Placentia's Rebuilt Golden Avenue Bridge Reopens as the Centennial Year Winds Down

The Golden Avenue Bridge over the Carbon Canyon Channel was built in 1934. For most of the time since, it was a two-lane deck with no sidewalks and no bike lanes, so drivers, walkers and cyclists all shared the same pavement. A December 2024 city staff report notes that Caltrans rated it "functionally obsolete" in 2005. Since February 19, 2026, it has been closed in both directions while crews built its replacement.

The City of Placentia set the reopening celebration for Wednesday, November 4, 2026, at 10 a.m. at the bridge. In its October 22 newsletter, the city called the project the completion of "an important connection between Placentia and Yorba Linda." Placentia is in the last weeks of its 100th-anniversary year, and the finale is a drone show on December 5.

What the replacement adds for people on foot and on bikes

The new design has two 12-foot vehicle lanes, sidewalks, bike lanes, a center median and handrails, plus new drainage, utility and grading work underneath. For anyone who walked or biked between Placentia and Yorba Linda before the closure, the sidewalks and bike lanes are the real change. Until now, the crossing had no space set aside for anyone outside a car.

The bridge was also designed for something that doesn't exist yet. Placentia's 2022 announcement said it would include on and off ramps to the future off-street OC Loop trail along Carbon Canyon. The County of Orange describes that trail, called Segment D, as a planned Class I bikeway. It would run from La Floresta Drive and Imperial Highway to the existing El Cajon Trail at Bastanchury Road and the Carbon Canyon Channel, passing through Yorba Linda, Placentia and Brea. The trail design includes an undercrossing at Golden Avenue. OCTA's OC Loop page does not list Segment D among the completed segments. For now, the bridge's sidewalks and bike lanes are usable, while the trail connection is still planned.

How a city of Placentia's size paid for it

The November 2025 City Council agenda that awarded the construction contract shows where the money came from.

The two federal sources together come to about $4.85 million, or roughly four of every five dollars in the budget. Placentia's own Measure U share is under $1 million. The construction contract went to CT&T Concrete Paving for $4,687,010.50, and the budget also set aside $468,701.05 for contingency, $713,091 for construction management and inspection, and $168,797 for construction engineering. Back in 2022, the city said the $2.2 million federal allocation came through a community project funding request submitted through Rep. Young Kim's office and also submitted by Sen. Alex Padilla's office.

Easement work also delayed the project. The same December 2024 staff report says the city had to redo its easement acquisition work to meet federal requirements, which are administered through Caltrans and the Federal Highway Administration. Caltrans could not approve release of the plans and specifications until that was done.

Why the celebration is in November

When the closure began, the posted schedule ran through Friday, September 11, and the city noted that dates could change. On September 8, 2026, the City Council approved another $302,848 for construction management and inspection on the project. The celebration date the city eventually announced is November 4.

For months, drivers took the detour the city posted when the closure began: Valencia Avenue, McCormack Lane, Bastanchury Road and Rose Drive. Homes and properties along Golden Avenue stayed reachable the whole time, since only the bridge was closed. Once the bridge reopens, Golden Avenue is a direct route to Yorba Linda again.

What's left of the hundredth year

After the bridge ceremony, the rest of the centennial calendar is spread across city venues. Most of it is free, and each event takes place somewhere different.

1. Wednesday, November 4, 10 a.m. Golden Avenue Bridge reopening celebration, at the bridge.
2. Wednesday, November 11, 10 a.m. The city's annual Veterans Day Ceremony in the Placentia Civic Center Courtyard, 401 E. Chapman Ave.
3. Saturday, November 14. Centennial Pickleball Tournament at Tuffree Park. Signups are open through placentia.org/classes.
4. Tuesday, November 24. The Neighborhood Services Division's annual Thanksgiving distribution. Eligible Placentia families get a grocery gift card for poultry and a bag of side dishes and essentials, including dinner rolls. The reusable bags were donated by the Trader Joe's in Brea.
5. Saturday, December 5, 1 to 9 p.m. The Centennial Birthday Bash at Champions Sports Complex, the city's grand finale.

One familiar December event isn't on this list. In 2025, Citizen Portal reported that city staff had combined the tree lighting and the Tamale Festival into a single "Tamale Holiday" in Old Town on December 11, after budget trimming. The Tamale Festival site still shows that 2025 date.

The finale gets more expensive the longer you wait

Admission to the Birthday Bash is free. The program includes carnival rides and games, live entertainment, food trucks, a vendor marketplace, a beer and wine garden, a children's entertainment zone, and a drone show to end the night. The rides are where the cost adds up, and wristband prices rise each month until the event.

Wristbands, game tickets and VIP packages are all sold at Placentia City Hall, 401 E. Chapman Avenue. A household buying four wristbands in November pays $200. The same four bought in December cost $240. With rides at $5 each, the $50 November wristband pays for itself on the tenth ride.

The $200 VIP package includes two unlimited ride wristbands, two game booth ticket packs, two drink tickets, entry to the VIP area with a private bar, luxury restrooms and a photo booth with unlimited photos. At November prices, the two wristbands alone are $100. The other $100 covers the game tickets, the drinks and the private area. Event details are posted at placentia.org/centennial.

The other additions that will outlast the year

The bridge isn't the only new arrival this fall. At Cobblestone Village, the shopping center at Orangethorpe and Lakeview, two food businesses are moving into 2095 E. Orangethorpe Avenue, Suites A and B.

• Juan Pollo is opening its 26th location. The rotisserie chicken chain was founded in Ontario in 1984 and has expanded across the Inland Empire and Orange County. As of the October 22 newsletter, construction was almost finished and a grand opening was "expected soon."
• Bonn Coffee is opening its first location anywhere, with specialty drinks like pistachio lattes, espresso, pastries and milk cakes. Its interior improvements were still in plan check, with construction expected to start shortly.

They'll be neighbors of Esther's Taco House and Madres Brunch, which are already in the center. The city expects both to open "in the coming months."

Two smaller changes from City Hall will also last past the centennial. The city has launched an organic waste recycling program under California Senate Bill 1383. Food scraps now go in the green organics cart, and residents who don't have one will get one in the coming months, according to the city's SB 1383 page. Free kitchen pails are available at City Hall, one per household while supplies last. The Placentia Police Department's 2026 Pink Patch shoulder patches and key chains are on sale at the department's front counter for $5 and $10. All proceeds go to Susan G. Komen of Orange County.

At Tony Real Estate Group, we watch projects like the Golden Avenue Bridge closely, because a direct route back to Yorba Linda changes commutes and errands for homes on both sides of the Carbon Canyon Channel. If you'd like to see how this year's changes show up in your own home's value, get your free home valuation and we'll go through the numbers with you.