Bay Area Landmarks, Parks & Playoffs

Great America Sets 2027 Closing Date as Union Square Gets Real Tree

California’s Great America will close permanently on Labor Day, September 6, 2027, San Francisco installs its first real Union Square Christmas tree in over 20 years, and the San Jose Earthquakes host a November 20 MLS playoff opener.

By Danville Times · Syndicated from Bay Area Chronicle
Syndicated reporting from Bay Area Chronicle · Bay Area Chronicle
Published November 8, 2026 at 8:38 AM PST · 3 min read

Downtown San Francisco prepares for a live holiday centerpiece in Union Square as South Bay landmarks mark major seasonal milestones. · Bay Area Chronicle / Editorial Visual Desk

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From a half-century theme park farewell in Santa Clara to a traditional holiday centerpiece in San Francisco and postseason soccer's return to San Jose, 3 major civic and sporting announcements punctuated the Bay Area weekend on November 7, 2026.

California's Great America in Santa Clara Announces Final Operating Day on Labor Day, September 6, 2027

California's Great America announced Saturday that the 112-acre Santa Clara theme park will permanently close on Labor Day, September 6, 2027, concluding more than five decades of operation. Having first opened in 1976 and celebrated its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season—which wrapped up two weeks ago—the park will reopen in March 2027 for one final farewell season before shutting its gates on September 6, 2027.

Vice President and General Manager Dave Vosejpka thanked generations of Bay Area visitors and park associates who worked at the venue over the past 50 years. The park's closure follows the 2022 sale of the underlying Santa Clara property to San Francisco-based industrial real estate firm Prologis, a transaction that included an initial six-year lease allowing park operations no later than June 2028.

San Francisco Installs First Real Christmas Tree in Union Square in More Than 20 Years

In downtown San Francisco, holiday preparations are underway as the city prepares to install a real Christmas tree in Union Square for the first time in more than 20 years. Replacing the artificial structure used in recent decades, the live tree will be erected and decorated by crews over the next 3 weeks so that it is ready for its official illumination on Black Friday.

Bruce Arena Guides San Jose Earthquakes to First Home MLS Playoff Match Since 2012

In the South Bay, the San Jose Earthquakes are preparing to host their first home Major League Soccer playoff match at PayPal Park since 2012, ending a 14-year home postseason drought when they face the 5th-seeded Houston Dynamo as the Western Conference's 4th seed in a best-of-3 opening series starting November 20.

The turnaround has been engineered by head coach and sporting director Bruce Arena—winner of five MLS Cup titles with D.C. United and the LA Galaxy and a two-time U.S. Men's National Team head coach—who took over ahead of the 2025 campaign and recently signed a contract extension through 2029. After finishing last in MLS with 21 points in 2024 and climbing to 38 points in 2025 (missing the playoffs on a final-day tiebreaker), San Jose surged to fourth place in 2026 behind attacking contributions from Timo Werner, Preston Judd, Cristian "Chicho" Arango, and Josef Martínez. The playoff berth arrives as majority owner John Fisher continues exploring a sale of the club, which he put on the market in June 2025 with a Forbes valuation of $600 million and a Sportico valuation of $540 million.

Bay Area Landmarks, Parks & Playoffs

Bay Area Civic, Hospitality & Sports Milestones (Nov 2026)

Three regional milestones across San Francisco, Santa Clara, and San Jose reshaping the Bay Area civic calendar were announced on November 7, 2026. In Santa Clara, California’s Great America—which opened in 1976 and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2026 after its property was sold to Prologis in 2022 under a six-year lease through June 2028—confirmed that it will reopen in March 2027 for a farewell season before closing permanently on Labor Day, September 6, 2027. In downtown San Francisco, cr

California's Great America Closure: Final operating day set for Labor Day, September 6, 2027 (opened 1976)
Union Square Holiday Tree: First real Christmas tree in more than 20 years; 3 weeks of setup
San Jose Earthquakes Playoff Opener: 4th seed hosts 5th seed Houston Dynamo on November 20 (first since 2012)
Earthquakes Franchise Valuation: $600 million Forbes valuation ($540 million Sportico); Arena signed to 2029

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Danville Celebrations & Milestones

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Explore weddings, graduations, anniversaries, and community honors shared across Danville, Blackhawk, Diablo, and Sycamore Valley.

