Water Street in Stapleton closes to cars on Saturday, October 24, from 12 to 5 p.m., for Staten Island's signature event in the city's 2026 Trick-or-Streets program. The block of Water Street between Canal Street and Beach Street, beside Tappen Park, becomes a free Halloween space for families, with a costume contest, live music, face painting and costumed trick-or-treating on the schedule.

The New York City Department of Transportation picks one signature event in each borough every October. This year Staten Island's is the Stapleton block, put on by the Van Duzer Civic Association with NYC KidsFest as programming partner. The other four signature events are in Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan and the Bronx.

What is planned on Water Street

According to the city's announcement, the afternoon will include a costume contest, live music and face painting, along with other activities meant for people of all ages and abilities. The Van Duzer Civic Association is billing the day as a Halloween edition of its Stapleton Saturdays, with music, activities and costume trick-or-treating in the middle of the street. The event is free.

Across the city, NYC DOT says it is handing out 75,000 pieces of candy at Trick-or-Streets locations this year. The full program covers 160 car-free Open Streets and plazas in all five boroughs, the most in the five years the city has run it.

A Halloween return for the Stapleton Open Street

For Stapleton regulars, this is the Water Street Open Street coming back for one more Saturday. NYC DOT's Open Streets schedule shows the Van Duzer Civic Association closing Water Street between Beach Street and Canal Street on Saturdays from 12 to 5 p.m. in two stretches this year, June 6 to June 27 and September 5 to September 26. The October 24 date uses the same block and the same hours, with a Halloween theme on top.

Tappen Park sits alongside the closed block, and the Canal Street and Bay Street corridors are steps away.

Other Trick-or-Streets dates on Staten Island

Stapleton's afternoon is one of several Staten Island stops on DOT's list. On Halloween itself, Saturday, October 31, DOT lists a Hamilton Park Halloween Block Party on Park Place between Franklin Avenue and Harvard Avenue from 1 to 5 p.m., hosted by residents of the block. Castleton Avenue opened the borough's season on October 3, with the Staten Island Business Outreach Center and the Castleton Avenue Merchants Organization as hosts.

Getting there

The Staten Island Railway stops at Stapleton station, the closest SIR stop to Tappen Park and Water Street. Riders coming from Manhattan can take the Staten Island Ferry to St. George and transfer to the railway there.

NYC DOT notes that Trick-or-Streets events can be delayed or canceled, so check the city's Trick-or-Streets page on Saturday morning if the weather turns. The event runs from 12 to 5 p.m. on Saturday, October 24, on Water Street between Canal Street and Beach Street in Stapleton. Admission is free.

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