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- 🏗️ Foster City's New Rec Center & New 6-Mile Trail Opening
🏗️ Foster City's New Rec Center & New 6-Mile Trail Opening
Plus fun new family friendly events for September!
Greg Kemper
August 27, 2026
In partnership with
Good morning neighbors!
Welcome to this week’s San Mateo Scoop! We’ve got news about the new 6-mile trail at Skyline Ridge, plus the new Foster City rec center, housing downtown and new mental health services. Let’s get to it!
In this week’s edition:
City Updates: Foster City’s new Rec Center, a 6 mile trail opening
Business Updates: A new counseling center and mental health services
Events: Rock the Block, Life on Laurel, Comedy Uncorked, and a bonsai tree class
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New 6-mile Skyline Watershed Ridge Trail opens on the Peninsula
A new 6-mile trail giving public access to a stretch of the Peninsula Watershed has opened off Highway 35, just south of the Highway 92 interchange near Skylawn Memorial Park. The Skyline Watershed Ridge Trail offers sweeping views of area reservoirs, shrublands and forest, and is the newest addition to the regional Bay Area Ridge Trail network, which now totals 413 of its eventual 550 planned miles. Hikers, bikers and equestrians will need a free online permit (valid for the calendar year), and the gates are open daily from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. with free parking. It's a great new option for locals looking to explore the watershed lands that have long been off-limits to the public. Read more here.
Foster City set to cut ribbon on rebuilt recreation center September 19th
Foster City is preparing to officially open its new Recreation Center at Leo J. Ryan Park, replacing the aging 1974 facility that had suffered from water leakage and outdated emergency-shelter capabilities. The $45.7 million rebuild includes solar panels, a new play structure and resurfaced bocce courts, and the building has been designated a temporary evacuation shelter in partnership with the American Red Cross. The project, first discussed back in 2016, was delayed several times by budget concerns and the pandemic before construction finally broke ground in December 2024. Residents can look forward to more than double the previous rental capacity, a boost for community groups and event bookings. Read more here.
One Life Counseling opens new San Carlos center and office
One Life Counseling Center has expanded its presence in San Carlos with new space aimed at supporting its growing mental health and community programs. The nonprofit provides accessible counseling and other mental health services for individuals and families, along with school-based programs, community outreach and counselor workforce development. The organization also offers culturally informed services, including its Una Vida program for the local Latinx community, and works to connect clients with broader resources and basic-needs support. The expansion adds local capacity for mental health services and reflects the organization’s broader effort to make counseling and related support more accessible in San Mateo County. Read more here.
Former Kelly Moore paint site in San Mateo approved for eight-story housing
San Mateo's Planning Commission has recommended approval for an eight-story development at 616 S. B St., the former Kelly Moore Paints site in downtown San Mateo, a taller and denser plan than what was originally proposed years ago. The updated project calls for 94 rental units, 10 reserved for low-income households — plus about 7,300 square feet of ground-floor commercial space and 114 parking spaces. The site currently holds a parking lot and one-story commercial buildings, all slated for demolition to make way for the new structure. It's one of several downtown San Mateo sites in line for significant redevelopment as the city works to add housing near its core. Read more here.
Italian restaurant Roma Antica coming soon to downtown San Mateo
After nearly a decade serving Roman classics in San Francisco, Roma Antica is expanding to 172 E. Third Ave. in San Mateo, with a late-September opening planned. Owners Dogukan Solmaz, Roberto Sbaraglia, and Alessandro Vasselli — who met in culinary school in Rome — also run 'Napizza, Bottega, and L'Oro di Napoli. The new 2,000-square-foot space will feature a 10-seat Italian marble bar and a menu that's about 95% identical to the SF original, including tonnarelli cacio e pepe, suppli, and Roman-style pinsa flatbreads, with beer and wine to start and a full bar planned later. Read more here.
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Lazy Dog in San Mateo
2208 Bridgepointe Pkwy, San Mateo
Lazy Dog Restaurant & Bar is a casual American restaurant and bar at Bridgepointe in San Mateo with a broad menu covering burgers, sandwiches, salads, pastas, seafood and comfort-food dishes. The menu includes housemade chicken pot pie, campfire pot roast, fried chicken, ginger soy salmon, beer-battered fish and chips, blackened shrimp tacos and a BBQ bison meatloaf. Its dessert selection includes butter cake with strawberry compote and vanilla bean ice cream, banana pudding and a s’mores brownie sundae. Lazy Dog also has a selection of small plates, cocktails, beer and wine, along with a separate menu for dogs. The San Mateo location is at 2208 Bridgepointe Parkway and offers dine-in, pickup and delivery.
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We do our best to verify dates/locations of events, but please independently verify before attending as details are subject to change
🎯 Life on Laurel | San Carlos | Across from Harrington Park | 8/28 | more
Downtown San Carlos turns into an evening hangout with free lawn games like cornhole, Jenga, and giant Connect Four right on Laurel Street.
đź”® The Whimsy Market | San Carlos | Devil's Canyon Brewing | 8/28 | more
This popular night market fills the brewery's beer garden with dozens of local vendors slinging crystals, tarot readings, handmade art, and more, all paired with cold beers and food trucks.
🎸 Rock the Dock | Redwood City | 459 Seaport Court | 8/29 | more
This free waterfront concert series brings Touch of Class to the dock for a night of Motown, old-school R&B, soul, and pop hits.
🌳 Bonsai Tree Class | San Carlos | Out of the Barrel | 8/29 | more
Grab a drink and a friend for a two-hour, beginner-friendly workshop where you'll pick your own tree and pot and walk away with your very first bonsai.
🎤 Comedy Uncorked | San Mateo | A2 Wine Bar | 8/29 | more
Pour a glass and settle in for a lineup of live stand-up comedians bringing plenty of laughs to this cozy downtown wine bar.
🎉 Rock the Block | San Mateo | Hillsdale Mall - North Block Plaza | 9/4 | more
Hillsdale Shopping Center's North Block Plaza comes alive with live music and community fun for an evening out at the mall.
🎬 Movies in the Park: Zootopia 2 | San Mateo | Shoreview Park | 9/4 | more
Bring a blanket for a free outdoor screening of Zootopia 2, following detectives Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde as they chase a mysterious case that turns the animal metropolis upside down.
đź’Ž International Gem and Jewelry Show | San Mateo | Expo Center | 9/4 (through 9/6) | more
America's longest-running direct-to-consumer jewelry show returns for its 59th year, letting shoppers buy diamonds, gemstones, and handcrafted pieces straight from designers and wholesalers.
🎨 "Sunflower and the Pumpkin" Paint & Sip | San Mateo | Pinstripes | 9/8 | more
No experience needed for this guided, beginner-friendly painting session where you'll sip a drink of your choice and leave with your own sunflower-and-pumpkin canvas.