"Restoring foot traffic to the Dock Street business corridor." That phrase comes from the City of Annapolis's August 25 construction update. It describes an event set for December 2026, when the U.S. Naval Academy is expected to reopen Barry Gate. The City's own wording places the return of steady walk-in business on Dock Street at a gate that is still closed.
That puts a gap on the downtown calendar. The Annapolis Powerboat Show runs October 8 to 11 and the Sailboat Show runs October 15 to 18, both on the City Dock site. Whiting-Turner, the City's construction firm, gets the site back at the end of October. The weeks between those two events are the part of the year when Dock Street's shops and restaurants rely most on people who live close enough to choose to come.
The calendar the City has published
Mayor Jared Littmann said in August that the project is on budget and ahead of schedule. He also said that FEMA money, along with previously announced grants and bonds, covers the remaining cost. These are the dates that affect a walk downtown:
| When | What happens | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Oct. 5 to 21, 2026 | Downtown road closures, detours and parking limits for the boat shows | City of Annapolis, Sept. 23 |
| Oct. 8 to 11 | Annapolis Powerboat Show | City of Annapolis |
| Oct. 15 to 18 | Annapolis Sailboat Show | City of Annapolis |
| Through Oct. 23 | Show move-out | City of Annapolis |
| End of October | Construction resumes | City newsletter, Sept. 11 |
| December 2026 | Barry Gate expected to reopen | City of Annapolis, Aug. 25 |
| March 2027 | Ego Alley boardwalk reopens to pedestrians | City of Annapolis, Aug. 25 |
| July 2027 | City Dock Park and Maritime Welcome Center open | City of Annapolis, Aug. 25 |
| Summer 2027 to spring 2028 | Revised Phase Two, with limited closures | City of Annapolis, Aug. 25 |
The project's construction webpage still shows an older Phase Two window of May 2027 to March 2028. The August revision replaced it with a plan that limits closures on upper Dock Street, the top of Ego Alley and Compromise Street.
The Maritime Welcome Center will be the Annapolis Harbormaster's headquarters and the City Dock Visitor Center for both Annapolis and Anne Arundel County. Preservation Maryland finished stabilizing the historic Burtis House in January and handed the rest of the rehabilitation to the City. The City's plans call for a connection from the Welcome Center that makes the house open to the public. A new park at the end of Prince George Street will be named for the late Vincett Leggett. In the September 11 newsletter, the City said the park, the Welcome Center and the Burtis House remain on track for summer 2027.
Ten days when the fence moves
Setting up the shows meant changing the construction site. In mid-September, Whiting-Turner drained the large blue holding tanks on Upper Dock Street and moved them. Sections of the construction fence were shifted to make room for show entrances. The Boat Shows are also bringing in miles of temporary docks that attach to the existing docks and slips. This year the main entrance and ticket booth sit between the Boat Show offices at 110 Compromise Street and the Fleet Reserve Club.
Show setup started September 30. The handoff between the two shows runs October 11 to 15. The restrictions that affect residents more than show visitors:
- Permit-only blocks. From October 5 to 21, parking on Prince George, Randall, East, Green, Newman and St. Mary's streets is limited to District 1 permit holders. Prince George Street has no parking at all from Craig Street to the docks.
- Turns near Memorial Circle. Drivers coming from Prince George Street onto Randall Street must turn right on Main Street. The detour runs Randall to Main to Conduit to Duke of Gloucester. Traffic on Compromise Street from Eastport cannot turn onto Randall toward the Naval Academy and is sent up Main Street.
- By water. No boats can dock in Ego Alley after October 1. Dinghy access to City Dock moves from the end of Prince George Street to Shipwright Street, and anyone arriving by boat for the shows must register with the Harbormaster.
- Stadium parking. Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium parking costs $30, or $25 when booked in advance according to the City's September 23 release, with a free shuttle downtown. On October 10, because of the Navy football game, that lot moves to the Anne Arundel County Public Schools site at 2644 Riva Road.
