🌱 Patch AM: How could downtown parking lots transform into housing and parks?

Good morning to you Menlo Park! Catch up on our news and events right here. Keep reading to stay in the know. ☀️

In today's newsletter:

• How could downtown parking lots transform into housing and parks?
• Why Menlo Park police found no evidence after reported gunfire
• Meet the Menlo Park native joining MLS expansion club San Diego FC

Also on today's calendar: AutoVino Hosts Cars & Cabernet Toys for Tots Drive and 9 more events.

Today's riddle: What did the balloon say to the doctor? 🤔 (Answer below!)

Weather forecast:

• Sunday: Rain; breezy in the morning, with a high of 62 and low of 53 degrees.
• Monday: Periods of rain, temps: high: 58, low: 51.
• Tuesday: A couple of showers, with a high of 61 and low of 47 degrees.

📰 News we're reading

• Menlo Park gets three proposals for housing on downtown parking lots (padailypost.com) — Downtown Menlo Park could see major changes as three developers have submitted competing proposals to turn city parking lots between Santa Cruz and Oak Grove into hundreds of apartments, new garages and public parks. With a 2026 ballot initiative giving residents veto power over such projects, the council will review the plans early next year before any decision moves forward.
   

• Gunfire Reported At Intersection In SMC Town: Police (patch.com) — Menlo Park police say an area near Valparaiso Avenue and Hallmark Circle was cleared with no evidence of gunfire after reports of a possibly armed person and loud bangs. Officers arrived hours after the initial activity, later learning some neighbors believed they heard fireworks instead of shots, and ultimately found no ongoing threat to public safety.
   

• San Diego FC Selects Defender Wilson Eisner Via Waivers (oursportscentral.com) — A Major League Soccer defender with roots in Menlo Park, Wilson Eisner, has been picked up by expansion side San Diego FC via the league’s End-of-Year Waivers. The 23-year-old Menlo Park native and Cornell standout joins after two seasons in the San Jose Earthquakes system, signing a guaranteed deal through 2027 with club options beyond.
   

📸 Around Menlo Park

Show off your photography skills and the sights around town! Click here to submit your Photo of the Day to Patch AM!

🗓 Upcoming Events in Menlo Park

Add your event to our calendar and newsletter!

★ Featured events ★

Sunday December 21

• AutoVino Hosts Cars & Cabernet Toys for Tots Drive
  380 Industrial Rd, San Carlos
  11:30 am

Wednesday December 31

• LIT BY THE BAY - NYE Celebration & Dance Party
  Hyatt Centric Mountain View, 409 San Antonio Rd, Mountain View
  7:30 pm

Friday January 9

• Crossing Over with Psychic Medium John Edward live in San Francisco, CA!
  The Westin San Francisco Airport, 1 Old Bayshore Hwy, Millbrae
  7:00 pm

Want to see your event featured? Click here!

Other local events

Monday December 22

• STEAM Team: Bath Bombs
  Atherton Library , 2 Dinkelspiel Station Lane , Atherton
  4:00 pm
• 3D Printing for Families
  Atherton Library , 2 Dinkelspiel Station Lane , Atherton
  5:30 pm

Tuesday December 23

• Pajama Storytime With Stay and Play: Blanket Forts!
  Atherton Library , 2 Dinkelspiel Station Lane , Atherton
  10:30 am
• Open Lab: Drop In Memory Lab
  Atherton Library , 2 Dinkelspiel Station Lane , Atherton
  1:00 pm
• Crafternoon: Spirograph Art
  Atherton Makerspace , 2 Dinkelspiel Station Lane , Atherton
  4:00 pm
• Maker Exploration
  Atherton Library , 2 Dinkelspiel Station Lane , Atherton
  5:30 pm

Wednesday December 24

• Early Closure: Christmas Eve
  Children's Library , 1276 Harriet Street , Palo Alto
  5:00 pm

Friday December 26

• Step Into Wellness: Atherton Library's Walking Club
  Holbrook Palmer Park - Jennings Pavilion , 2 Dinkelspiel Station Lane , Atherton
  9:45 am

Sunday December 28

• Beach Break Film Festival
  1167 Main St , Half Moon Bay
  3:30 pm

📣 Menlo Park Shout Outs!

Want to say something great about someone in town? Click here to submit your Shout Out to Patch AM! It's free!

Have we missed something on our calendar? Add an event yourself! As always, before attending confirm event details to ensure accuracy.

Thank you 👏👏👏 to the local businesses for making Menlo Park PatchAM possible:

• Amara — (650) 486-1703
  A California cuisine restaurant with mediterranean leaning.
• Samaritan House — (650) 347-3648
  Fighting Poverty. Lifting Lives
• Atherton Inn Bed & Breakfast — (650) 474-2777
  Luxury five room boutique hotel w/FULL breakfast
• Cool Aid Air Conditioning and Refrigeration — (800) 266-5243
  Voted Best HVAC & Refrigeration Company in the Bay Area
• The Harker School — (408) 345-9200
  Magic Happens at Harker

Click here to show your appreciation! 💚

Want to see your business here? Click here to connect with local customers.

💬 Chatter

What your neighbors are talking about on social media

• Hi neighbors,
  I’m urgently looking for my lost gray tabby cat in Menlo Park. • six months old • Gray with darker stripes • Very friendly but may be scared and… (Nextdoor Coleman Place)
• Please teach your kids that STOP signs apply to bicycles too.
  We live close to a four-way STOP intersection. Almost all cars follow the signs, and most adults in bikes also do so, but recently I've seen many… (Nextdoor The Willows)

• SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory posted a job opening for Cryogenic Plant Operator, Process Monitor III in Menlo Park. Apply here.
• Staples, Inc. posted a job opening for Retail Sales Associate in Menlo Park. Apply here. You can search for other jobs near Menlo Park here.

🗞 Nearby News

East Palo Alto

• East Palo Alto hires company for 24-hour parking enforcement (paloaltoonline.com)
• Our picks to ring in 2026: New Year's Eve parties, performances and deluxe dinners around the Peninsula (paloaltoonline.com)
• From the coast's tide pools to the Peninsula's marshlands, king tides reveal how wildlife adapt to extreme conditions (paloaltoonline.com)

Stanford

Ok Menlo Park! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!

-- The Patch AM Team

P.S. The answer to today's riddle: I feel lightheaded!
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Send it to us!

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