Shortly after 6 a.m. on the Thursday before Danish Days, two of Solvang's department heads went out and closed Copenhagen Drive themselves. Public Works Director and City Engineer Bridget Paris and Administrative Services Director Wendy Berry set out the traffic cones, signs and barriers that public works crews would normally put up. The Santa Barbara News-Press reported that a skeleton crew of director-level staff handled that setup. Rank-and-file public works employees, who usually stay on hand all festival weekend to fix problems, were on strike.
Danish Days ran as scheduled September 18 through 20. October's calendar is shaping up the same way. Most of what fills the month in Solvang was never run by City Hall. Local businesses, volunteers and a 16-year-old community tradition run most of it, and the city-run pieces lean heavily on volunteers too.
How Many City Staff Are Out, and What Still Runs
Solvang has 42 full-time-equivalent staff. According to the city, 31 of them belong to Teamsters Local 986, and a few hold positions exempt from the strike. The bargaining unit covers water distribution, wastewater treatment, office administration, public works and Parks & Recreation. On September 14 the City Council voted 5–0 to impose contract terms, and about 30 represented workers walked out the next day.
On the first day of the strike, the city posted a list of services that would continue:
- Water and wastewater service
- Building reviews and inspections
- Life-safety code enforcement
- Public-safety emergency response
- Access to parks and park restrooms
The same notice said other services would be available by appointment only, that "some services may experience delays," and that Parks & Recreation programs and special events "may be postponed or canceled." A later Santa Ynez Valley News report said City Hall was open and that parks and recreation operations were still running. As of October 2, the city was using backup staff and outside contractors to cover water utility work and park maintenance.
Small-business owners have felt one delay already. On September 17 the Design Review Committee couldn't hold its monthly meeting. Chair Esther Jacobsen Bates and member Melissa Bates stayed outside the Solvang Municipal Center rather than cross the picket line, leaving the panel without a quorum, and several sign approvals were pushed to a later date.
The City's Own Big October Event Has Always Relied on Volunteers
The biggest city-run event this month is the Solvang Parks and Recreation 32nd Annual Halloween Haunted House. It runs October 23 and 24 at Solvang Festival Theater, 6 to 9:30 p.m., and this year's theme is "Nightmares… And Beyond." The first half-hour each night is billed as kid "friendlier." Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for children 12 and under, and proceeds go to Parks & Recreation programs.
Last year's haunt shows how the event is usually put together. Noozhawk reported in October 2025 that longtime city events contractor Fred Lageman designed it, nearly all the monsters and guides were volunteers, and a small number of city staff helped build and run it. Older Santa Ynez Valley News coverage describes an even wider crew, including Parks & Recreation staff from both Solvang and Buellton, other Buellton city workers, teenage performers and builders, set crews and community volunteers. No 2026 roster has been published, and no 2026 coverage reviewed for this post says the strike puts the event at risk. The current listing still shows both nights.
Past themes have included "Fractured Fairy Tales," "The Curse of Skull Mountain," "Fright Farm" and, last year, "Nightmares… They Never End." This year's title picks up where 2025 left off.
Two other events run on the same nights. From 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., the Haunted House Street Fair brings in local artisans and crafters, with dinner and cocktails from Whiskey n Rye in the wine, beer and spirits garden and sweets from Lindsay's Little Bakery. From 6 to 8 p.m., the Solvang Visitors Center at 1639 Copenhagen Drive becomes a Heks Hus, Danish for witch house, for gentler trick-or-treating.
The Rest of the Month Belongs to Businesses and Volunteers
Most of October takes no city staffing at all. Scarecrow Fest runs October 1 through 31. Sue Moualim of Artistic Pony Studios and Susan Williams of Solvang Third Wednesday started it in 2010, and the Solvang Chamber handles registration and questions. It covers six communities this year: Ballard, Buellton, Los Alamos, Los Olivos, Santa Ynez and Solvang. Those towns compete for the Harvest Cup, which goes to one community each year.
