Tanforan is going into the 2026 holidays with fewer reasons to visit than at any point in its recent history. The tenants that are left line up closely with the plan the City of San Bruno is reviewing now, which keeps Target open through construction and holds on to the Century theater. For most San Bruno households, a holiday trip to the mall is now a stop at one of those two, plus dinner or a workout. Nearly everything else on the city's season calendar takes place in civic buildings, on San Mateo Avenue or up on the mountain.
Below is what's open this year, what closed, where the approval process stands this week, and where the season's events are being held.
Four anchors left in a mostly empty mall
In an August 20, 2026 report, KRON4 listed the remaining anchor tenants as Target, Century Theaters, BJ's Restaurant and Planet Fitness. Even this month, the mall's homepage was still advertising a short-run Target deal and a Petco promotion ending 10/31, and its social feed included a post from BJ's.
Several long-running businesses left over the past year:
- JCPenney had closed permanently "last year," according to KRON4's March 3, 2026 coverage.
- Barnes & Noble closed May 2, 2026, when its lease ended. SFGATE reported that the company sent Tanforan customers to its Hillsdale Shopping Center store in San Mateo and its Burlingame store.
- Shirtique Pro Shop, the sports memorabilia store on the mall's bottom floor, said it would close at the end of September after more than 30 years at Tanforan.
Shirtique's farewell post, quoted by KRON4, thanked "the support of loyal fans" over "3 decades" and asked shoppers not to delay "getting your memorabilia." If you were planning to buy Giants, Warriors or Niners gear there this season, that option is gone.
The mall's online directory doesn't help much here. It still listed Barnes & Noble and JCPenney after both had closed, so call ahead before driving over for a specific smaller store. The posted hours on the mall's site were 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturdays and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sundays. As of late October, the official events page said "No events scheduled right now."
The two tenants the plan keeps
Target and Century aren't the last ones standing by chance. The plan was drawn around them. Alexandria Real Estate Equities bought Tanforan for about $300 million. In KRON4's March 10, 2026 story, San Bruno Community Development Director Peter Gilli explained how the two anchors carry through construction:
"The Target is going to be open throughout construction, so people can still come and buy all the essentials that they need. The movie theater is going to try to stay open as much as possible. There might be a short closure, but it's going to be retained as part of the project."
According to SF YIMBY's October 12 summary of the Final EIR, most of the mall would be torn down, Target would stay and Century at Tanforan would be remodeled. The programmed plan calls for 1,014 homes, about 112,000 square feet of retail and about 724,000 square feet of life-science and lab-office space. The Registry describes the full range as up to 1,514 homes and 1.7 million square feet of lab and office space when the flexible scenarios are included.
For a sense of scale, the retail in the plan, about 112,000 square feet, is less than a sixth of the lab and office space. The site is moving from a shopping center with offices nearby to an employment and housing district with shops on the ground floor. The tenants still open this December are a preview of that ratio.
The hearing schedule this fall
The approvals are moving in small steps, and the dates keep shifting:
- October 5: The city posted the Final EIR and said publication "is not project approval."
- October 20: The Planning Commission heard presentations from staff and the applicant, took public comment, and continued the item to a special meeting on October 26.
- October 26: Staff's packet for that meeting asked the commission to continue the item again, to a special meeting on November 5, with the full staff report to be published before then.
- City Council: The council will eventually be asked to override an Airport Land Use Commission finding of inconsistency, approve a General Plan amendment and zoning changes, and adopt a development agreement with Alexandria. The city's agenda pages haven't confirmed a council date yet.
Even after approval, the bulldozers are a while off. SF YIMBY reports that demolition and site preparation are expected in 2027, with the first construction phases in 2028 or 2029. Those are forecasts, not a fixed schedule. That makes this season, and probably next, a stretch where Tanforan works as a Target-and-a-movie stop while the rest of the building waits.
The holiday calendar is somewhere else
The events that once might have filled a mall corridor are now spread across the San Bruno Public Library, the Senior Center, the Recreation and Aquatic Center, Centennial Plaza and San Bruno Mountain. Here's the calendar from Halloween week through mid-December:
| Date | Event | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Thu., Oct. 29, 11–11:30 a.m. | Halloween Storytime | San Bruno Public Library, 701 Angus Ave. W. |
| Fri., Oct. 30, 3:30–4:45 p.m. | Kimchi Party, limited to 30, first come, no registration | San Bruno Public Library |
| Sat., Oct. 31, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. | Halloween at the Library | San Bruno Public Library |
| Sat., Oct. 31, 9:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. | Botanical Garden workday, costumes welcome | 555 Guadalupe Canyon Pkwy., Brisbane |
| Sat., Nov. 21, 10 a.m.–2 p.m. | Guided Summit Loop hike | San Bruno Mountain State & County Park |
| Sat., Nov. 28, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. | 34th Annual Holiday Boutique | San Bruno Senior Center, 1555 Crystal Springs Rd. |
| Tue., Dec. 1, 5 p.m. | Holiday Tree Lighting, then Jingle Around the Block at about 6 p.m. | Centennial Plaza, 470 San Mateo Ave. |
| Sat., Dec. 12, 10 a.m.–3 p.m. | Winter Plant Sale | Mission Blue Nursery, 3435 Bayshore Blvd., Brisbane |
| Sat., Dec. 19, 9 a.m.–noon | Breakfast with Santa, preregistration required | Recreation and Aquatic Center, 251 City Park Way |
The library events are listed on the City of San Bruno calendar, along with the Holiday Boutique, the Tree Lighting and Breakfast with Santa. The mountain events come from San Bruno Mountain Watch. That group is also premiering a documentary about the mountain on November 10 at 99 Leland Avenue in San Francisco.
The Saturday after Thanksgiving is a useful example. This year's Holiday Boutique runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. that day at the Senior Center on Crystal Springs Road, the city's own small-vendor market in its 34th year. Three days later, the Tree Lighting brings the season to Centennial Plaza at 470 San Mateo Avenue, and Jingle Around the Block heads into the downtown blocks around 6 p.m.
San Mateo Avenue's ground floors are getting new rules
The street where the Tree Lighting ends up is getting its own rewrite. At a September 22 study session, the City Council reviewed downtown zoning changes for the Central Business District. Under the proposal, restaurants stay permitted on ground floors and need conditional approval on upper floors. Ground-floor offices, business services and some personal services would move to case-by-case review. Grocery and liquor stores would become conditional uses, and smoke shops would be prohibited. The San Mateo Daily Journal reported that council members also agreed on tighter rules for bright lights and signs downtown, with a grace period for existing businesses to comply.
The city's tentative schedule has a Planning Commission hearing in December, a City Council hearing in February and an effective date at the end of March. If it holds, the new downtown rules would take effect in spring 2027, well before the earliest forecast for Tanforan construction in 2028.
If you're thinking about how Tanforan's next few years could affect a home near El Camino Real or San Mateo Avenue, Suzanne Garcia follows these hearings closely and is happy to talk through what's on the calendar and what it may mean for your street. Let's Connect.
