reasons. Some residents protested the removals. Kiff said the new landscaping was chosen to suit a "saline" environment. The city describes the replacement planting as a way to rebuild shade over time.
The plaza also cost some parking. When the project was appealed to the Coastal Commission, opponents said it would remove 48 downtown parking spaces. The commission found no substantial issues with the project.
This is the gap in the calendar. The city's posted music roster for the Promenade on Forest stage ran Fridays through Sundays, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., and ended on August 30, 2026. No later dates are posted. So the weekend music that ran through the summer has no confirmed fall schedule. The 133 Band played after the ribbon-cutting, and that set was part of the opening, not the start of a new series.
Pop-up performers aren't filling the gap either. Street performers need approval from the city's Cultural Arts staff, must stay in the designated performance area and can perform for no more than three hours. They also have to follow the street-performer and noise ordinances, and they can't ask for tips out loud.
Mayor Orgill described the plaza as an outdoor room that "can also be used for entertainment from time to time." He also pointed to uses that don't need a stage at all. He mentioned reading circles, high school students who talked about meeting there, and other groups he has already seen gathering. He tied the space to Vision Laguna 2030, the plan about 2,000 residents helped shape around the turn of the millennium. It included a community gathering place like this one.
With no city series on the books, the fall dates come from a restaurant, a film festival and the citywide traditions that already run through downtown.
Hospitality Night is the first big test of the finished space. It is the one event on this list where the city has put a stage on Forest Avenue itself.
The plaza works on an ordinary Tuesday because the businesses along it were busy before the bricks went in. They stayed open throughout construction, while fencing left only narrow walkways for customers.
Bushard's Pharmacy still looks much as it did when Joe and Earl Bushard opened it. It started with a soda fountain and customer notes taken by hand. Bushard-Jamison took over in 1986. Her daughter, Marisa Fader, now runs the business side alongside the store's pharmacist. Much of the specialty cosmetics and perfume on the shelves comes from France and is hard to find elsewhere in the United States. Fader has noticed more foot traffic since part of the plaza near Coast Highway opened in July.
"We've seen an uptick in people shopping and eating and enjoying the promenade. After seeing the fence and the jackhammer for so long, I'm happy to see people down here."
Moulin handed out baked goods and free crepes at the opening to mark its 10th year on Forest. Alessa had guests dining under the umbrellas that night. Brussels Bistro, at 222 Forest Avenue, now offers "Promenade" as a seating area when you book a table. For a gift on the way down to Main Beach, 2Bella lists its Laguna Beach boutique at 260 Forest.
These businesses come up first in this post because they are open every day. Their regular hours, more than any stage series, are what keep the plaza in use. For how the rest of downtown's dining has shifted this year, see our look at how Coast Highway split into two dining scenes.
Tile artist Marlo Bartels was at the opening with one of his pieces. The Chambered Nautilus bench by Carolyn Reynolds went in during the final week of work. The city's Arts Commission has proposed reinstalling three earlier works. They are "Forest Bollards" by Marlo and Jesse Bartels, "Waves" by Larry Gill and the nautilus bench. Of those, only the bench is confirmed on site so far.
The fountain was not reviewed by the Arts Commission. According to the commission's minutes, it doesn't count toward the city's Art in Public Places requirement. That is why more art is still planned. The commission proposed an October call for temporary art and a competition for a new signature sculpture with an $85,000 budget. No artist or installation date has been announced. The plaza that looks finished today will likely get its centerpiece later.
The city is applying the same approach two streets away. A streetscape project for Ocean Avenue and Beach Street is still in planning. The Planning Commission tabled it on September 2, 2026, so the city could gather more public input. A town hall is set for October 20, and construction is forecast for fall 2027. If you have opinions about how Forest turned out, that meeting is where they can shape the next block.
The Village Entrance parking structure is further off. The city's project page still describes it as proposed. Its most recent milestones date from 2023, and it lists no construction schedule. The parking spaces removed from lower Forest have no new structure scheduled to replace them yet. Until one is, getting downtown for Hospitality Night will still take some planning.
Changes like the Promenade on Forest show up in how a street feels long before they show up in any sales report. If you own near the Village and want to talk about what a finished plaza, and the Ocean Avenue plans behind it, could mean for your block, Vanessa Moore is glad to compare notes over coffee at Moulin. Let's Connect, or browse more on the Laguna Beach neighborhood page.
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