Delray Beach's Fall Calendar Runs Through One Address on Swinton Avenue

On Saturday, October 24, hundreds of costumed riders will set off from City Hall at 8 a.m. for the 15th Annual Witches of Delray Ride. The ride benefits the Achievement Centers for Children & Families and ends at Old School Square. At 1 p.m. that afternoon, the Halloween Parade heads to the same place for Kidsfest. The same morning, the Delray Beach GreenMarket opens its 31st winter season on the Old School Square campus.

That is three events on one Saturday, all at one address: 51 N. Swinton Avenue. The rest of the fall calendar follows the same pattern. The city's new exhibition, the November outdoor art show, the Sunday wellness market and the weekly farmers market all use the Old School Square campus. The changes downtown this season are on the streets that lead there, and the biggest one is a sale that put an entire block of East Atlantic Avenue under one owner.

October 24, Hour by Hour

The Downtown Delray Beach listing for Halloween in Downtown Delray sets the day out in order:

1. 8 to 11 a.m. The Witches of Delray Ride, starting at City Hall and ending at Old School Square. Registration goes through the Achievement Centers' event page.
2. 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Opening day of the GreenMarket winter season at Old School Square.
3. 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Trick-or-Treating on the Avenue, with participating merchants along Atlantic Avenue.
4. 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Kidsfest at Old School Square, with food, vendors, arts and crafts, and entertainment.
5. 1 p.m. The Halloween Parade, in which "you ARE the parade," finishing at Old School Square for Kidsfest.

Two details are worth checking ahead of time. The Delray Beach CRA's GreenMarket announcement says the market will close for citywide events and that those closures will be posted on the market's webpage and social media. Kidsfest and the market opener are on the same campus at overlapping hours, so check the market's Instagram, @delraygreenmarket, the week before rather than assuming both will run side by side. The two DDA listings also describe the parade route a little differently, and both have it ending at Old School Square.

If the market does open on the 24th, it stays open every Saturday through May 22, 2027. It has more than 70 local growers, makers and food vendors, an on-site cooking area with seating, and live music through the morning. SNAP benefits are accepted. Shoppers swipe their card at the EBT booth for tokens before they shop. The CRA started the market in 1996.

The Same Campus Fills the Rest of the Season

The GreenMarket gives the season its Saturday rhythm, and the other events at the same address fill in around it.

The city's free exhibition, "Art in Practice: 2026 Student/Faculty Exhibition," opens Friday, October 2, at 6 p.m. at 51 N. Swinton Ave. The city calendar lists it through January 2, 2027. That puts the run past the holidays, so an evening visit in October can be repeated with guests in late December.

Old School Square's Coco Market Wellness Festival takes over the amphitheatre on Sunday, October 4, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Art on the Square returns November 7 and 8 at the Cornell Art Museum and Old School Square. It is a juried outdoor show of about 100 artists, free to attend. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. November 7 is a Saturday, so expect the same question about the GreenMarket schedule that weekend.

The First Weekend in October Sets the Pattern

October 2 through 4 is the first full weekend of the fall calendar, and the Boca Raton Tribune's roundup for those days fits on a short map:

• Friday, October 2. The First Friday Art Walk downtown, the "Art in Practice" opening on Swinton, and the Blues Brothers Soul Band at Arts Garage, 94 NE 2nd Ave., from 8 to 10 p.m.
• Saturday, October 3. FLOCK-toberfest at THRōW Social, 29 SE 2nd Ave., from 4 p.m., with live music, drink specials and a stein-holding contest.
• Sunday, October 4. Coco Market at the Old School Square amphitheatre in the morning, then the Pineapple Grove Art Walk at 6 p.m.

Every stop that weekend is within downtown's few blocks. NE 2nd Avenue comes up repeatedly. Arts Garage is at number 94, and a newly rebranded restaurant is at number 165.

Where the New Rooms Are

Three restaurants are new to downtown Delray this year, and each is a short walk from Swinton.

The DDA lists Alma as formerly Table 165. It describes the cooking as Chef Coton Stine's inventive American cuisine inspired by global flavors, served as a chef-driven, shareable experience. The restaurant's team page names Jorge Sanchez and Coco Coig as co-founders, Stine as co-founder and executive chef, and Alex Sanchez as managing partner. The ribbon-cutting is listed as a celebration of the grand opening and the new name. It is on NE 2nd Avenue, a few blocks from Arts Garage, so it pairs easily with a November show there. Arts Garage lists WHITNEY, a Whitney Houston tribute, on Friday, November 6, and The Ladies of Simone on Saturday, November 7.

Boca Magazine described Ethereal as continuing the Victorian-extravagance look of Glimmer Cafe, with designer Nick Alain and chef Estuardo Mira cooking European- and Latin-inspired dishes. The magazine highlighted mini lobster rolls, steak frites au poivre, zebra lobster ravioli and caviar service. Resy shows a single "$" price marker, but the restaurant's posted menu tells you more. It lists rigatoni at $29, lobster ravioli at $42, snapper at $44 and lamb at $58. Desserts run from $13 churros to an $18 cheesecake. Hours haven't been published in full, so book through Resy rather than walking in.

Double Knot opened in Sundy Village on Wednesday, June 17, according to the Palm Beach Post. Two other Sundy Village concepts, Drinking Pig BBQ and Maman at 40 S. Swinton Ave., were announced this spring. In June the Post reported that Drinking Pig, with chef Raheem Sealy's Southern barbecue and Caribbean flavors, planned to open in September. No later local report confirms that either one has opened, so check before you go.

The Block on the Way There Changed Hands

The route from Federal Highway to Old School Square runs along East Atlantic Avenue. On September 10, the buildings at 105 and 111 E. Atlantic Ave., home to Tramonti Ristorante, Sloan's Ice Cream, and Geronimo Tequila Bar and Southwest Grill, sold at auction. Delray Beach-based Redfearn Capital bought them for $38.2 million, according to The Coastal Star. The two buildings went up in 1952 and 1971. They have 23,290 square feet of retail, restaurant and office space on 0.38 acre and had not sold in more than 20 years.

Don Ginsburg of Katalyst Real Estate, who worked with the sellers, called the price of $1,674 per square foot "one of the highest ever for Atlantic Avenue." He also said that Redfearn bought 123 E. Atlantic Ave. for $4 million the same day, so "now Alex Redfearn's company owns the entire block." The auction came out of a 2024 arbitration settlement between the two selling partners. The Coastal Star's report contains no statement from Redfearn about the tenants. For now, Tramonti, Sloan's and Geronimo are the same businesses on the same block, which is on the trick-or-treat route on October 24.

Off-Campus Dates Worth Holding

Not everything is on Swinton. Arts Warehouse at 313 NE 3rd St. reopened June 5 after work on its floors, roof, HVAC, stucco and interior. Its free indoor Warehouse Market runs Saturday, November 14, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

That same day, the Delray Beach ITF junior J200 tournament begins and runs through November 21. Main matches are at Delray Swim & Tennis Club and Boynton Beach Tennis Center. The Delray Beach Tennis Center at 201 W. Atlantic Ave. is listed as an alternate site for weather or late matches.

For beach mornings, the city lists lifeguard EMT coverage from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. through October 31. Starting November 1, coverage ends at 5:20 p.m. The beach itself is wider this fall than last. A $19 million renourishment project finished in April and added about 1.3 million cubic yards of sand.

Event dates come from organizer listings and can change. Check them the week of each event.

Questions about the East Atlantic block sale, or about how downtown's calendar affects a home's location, are part of what we discuss in a Roi Danon consultation. Request a Free Concierge Consultation and we will look at the address you have in mind together.