One thing will be gone when show visitors arrive. The art on the project fence, called "An Exhibition of Sight & Sound," paired Chesapeake Bay nature photography with portraits of local artists. AND Creative and the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra put it together. The City's August 28 newsletter said it would stay up only until the early-October boat show.
Who is still on Dock Street
The businesses facing the fence have had a hard summer. In August, Eye On Annapolis reported that Bitty & Beau's Coffee at 124 Dock Street planned September 13 as its last day. The same report said Blowfish Poké Hawaiian Grill at 122 Dock Street had suspended operations earlier in 2026 with no reopening date announced. Annapolis Marine Art Gallery at 110 Dock Street announced it will close its physical gallery at the end of 2026 and move online, citing lost parking, waterfront access and foot traffic. The same outlet reported earlier that merchants had complained about standing water near the work zone, and that Whiting-Turner later changed the drainage.
Storm Bros. Ice Cream Factory has been on Dock Street since 1976, and it chose to add to its business. Owner Sveinn Storm announced Storm's a Brewing, a coffee, breakfast and pastry counter at the front of the shop, with an opening target of September 21 to 25. Patch reported the same window on September 10. No published report yet confirms that the counter has opened, so check before you plan a morning around it.
The Boat Shows' September promotion for the corridor gives a useful list of who is open. From September 14 to 18, customers of participating Dock Street businesses could get 50% off show tickets. The participants were The Big Cheese and Sammy's Deli, The Admiral's Cup, Dock Street Bar and Grill, Pip's Dock Street Dogs, Storm Brothers Ice Cream Factory, Sofi's Crepes and Latitude 38. Sofi's Crepes is just around the corner at 1 Craig Street. The ticket deal has ended, and the businesses are still there.
The City has said it cannot make private businesses whole for revenue lost to construction. Its Economic Development Office will keep taking requests from businesses. Until Barry Gate reopens, the Dock Street corridor depends mostly on people who get there on purpose.
Getting to Dock Street after October 23
Once the show docks are gone and the fence returns, the construction layout from the City's July update applies again. Lower Dock Street is closed between Craig Street and Susan Campbell Park, and upper Dock Street is partly closed between Craig and Randall. Customer pickup and drop-off happen on upper Dock Street, and deliveries reach lower Dock Street from Lower Prince George Street. The waterfront walk along Ego Alley stays fenced until March 2027. When it reopens, Watermark returns to its berth at Susan Campbell Park and boaters regain the Ego Alley slips.
To make the trip easier, the City added a Dock Street stop to the free Magenta Shuttle. On weekends, weather permitting, it also runs free electric GEM carts between Mills Hillman Garage and Dock Street. Before City Dock work started, the rebuilt Mills Hillman Garage gained 165 extra spaces. The Downtown Annapolis Partnership's Park, Shop and Dine program gives a voucher for two free hours at the Mills-Hillman, Gotts Court, Knighton or Park Place garages after a purchase at a participating merchant. For a resident who lives a short drive away, those programs cover most of the parking downtown has lost.
The rest of the fall downtown
Several dated events fall in the gap before Barry Gate reopens. Visit Annapolis lists the 2026 Great Annapolis Pumpkins display starting October 10, with locations still to be announced. Carving is set for October 29, and the pumpkins come down by November 2. The Downtown Annapolis Partnership holds Small Business Saturday on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Grand Illumination is the next day, a Sunday, starting at 3 p.m. with a tree lighting near Market House. Thanksgiving falls on November 26 this year, so that pattern puts the two events on November 28 and 29. The Partnership has not yet posted 2026 schedules for either one.
Small Business Saturday is the last scheduled downtown shopping day before the December target for Barry Gate. For the Dock Street businesses that have stayed open through the construction, the six weeks between the end of the boat shows and that weekend come before the City's expected return of foot traffic.
If the City Dock timeline is affecting how you plan around downtown Annapolis, including a sale, a purchase or simply a wait for the park to open, Daryl Gayhardt can go through the dates and what they mean for your plans. Let's Connect.