Paper ballots are available at the Solvang Visitors Center and at the Solvang and Buellton Chamber offices, and voting is also open online.
The online ballot allows one ballot per person and asks for a ZIP code. You have to vote in at least four categories, each scarecrow can get your vote in no more than two, and photocopied ballots don't count. Names on the ballot posted on the festival site include Solvang Brewing Company, Firestone Walker Brewing Company, Elverhøj Museum, Bethania Preschool and Buellton Garage. Visit Solvang's fall guide features the giant scarecrow holding a beer stein outside Solvang Brewing Company, next to its windmill sign.
Businesses fill most of the dated events, many of them in the same few downtown blocks:
| Date | Event | Where | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct. 10 | Paranormal investigation | Solvang Festival Theater | One night only |
| Saturdays through Oct. 24 | Vampire movie nights | Final Girl Wines, 485 Alisal Rd | $30 with a glass of wine or a non-alcoholic drink, 8 p.m., ages 15+ |
| Oct. 16–18 | Adult Trick-or-Treat | Eight winery stops in downtown Solvang and Los Olivos | Costume required |
| Oct. 27 | Fireside Frights ghost stories | The Good Life Cellar, 1672 Mission Drive | 6–9 p.m., 21+ |
| Oct. 31 | Halloween Party & Costume Contest | The Good Life Cellar | 7–11 p.m., 21+ |
Final Girl's remaining films are Sinners on October 10, The Lost Boys on October 17 and What We Do in the Shadows on October 24. Renfield opened the series on October 3. Participating businesses are serving Halloween-themed food and drinks all month on the Spooky Food & Wine Trail, and Visit Solvang has posted a downloadable map.
Out at the Solvang Farmer Pumpkin Patch, the farm grows 64 pumpkin varieties, from half a pound to several hundred pounds. The corn maze covers more than a dozen acres and has a scavenger hunt, last entry is 5:15 p.m., and there's a smaller maze for young kids. Visit Solvang's fall guide says the patch is open daily through October 31, but its events calendar says November 2, so call ahead if you're planning a last-minute trip.
The Halloween lighting in Solvang Park is still listed as planned for the whole month.
The Gap on October 11
One listing has dropped off. Visit Solvang's fall page now marks the Solvang Pets Costume Parade & Fall Festival, set for Sunday, October 11, in Solvang Park, as "CANCELLED." The plan had been a kids and pets parade at 11 a.m. and a costume contest with awards for Best Pet/Owner Duo and Funniest. It also included visits with animals from the Santa Ynez Valley Humane Society and downtown trick-or-treating from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The page doesn't give a reason. The Santa Ynez Valley Foundation's events page still lists a matching Kids & Pets Fall Festival in Solvang Park, so the two listings don't match. If your family had October 11 on the calendar, the Visitors Center is the place to confirm.
Where Talks Stand as of October 4
Negotiators met again on September 30, and the city offered raises of 6%, 5% and 4% over three years on October 1. The union rejected that offer at 12:57 p.m. on Friday, October 2. Assistant City Manager Oliva Uribe-Mutal said the union had asked for 6% in each of the three years and that the imposed one-year 4% increase is in effect. Teamsters representatives Cliff Reynolds and Jeff Lee told Noozhawk that the city paid for the higher percentages by dropping other proposed economic benefits. They also said the city had turned down retroactive pay back to July 1, when the previous contract expired. Mayor David Brown said he was disappointed and spoke about the strike's effect on residents and businesses. Edhat reported on October 4 that no further bargaining sessions had been announced.
So the parts of October to watch are the city-run ones: the Haunted House nights, park upkeep and anything that needs a permit or a committee vote. Scarecrows, wine-bar movie nights and the pumpkin patch run on their own schedules.
If you have questions about a Valley property while some city services are running by appointment, from inspections to permit timing, Monument Global Estates is glad to help you sort out what's moving and what's waiting. Let's Connect.