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Danville Owl-Box Educator Joins Bay Area Fall Garden and Repair Lineup — Bay Area Gardens & Sustainability

Home sustainability workshops, wildlife habitat carpentry, and historic estate illuminations fill the Bay Area calendar through late November 2026. On Sunday, November 15 at 2 p.m. at Independence Hall (2955 Woodside Road, Woodside), nature educator John Gallagher will share step-by-step instructions for building nesting boxes along with photographs of Western screech owls and owlets raised on his Danville property to support pesticide-free rodent control. The regional lineup also features Sunday’s free Repair Café at the Museum of American Heritage in Palo Alto (11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on November 8, limit 2 items per household), Gamble Garden’s 2-hour worm composting workshop, Filoli’s Holiday Lights running November 14 through January 10 with 28 miles of lights and a 210-foot light tunnel (tickets from $45), and Baylands king tides rising above 9 feet on November 24–26.

4 min read

Civic life

Bay Area Passes $1B Transit Tax at 61% as SF Elects Wiener, Keeps Park — Bay Area Transit Tax & SF Vote

Voters across 5 Bay Area counties approved a regional public transit sales tax measure by a 61% to 39% margin, raising an estimated $1 billion annually for SF Muni, AC Transit, Caltrain, and BART by increasing the sales tax 0.5% in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties and 1% in San Francisco. BART General Manager Bob Powers said about 60% of revenue goes to transit operators, 30% to 35% returns to the 5 counties, and 5% funds regional programs, providing BART roughly $300 million per year as the system reports 95% on-time performance. Meanwhile, a 7-map precinct analysis of San Francisco’s November 2026 election showed state Senator Scott Wiener defeating Supervisor Connie Chan with 55% of the vote, 65% of voters rejecting Proposition G to keep Sunset Dunes Park (including 58% No in the 7 adjacent precincts, up from 40% support in 2024), 55% supporting Proposition 40’s billionaire health care tax, 80% opposing Proposition 39 voter ID rules, and up to 90% in some precincts backing Proposition H’s Muni parcel tax alongside Mayor Daniel Lurie’s Charter Propositions D, E, and F. Across the city, civic celebrations spanned a Fireworks AI waterfront display, Election Night gatherings for Wiener and City College Trustees Elijah Ball, Erwin Tam, and Monroe Lace, Proposition B leading by 5,500 votes, the WNBA champion Golden State Valkyries’ Embarcadero parade, and the 19th season opening of the Union Square ice rink.

5 min read

Civic life

SF Unveils $12.25M Mission BART Plan as Housing Economics Shift — San Francisco Civic & Housing Report

Public-private transit revitalization, neighborhood legacy preservation, luxury real estate pricing, and multifamily construction math converged across San Francisco on November 7, 2026. Mayor Daniel Lurie and District 9 Supervisor Jackie Fielder unveiled a $12.25 million safety and community investment initiative for the 16th Street and 24th Street Mission BART plazas—combining $9.25 million from the philanthropic foundation Crankstart with $3 million in state funds secured by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel—to support SFPD evening foot patrols, a 6-month sheriff’s deputy deployment, 16 California Highway Patrol officers assigned for 60 days, community ambassadors, plaza lighting, and upgrades at Marshall Elementary School. In Bayview-Hunters Point, District 10 Supervisor Shamann Walton honored 54-year-old Surfside Liquors and 80-year-old owner Bob Pinkard as a San Francisco Legacy Business. Meanwhile, an 8,000-square-foot Presidio Heights mansion at 3501 Jackson St. returned to the market for $19.9 million after selling off-market for $21 million six months ago and undergoing a $250,000 refresh, while an urban economics review highlighted how lowering inclusionary mandates from 25% to 5% on 25-plus-unit buildings and unlocking 3% of San Francisco’s 93,000 small lots could generate 25,000 to 28,000 new homes despite $500 to $700 per square foot building costs (50% above the $250 national average) and 10% construction loan rates (up from 4% five years ago).

Great America Sets 2027 Closing Date as Union Square Gets Real Tree

California's Great America in Santa Clara Announces Final Operating Day on Labor Day, September 6, 2027

San Francisco Installs First Real Christmas Tree in Union Square in More Than 20 Years

Bruce Arena Guides San Jose Earthquakes to First Home MLS Playoff Match Since 2012

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