BIGMallrat | Retail history of Northern California

Union Square Mall has almost disappeared from Union City's collective memory. By the time many residents remember visiting it in the early 1980s, the enclosed shopping center already felt strangely quiet—a mall that seemed to be fading long before it actually closed. Its decline was surprisingly swift. Union Square had opened only a decade earlier, in 1973, yet vacancies and struggling businesses soon became part of its identity. Published in 1983, this rare interior view shows Union Square Mall during its decline, when vacancies had become a defining feature of the shopping center. Unlike larger regional malls such as Southland, NewPark, or Stoneridge, Union Square was never intended to become a major shopping destination. Developed by Kelly-Moore Paint Company at Decoto Road and Fremont Boulevard, the enclosed center was anchored by a Safeway supermarket and a Kelly-Moore Home Improvement Center. 1972 newspaper rendering showing Union Square as a fully realized enclosed shopp...

Northgate Mall began as an open-air shopping center during Marin County's postwar growth boom. Developed by the Draper Companies and anchored by The Emporium, the center quickly became one of the county's leading retail destinations. Over the following decades, Northgate evolved from a traditional shopping center into Marin County's only enclosed mall, adapting to new competition, changing shopping habits, and shifting retail trends. Its history reflects both the rise of suburban shopping centers and the ongoing challenge of keeping them relevant in a changing marketplace. Building Marin's regional shopping center Northgate Mall, originally known as Northgate Shopping Center, began development in 1961 with the first outer parcel stores opening in San Rafael, California. The Emporium followed in 1964, anchoring a formally opened center that debuted on March 10, 1965 with roughly 28 tenants. What began as an open-air neighborhood development quickly expanded into one o...

Published: March 8, 2008 · Last updated: September 22, 2026 Few places on the Peninsula have been reinvented as often as Tanforan. Over more than a century, the San Bruno property has served as a racetrack, wartime detention center, regional shopping mall, and transit-oriented retail center. Now, the 44-acre site faces another transformation through a proposed mixed-use redevelopment. Each chapter reflects the changing priorities of the Bay Area itself. Tanforan Mall in the 1970s, showing the Sears anchor and the original enclosed mall architecture. Annotated Apple Maps view of San Bruno showing the location of Tanforan, positioned off I-380 at El Camino Real. From racetrack to retail center (1899–1970) Before it was a shopping mall, the site was home to Tanforan Park racetrack, which opened in 1899 and became nationally known as a venue for thoroughbred racing. The racetrack is remembered not only for horses such as Seabiscuit, but also for its use as a temporary detention center...

Published January 10, 2008 · Updated September 21, 2026 1981: Solano Mall opens in Fairfield Before it became Solano Town Center, it was simply Solano Mall. The mall opened its doors on March 19, 1981, bringing a new wave of suburban retail to Fairfield, California. JCPenney and Mervyn's were among its original anchors, while Sears joined the center as it expanded. Emporium-Capwell followed in March 1983, and Macy's arrived in August 1985. Solano Mall's original interior had a distinctive architectural character. Triangular ceiling panels in warm orange and burnt sienna tones created a geometric pattern overhead, while real skylights brought natural light into the enclosed shopping center. The triangular panels themselves weren't skylights; they were artificial lighting designed to create a similar visual effect. A postcard issued around the mall's opening captures that design particularly well. The card also stated that Solano Mall was designed to serve an ...