"We're really close to our 60 percent design drawing," Jarod Rogers, deputy director of the Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department's Natural Resources Division, told North Central News in April. "By the end of September or October, we intend to have our full construction documents with the intent to start construction by the end of this calendar year – likely December."
The schedule has held. The City of Phoenix's North Mountain and Shaw Butte trail page now carries a closure alert: North Mountain Park will be closed from December 2026 through early 2028 for renovations. The city hasn't announced the exact December day. Mid-October leaves about seven weeks before the month starts.
The mountain doesn't close with the park, though. For more than a year, the main way onto North Mountain moves north along 7th Street to a trailhead and visitor center run entirely by volunteers. This fall is a good time to learn that route, because the visitor center's calendar is busier than usual.
What actually goes dark at 7th Street and Peoria
North Mountain Park covers about 37 acres in the northwest corner of the Phoenix Mountains Preserve, on the west side of 7th Street at Peoria Avenue. It was built in the 1950s as a Maricopa County park and joined the Phoenix parks system in the 1970s, according to North Central News.
The closure takes out more than a picnic area. That same report calls Trail 44 "one of the busiest trails in the city," a 1.6-mile loop around the park. The city's trail listings separately describe the North Mountain National Trail, a steep 1.6-mile out-and-back that starts from the Maricopa Trailhead at 10600 N. 7th St., the same address the city map gives for North Mountain Park. The Penny Howe trail goes too. It's an easy 0.3-mile route that starts inside the park.
Parts of the park were already worn out before the closure was announced. The restroom at the old Ranger Station is permanently closed because of plumbing problems. The playground structure is closed for safety reasons because replacement parts for a structure that old no longer exist. The swing set is still open. Seasonal hours have also shifted. Extended summer hours ran from June 1 through September 30, so the parking lot is back to its 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. schedule. Trails stay open from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.
That means the remaining weeks at the park are mostly about Trail 44 and the ramadas. The city says three restrooms are still working, near the Pima, Maricopa and Yavapai ramadas.
The other side of the mountain stays open
The city's renovation project page says other Phoenix Mountains Preserve trailheads stay open during construction, including the North Mountain Visitor Center. Here's how the city's own trail listings compare:
| Access point | Address | Trail from here | Status during renovation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maricopa Trailhead, North Mountain Park | 10600 N. 7th St. | North Mountain National Trail, 1.6 miles out and back, 614 feet of elevation change | Inside the closed park |
| North Mountain Park | 7th St. at Peoria Ave. | Penny Howe, 0.3 miles, easy | Inside the closed park |
| North Mountain Visitor Center | 12950 N. 7th St. | Charles M. Christiansen Memorial Trail 100, 10.7 miles | Open |
| Shaw Butte Trailhead | 12898 N. Central Ave. | Shaw Butte loop, 4 miles, difficult, 654 feet of elevation change | Not listed as affected |
The Visitor Center trailhead keeps the same hours as the park: 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the trailhead and 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. on the trails. Trail 100 is a much longer hike than anything that starts inside the park. It runs 10.7 miles, has water and a shade ramada at the trailhead, and the city lists views of both Shaw Butte and North Mountain. Anyone used to a quick 1.6-mile hike at the park can walk a short out-and-back from the Visitor Center lot and turn around whenever they want.
Tower Road needs a caveat. The city's renovation page calls it popular, and the plan includes a new, more sustainable trail alignment from North Mountain Park to it. The city's published material doesn't say whether Tower Road can be reached from the Shaw Butte side while construction is underway. Check with the Ranger Office at 602-262-7901 before planning a route around it.
For a change of mountain, North Central News pointed readers to Lookout Mountain and the Dreamy Draw Recreation Area as nearby alternatives.
The volunteer side has the busier fall
The North Mountain Visitor Center is run by the Save Our Mountains Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit staffed entirely by volunteers. The building is open daily from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., depending on volunteer availability. That's a much shorter window than the trail hours, so a sunrise hike from the 12950 N. 7th St. lot will often end before the doors open.
Its event calendar for the next several weeks gives a good reason to try the new trailhead before December forces it:
- Saturday, October 17, 9 to 11 a.m. Coffee House Saturdays with live music.
- Friday, November 6, 4 to 9 p.m. The 2nd Annual SOMF Festival in the Mountains opens, with Glen Gardner performing from 6 to 8 p.m.
- Saturday, November 7, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The festival continues with a Rattlesnake Garage program, plus sets from Eric Ramsey from 10 a.m. to noon and George & Georgia from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.
- Sunday, November 8, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The final festival day, with Nancy Elliott from 10 a.m. to noon and an open mic from 1 to 3 p.m.
- Thursday, November 12, 4 to 7 p.m. The Phoenix Writers Club Centennial Celebration.
The festival weekend falls a few weeks before the park is expected to close. Someone who comes for a music set on November 7 can walk the first stretch of Trail 100 the same morning and know the route before December.
The park that reopens will put walkers first
The city lists the plans as 90 percent designed by J2 Environmental Design, with permitted plans targeted for Winter 2026/2027. Construction is set to start that winter, with completion estimated for Winter 2027/2028. North Central News reported in April that the work was expected to take a full year. The city's September 25, 2026 update puts the end date further out, and the trail page says early 2028. North Central News also reported that the Phoenix City Council finalized funding, not to exceed $30 million, in December 2025.
The biggest change is how people will move through the park. Rogers told North Central News that cars will no longer have access to the top portion of the park, and that replacing asphalt with natural surfaces will give hikers a cooler walk without vehicles nearby. The city's list matches that. It includes pedestrian improvements that move walkers off park roads, a more walkable entry from the intersection of 7th Street and Peoria Avenue, and a new pedestrian connection south of Peoria Avenue from 7th Street.
Several of the closed or worn-out pieces described above are being replaced directly:
- Playground: an interactive, nature-themed play area with shade replaces the structure that's closed now.
- Restrooms: three new ones, with family and ADA-accessible options. The plan also includes a new sewer connection to replace the outdated septic system.
- Penny Howe: redesigned as an ADA-accessible trail. North Central News reports it will move to the southwest part of the park and add interpretive exhibits and interactive signage.
- Heat and water: chilled drinking fountains with bottle fillers, more shade canopies, and ice machines to help first responders during rescues.
- Ground cover: excess asphalt removed, natural vegetation restored, and green stormwater infrastructure that collects rainwater for native plants.
The plan was a long time coming. The city held open houses on April 5 and June 20, 2023, and approved the master plan on November 16, 2023. Until the park reopens, the way onto the mountain is the lot at 12950 N. 7th St.
At The Nelson Group SW, we follow changes like this one because they shape what living in north Phoenix is like day to day, from which trailhead you use to where the morning walk begins. If you have questions about the 7th Street corridor or how this renovation fits into the area around North Mountain, we're happy to talk it through. Contact Us.
