Downtown McHenry's First Holiday Season With a One-Way Riverside Drive

The City of McHenry scheduled an electronic message board for the corner of Riverside Drive and Pearl Street during the last week of October, to warn drivers about what was coming. Starting at about 8 a.m. on Monday, November 2, Riverside Drive was set to become one-way northbound to Pearl Street for good. Underground utility work was scheduled to start the same day.

That puts the 2026 Downtown Holiday Walk on a street in the first weeks of its rebuild. The walk runs November 20 through 22, and the four Saturday Holiday Markets start November 14. Of the parking options the City lists, many are on the Green Street and Pearl Street side of downtown, and the Boone Creek pedestrian bridge is the link to the Riverwalk Shoppes.

What the November 2 switch covers

The Riverside Drive Streetscape Project is a $3,719,070.40 contract awarded to D'Land Construction of Algonquin on October 5. The underground utility phase, which starts November 2, is expected to take three to four months, depending on weather. Demolition and the new road and sidewalks follow in spring 2027, and the City lists November 30, 2027 as the completion date.

The one-way stretch doesn't cover all of Riverside. Shaw Local's Northwest Herald reported that it runs from Route 120/Elm Street to Pearl Street. The block from the Riverwalk Shoppes to Route 120 keeps its current parking and two-way traffic. So does the stretch from Pearl Street to 1405 Riverside Drive. If you're heading north from Elm toward Pearl, nothing much changes. If you're heading south on that stretch, you'll need a different route.

The City says pedestrian access to businesses will stay open throughout the project. Its FAQ also warns that sidewalks between businesses may close from time to time. Under the noise ordinance, permitted construction hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturdays and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. Those hours overlap every Holiday Market Saturday and the parade Sunday. The City hasn't announced any pause or special event-day plan for the holiday weekends. Its stated plan is to post updates through social media, press releases, Nixle alerts and the City website.

The holiday calendar this year

The Chamber's 2026 schedule starts one day earlier than last year's. The 2025 walk ran November 21 through 23, and the tree lighting was on Saturday, November 22, at 4:45 p.m. This year the lights go on Saturday, November 21, at 5 p.m. The table shows where each event happens, and the location column ties directly into the parking section that follows.

At the Festival of Trees, voting works by donation. You leave a non-perishable food item or toiletries under your favorite tree, and everything collected goes to Veterans Path to Hope. The Cocoa Crawl mug costs $10, and the Chamber has capped the run at 600 mugs. With that limit, arriving at 4:30 on Friday is a better plan than arriving at 7.

The easier way in is from Green Street

The City's FAQ answers the parking question directly. For the Riverwalk Shoppes, the south Riverside parking lot at 1207 Riverside Drive stays open. The City added 20 spaces at the North Riverside Lot ahead of the project. Other parking is in the Riverside Drive alley and at Veterans Park, Park Avenue, Pearl Street, Court Street, Broad Street and Green Street. From Green Street, you walk to the Shoppes over the pedestrian bridge at Boone Creek. The City says every one of those spots is within a five-minute walk of the Riverwalk Business District.

For a holiday Saturday, the list works out to three practical options:

• Holiday Market only: Try the 1207 Riverside lot first. If it's full, park on Green Street and cross at Boone Creek instead of circling the one-way section.
• Market, then the lighting: Park at Veterans Park or on Pearl Street. The 5 p.m. switch-on is right there, and the market is a short walk away.
• Cocoa Crawl Friday: Park once anywhere on the list and use the free trolley, which runs 4 to 8 p.m. that night.

You can find all the downtown lots on the City's downtown public parking page.

The Riverwalk boardwalk is getting new decking too

A second project is scheduled along the river. In October, the City Council approved $180,857 to re-deck 510 linear feet of Riverwalk boardwalk that was first installed in 2005. The work went to Manusos General Contracting of Fox Lake, with a start date of October 26 and a 45-day schedule. On that schedule, the work would finish around December 10, after the last Holiday Market on December 5. The Northwest Herald's photo places the section near the Riverwalk Place townhomes.

The new deck uses a different brand of engineered wood plank. Parks and Recreation Director Bill Hobson told the Northwest Herald that city staff "have learned a thing or two since 2005," and that "we've transitioned to stainless steel screws and stainless steel hangers that hold up much better." The work is paid for entirely from the downtown TIF district.

Riverside's storefronts are open, and one is close to reopening

The construction comes after a year of new openings on Riverside Drive. AteaCo Coffee & Tea moved out of a Riverwalk Shoppes stall and into its own storefront at 1323 Riverside Drive in May, the Northwest Herald reported. This year it is also the sponsor of the Cocoa Crawl. KEST Jewelry & Gifts at 1211 Riverside Drive held its Chamber ribbon-cutting on October 16. The City's Fall/Winter 2026 newsletter also lists The Buzzz at 1250 Green Street and Oak & Mane Salon at 1224–1226 Green Street among its new businesses. Both are on the Green Street side, where the City is pointing visitors to park.

Riverside Bake Shop has been closed since a fire on January 18. As of September 28, it expected to reopen in December 2026 and said it would know more within a few weeks. If that happens, a Riverside Drive storefront reopens in the middle of the street's rebuild.

The Riverwalk Shoppes stay open through December 27, Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The 2026 lineup includes Arlo's Candy Shop, The Cake Lady, The Winter Inn BBQ Company, Roots and Routes Co. and the returning Hello Darling Books & Beyond.

What future holiday seasons get out of this one

The City's plan calls for brick paver sidewalks, ADA ramps into businesses, traffic calming and decorative lighting. The State of Illinois contributed more than $771,000 for pavers and lights. The Northwest Herald reported that the plan includes four larger light fixtures at the Pearl Street and Riverside Drive intersection, built to carry overhead string lighting. Pearl Street is also on this year's parade route, between Green Street and Riverside. The City's completion date is November 30, 2027, so the work is scheduled to wrap up around the time of next year's Holiday Walk.

Until then, you can follow the work through the City's monthly email updates. You can sign up from the Riverside Drive project page.

Wondering how a rebuilt Riverside Drive might affect values near downtown McHenry? Chicagoland Real Estate Advisors tracks the riverfront blocks closely. Get a free home valuation and we'll walk you through what changes like this tend to mean for homes nearby.