What comes after the Lawn Bowling Center? The Gashouse area, the new creek overlooks and the bike path all came out of two recent construction phases. The section east of the bowling green, running out to the 22 Freeway, is next in line. Since spring 2026 it has had a funded plan, a dollar figure and a bridge drawn across Santiago Creek.
The park has been rebuilt in sections over five years, and Park Santiago neighbors have been in the room for each one. A fall walk now covers two finished phases and ends at the edge of the third.
Where the Rebuild Started
Santiago Park sits on Main Street along Memory Lane, across from Discovery Cube. The City of Santa Ana's December 2025 announcement says the land "had been undeveloped for years" before the City began working with the Park Santiago Neighborhood Association on a concept plan.
The first phase was called the Gashouse Area. Construction started in 2021 and finished in 2023, at a cost of $3.5 million. The work restored the historic Gashouse building as a venue for private events. It also added an outdoor amphitheater, walkways, picnic tables, a playground, lighting and new landscaping. The Gashouse, the picnic areas and the amphitheater can all be reserved through the City of Santa Ana, and the Park Santiago Neighborhood Association links to the park-use application on its site.
The City's announcement calls the Gashouse historic but does not give its original use or the year it was built.
The Second Phase Opened Up the Creek
Phase II was finished last winter, and the ribbon was cut on Tuesday, December 9, 2025. The $2.8 million came from the California State Coastal Conservancy. The work added picnic areas, overlooks above Santiago Creek, lighting, landscaping, irrigation, fencing, an entry monument at Main Street, a pedestrian path, and a bike path that links to the Santiago Creek Bike Trail.
That bike path matters most for daily use. It ties the park into a longer corridor. TrailLink maps the Santiago Creek Trail from North Broadway and MainPlace Drive in Santa Ana northeast along the creek to Cannon Street in Orange. Since Phase II, cyclists from Park Santiago can reach that route through the park itself.
At the ribbon cutting, Ward 3 Councilmember Jessie Lopez spoke about what comes next. She said she was "excited to celebrate the second phase and begin planning for the third." In the same release, the City said Phase III was still in planning. It would cover the part of the park east of the Lawn Bowling Center, out to the 22 Freeway.
The Bowling Green Is the Dividing Line
The City uses the Lawn Bowling Center as the western boundary of Phase III, and the green has its own weekly schedule. The Santa Ana Lawn Bowling Club plays on Tuesdays from 2:30 to 5 p.m. and on Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Newcomers get three free lessons, and the club supplies the equipment. The neighborhood association's advice is shorter: "Just show up!"
The association also lists pickleball every Sunday at 2 p.m. on the Santiago Park courts, open to all levels. That makes three regular sessions a week built around the courts and the green, running whether or not any construction is underway.
East of the Green, the Plan Is Already Written
Four months after the Phase II ribbon cutting, Phase III had a funding vote. The Coastal Conservancy board took up the Santiago Park item at its April 23, 2026 meeting. The staff recommendation, dated April 17, asked for a grant of up to $2,925,000. The Conservancy announced the award on April 24. The Santa Ana City Council accepted the $2.9 million grant at its May 19, 2026 meeting.
With a $200,000 City match, the total comes to $3,125,000. Phase III's budget falls between the other two. It is more than Phase II's $2.8 million and less than the $3.5 million spent on the Gashouse Area.
The staff recommendation lists what the money buys:
- 9,600 square feet of decomposed-granite paths
- An accessible pedestrian bridge across Santiago Creek
- Drinking fountains and benches
- Interpretive signs
- Upgrades to 27 light poles
- Restoration of more than five acres of drought-tolerant landscape
The bridge is the biggest change on that list. The earlier phases were built along the creek. This one would connect the two sides, with a crossing designed for walkers and for people using wheelchairs or strollers.
The same document explains how the neighborhood fits into the process. The City's Neighborhood Initiatives Team meets quarterly with the Park Santiago Neighborhood Association to talk through the improvements. Residents comment on City site plans, the City works that feedback into concept designs, and the designs go back to the association for consent and approval. So the eastern section has been reviewed by the association at each step, the same way the Gashouse and the overlooks were.
The spring 2026 grant records name no contractor and give no construction dates. The grant conditions require a detailed work program, schedule and budget before the project can begin.
How to Use the Gap This Fall
Before any construction starts, the park and creek corridor still get regular attention. Ward 3 and OC Habitats hold monthly cleanups at Santiago Park and along the Santiago Creek Trail, from 9 to 11 a.m. on Saturdays. The association says supplies, snacks and light refreshments are provided. Here are the remaining dates for 2026 and the next few months, as the City's Ward 3 newsletter lists them:
- Saturday, November 7
- Saturday, December 12
- Saturday, January 23, 2027
- Saturday, February 6, 2027
The newsletter continues the schedule through May 2027.
The park's neighbor across Main Street has its own fall events. Discovery Cube OC at 2500 N. Main St. is running Pumpkin Palooza on October weekends from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The remaining dates are October 17–18, October 24–25, October 31 and November 1. The pumpkin maze, dance parties and trick-or-treating need a separate event ticket. On Sunday, November 1, from 9 a.m. to noon, Discovery Cube's Pumpkins with Purpose takes leftover jack-o'-lanterns for composting. The City's Ward 3 newsletter also notes that Santa Ana residents can get free admission to Discovery Cube, the Santa Ana Zoo and the Bowers Museum on select days through community programs.
Farther south, the Santa Ana Zoo's Boo at the Zoo runs October 17, 18, 24 and 25 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. The zoo calls it "Merry Not Scary," with trick-or-treating, nocturnal animal encounters and rides. Zoo Lane between 1st Street and Chestnut Avenue is closed to through traffic until October 30 for stormwater utility work, so all four evenings fall during the closure. The City directs zoo visitors to Chestnut Avenue.
November 7 has a cleanup in the morning and Noche de Altares downtown later in the day. The 24th Annual Noche de Altares runs from noon to 9 p.m. on 4th Street between Ross and Broadway. It's free, with altars, cultural performances, live music and children's activities.
For a meal after a trail ride, there's a newer option north of the park. Baja Fish Tacos has opened a second Santa Ana location at 2107 E. 17th St., and the restaurant's site now takes online orders there. WhatNow reported the expansion in April, before an opening date had been confirmed.
The next real news for the park will be a construction schedule for the eastern five acres. The City's Neighborhood Initiatives Team and the Park Santiago Neighborhood Association meet quarterly, and those meetings are where the project has been reviewed so far.
Phase III will change the east end of Santiago Park, and Better Living SoCal is following the bridge, the paths and the new planting as the plans move toward construction. If you'd like to know how a home near that stretch could be affected, talk with a local agent who's watching the project.
