Downtown Utica is about to trade parking spots for pumpkins. Nightmare on Auburn Road returns Saturday, October 3, 2026, from noon to 8 p.m., and the city is shutting down Auburn Road to traffic for a full day of trick-or-treating, a zombie walk, live music and a Bigfoot contest.
According to the city of Utica, Auburn Road will be closed to traffic for the event, and the lineup includes downtown trick-or-treating, a family fun zone, cider and donuts, crafters and vendors, a Michigan craft beer tent and the zombie walk alongside the Bigfoot contest. As reported by WXYZ 7 News Detroit, Auburn Road is scheduled to close at 8 a.m. Saturday ahead of the noon start, and organizers are encouraging attendees to dress up, bring their families and support the local businesses lining the street.
A Recurring Downtown Tradition
This is not Utica's first rodeo with Halloween. The city's first-ever Nightmare on Auburn Road ran noon to 8 p.m. on Saturday, October 7, 2023, with downtown Utica and Connect Macomb teaming up to organize it, per the Macomb Daily. A second annual version followed on Saturday, October 5, 2024, again free to the public and presented by Michigan United Credit Union, with the same noon-to-8 p.m. window and Auburn Road blocked off for pedestrians, according to the city of Utica.
The event's programming has stayed remarkably consistent across its history — trick-or-treating, a family fun zone, cider and donuts, crafters, vendors, a costume contest, craft beer and live music have all made repeat appearances, the city's announcements show. Connect Macomb has continued to help organize the event each year, the city notes. ClickOnDetroit covered the 2024 edition, describing it as the city of Utica hosting Halloween festivities in downtown Utica built around music, food and costume contests, as ClickOnDetroit reported.
Merchants Say The Crowds Keep Coming Back
Downtown business owners say the event does more than fill the sidewalks for a day. Connect Macomb CEO Stacy Ziarko said businesses tell the organization it's their best day of the year, per WXYZ 7 News Detroit's report. The outlet notes that Macomb County has very few organic downtowns, and that Nightmare on Auburn Road celebrates that kind of downtown character.
Jon Rose, who owns Main's Treat Coffeehouse, told the station that his shop wasn't even open during the previous year's event but that being visible helped introduce the coffeehouse to future customers anyway. “Right out of the gate, there were people that already knew us from that event,” Rose said, according to the same report. Alisha Alef, who owns a State Farm business and relocated it from Sterritt Street to Auburn Road in downtown Utica, said being local in all the action has been super exciting for her business, per the station's account.
What To Expect Saturday
The station's report also describes the texture of the event itself: one restaurant reportedly had a line until 9:30 p.m. during a previous Nightmare on Auburn Road, and some visitors have returned to businesses they first discovered that day. Residents living above some of the restaurants along Auburn Road even hand out candy during the festivities, the outlet notes. Gus Calandrino said Nightmare on Auburn Road is one of the most exciting events in downtown Utica, per the same report.
Beyond the city's own events page, the Halloween happening has also landed on regional roundups. LittleGuide Detroit listed Nightmare on Auburn Road among its metro Detroit family Halloween picks, describing a full day that includes a touch-a-truck, trick-or-treating, bounce houses, a Jack Skellington meet-and-greet and live entertainment. With Auburn Road closing to cars at 8 a.m. Saturday and festivities running until 8 p.m., downtown Utica is betting once again that a day of costumes and cider will keep bringing new faces back to its shops and restaurants.
