Andover's October Runs Through One Building on Hanson Boulevard

Between Monday, Oct. 5, and Saturday, Nov. 21, the Andover YMCA Community Center at 15200 Hanson Blvd. NW has at least eight dated events on its calendar. The list covers a week of Active Aging classes, a puzzle swap, two card shows, a potluck, a blood drive, the city's Harvest Fest and a Veterans Day breakfast. In July, the biggest event of Andover's year put 150 drones over Sunshine Park during Family Fun Fest. By fall, the city's shared calendar has moved into one building, and for now it has few competitors.

Part of that comes down to the season. The rest comes from what is happening to the other places on Andover's map: a sunflower field that closed as an attraction, a park trail being torn up and rebuilt, and a commercial project at Bunker Lake Boulevard and Jay Street designed so customers never leave their cars.

The dates, in order

Here is the fall schedule as printed on the city's flyers and the Andover Y's October 2026 newsletter.

1. Oct. 5–9: Active Aging Week. The Andover Y is an official host site, and the newsletter invites members to bring friends and neighbors to a class or presentation.
2. Through Oct. 9: Puzzle drop-off. Bring puzzles to 1685 Crosstown Blvd. to collect tokens for the exchange.
3. Saturday, Oct. 10, 11 a.m.–1 p.m.: Puzzle Exchange at the community center.
4. Saturday, Oct. 17, 9 a.m.–4 p.m.: Andover Card Show. Free and family-friendly, with more than 100 dealer tables.
5. Tuesday, Oct. 20, noon–2 p.m.: Halloween potluck party in the YMCA gym.
6. Friday, Oct. 23, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.: Red Cross blood drive, on the cover of the Y's October newsletter.
7. Thursday, Oct. 29, 5:30–7:30 p.m.: Harvest Fest. Open to the community, with family games, snacks and candy, a bounce house, arts and crafts, and a costume contest.
8. Wednesday, Nov. 11, 9–11 a.m.: Veterans Day breakfast, with time to connect and play games.
9. Nov. 21, 9 a.m.–4 p.m.: Andover Card Show, round two. The flyer lists this date without a year, so confirm with the community center closer to the day.

A note on Harvest Fest: an older calendar on the ABC Newspapers site lists it for a Friday, Oct. 24, from 5 to 7 p.m. That listing dates from an earlier year. The city's current flyer gives Thursday, Oct. 29, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. For more details, the flyer directs people to YMCA Member Services.

A few of these, including the potluck and the Veterans Day breakfast, come from the Y's ForeverWell newsletter. Call Member Services before going if you aren't sure whether an event is open to non-members. Harvest Fest and the card shows are billed as open to everyone.

The field that used to be the fall photo stop

The Andover Sunflower Field on Prairie Road NW used to be a late-summer stop. A 2024 visitor guide described it as a free, three-acre sunflower and photo field at 14861 Prairie Road NW. That guide now marks the attraction as permanently closed, with no reason or date given.

The site is still in use. On Sept. 12, ABC Newspapers covered the Midwest's Largest Corgi Meet-Up and the Great Corgi Derby there. The paper called it "the former Andover Sunflower Field" and described a record-setting gathering of hundreds of corgis, a day of play and food, and a derby. The event also had a sunflower garden called Blue's Blooms, renamed for Blue, a corgi who died earlier this year.

The flowers didn't disappear entirely. What changed is that the field no longer opens daily as a destination. It now hosts single-day events like this one. Public sources don't say who owns or runs the land now, or what is planned for it. The old Andover Sunflower Field website now shows unrelated content, so it's no longer a reliable place to check for news.

Kelsey Round Lake Park is getting a new trail base

Kelsey Round Lake Park is the other outdoor spot in transition this fall. The city's Kelsey Round Lake Park Trail Reconstruction, project CP 25-37, went to bid this summer. Bids opened July 8, 2026, and Winberg Companies was the apparent low bidder at $259,316.49. The bid award was on the City Council's July 21, 2026 agenda.

The project covers excavation, salvaging and reusing reclaimed material, geotextile fabric, subgrade preparation, and placing reclaimed material. That's a rebuild down to the base, which goes well beyond a resurfacing. We couldn't confirm which sections are closed this month or when they reopen. Check the city's project page before planning a walk there.

The same July agenda also moved forward assessment rolls for 2026 street reconstruction in Creekridge Estates, East Round Lake Estates and the Northglen and Woodland Pond area.

What's coming to Bunker and Jay is built for drivers

The newest commercial project on Andover's books is laid out around drive-thru lanes. ABC Newspapers reported that the City Council unanimously approved a planned unit development amendment, a preliminary plat and two conditional use permits on Nov. 18. Together, they clear the way for two fast-casual restaurants and a Seven Brew drive-thru coffee shop on what is now surface parking near Andover Cinema, Willy McCoy's and Andover Lanes.

The applicant, Java Companies of St. Paul, is proposing to develop the northeast corner of the existing commercial complex. The approved plan includes:

• Seven Brew: two drive-thru lanes, no indoor seating, and employees who walk up to cars to take orders. Mornings are expected to be the busiest time.
• One fast-casual pad with a drive-thru: stacking space for six to eight vehicles, with trees on the north side to block headlight glare.
• Site changes: 92 parking spaces removed, part of the plaza in front of the cinema removed, and a new right-turn lane from Jay Street.

Mayor Jamie Barthel said traffic should be watched, especially after the coffee shop opens.

"It seems like those establishments are always busiest late afternoon, evenings."

He went on to say the coffee shop and restaurants could bring more daytime traffic, especially in the morning.

The council didn't discuss a final construction timeline, and as of early October there's no confirmed opening date. A final plat for "Andover Station III" was on the council's Dec. 16, 2025 agenda. Seven Brew's Minnesota directory doesn't list an Andover location yet. A Seven Brew careers page does list a work location at 1820 Bunker Lake Blvd. NW. The two restaurants haven't been named publicly. Until they open, the corner's indoor options are the same: the cinema, the lanes, Willy McCoy's, and Pizza Ranch nearby at 13797 Jay St. NW.

That's why the building on Hanson Boulevard carries so much of the season. The sunflower field now hosts single-day events, part of the Kelsey Round Lake trail is under reconstruction, and the next commercial project in town includes a coffee shop with no indoor seating. The community center has a gym, a calendar, and a Member Services desk that the city's own flyers point to.

The week of Oct. 19, for anyone filling a calendar

One week shows how the indoor and outdoor options fit together.

On Tuesday, Oct. 20, the Halloween potluck runs noon to 2 p.m. in the Y gym. Friday, Oct. 23, starts outdoors with Forest Bathing at the Sunshine Park pavilion at 9 a.m., and the Red Cross blood drive runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunshine Park also has trails, a bike trail, a playground, courts, fields and picnic facilities for anyone who wants to stay longer after the session.

On Saturday, Oct. 24, Anoka County Parks lists a Fall Festival at Wargo Nature Center from 1 to 3 p.m. Bunker Hills Regional Park, at 550 Bunker Lake Blvd. NW in Andover, has trails, a dog park, disc golf, a campground and a playground. The county's other late-season listings include a naturalist walk at Manomin Park on Oct. 17 and a walk at Islands of Peace Park on Nov. 21, the same date the community center's flyer gives for the second card show, opening at 9 a.m. at 15200 Hanson Blvd. NW.

At Epic Realty Inc, we follow what changes on Andover's map: a field that becomes an event site, a rebuilt trail, a parking lot turning into drive-thru lanes. Those changes shape how a home here gets used day to day. If you own in Andover and want to know how changes near you could affect your home's value, get your free home valuation and we'll go through it with you.