Retail Ambition and a New Shopping Era (1950s)
In the early 1950s, developers set their sights on San Leandro, California, as a prime location for a modern retail hub.
The site chosen for this venture held a unique past—it was once home to the Oakland Speedway, a well-known automobile racing stadium.
In April 1953, plans were officially unveiled for a 48-acre shopping complex, projected to cost $25 million. The proposal included a major department store that alone required an additional $6 million investment.
The project aimed to bring a new kind of shopping experience to the East Bay, introducing a mix of convenience and modern design.
Construction did not begin right away. It took several years to finalize the design, organize financing, and secure retail commitments. By 1956, work was finally underway.
The crown jewel of the project was Macy’s, which would serve as the anchor tenant. Spanning 200,000 square feet across three stories, it was one of the largest department stores in the region at the time.
The architectural design was entrusted to John Savage Bolles, a name well-known in commercial real estate.
Bolles had already left his mark on the Bay Area with projects like Candlestick Park and interiors for Macy’s Union Square in San Francisco. His design for Bayfair Center blended practicality with elegance, setting the tone for a fresh retail concept.
Macy’s was the first to open its doors on August 8, 1957, marking the beginning of Bayfair Center’s retail presence.
In the months that followed, additional stores began operations, and on November 8, 1957, a formal grand opening took place.
Nineteen retailers, including a supermarket, joined Macy’s in welcoming shoppers. Unlike many enclosed malls of later decades, Bayfair Center debuted as an open-air shopping center with a split-level, L-shaped layout.
It also claimed a unique distinction—advertising itself as the first two-story shopping center in the Western United States.
At the time, malls were still a relatively new concept, and Bayfair Center stood out for its scale and design.
Its location, right off East 14th Street and Hesperian Boulevard, placed it in a growing suburban corridor, making it a convenient destination for residents of San Leandro, Oakland, and Hayward.
Even then, visitors could find plenty of things to do in San Leandro, California, from shopping to dining and entertainment.
Growth, Competition, and a Changing Retail Landscape (1960s–1990s)
By the early 1970s, new retail centers were popping up across the East Bay, and developers saw the need to expand.
On August 4, 1971, Montgomery Ward opened a two-story, 159,000-square-foot department store, complete with an auto center.
With this addition, Bayfair Center grew to 600,000 square feet and housed 62 stores.
Accessibility improved in 1972 when Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) opened the Bay Fair station right next to the mall.
This new transit link made it easier for residents of Oakland, Hayward, and beyond to reach Bayfair Center, increasing foot traffic and expanding its customer base.
With more visitors, demand for retail space grew, and mall owners started thinking about the next phase of development.
In 1977, its owners announced plans to enclose the mall and modernize its interiors. Construction crews added escalators, air conditioning, and new flooring, making the shopping experience more comfortable.
Additional retail space was built, increasing the total by 82,000 square feet and bringing in 40 more stores.
The renovation also introduced a specialty court—an open atrium area designed for boutiques and restaurants.
Retail competition remained fierce throughout the 1980s and 1990s, with new malls drawing shoppers away. Bayfair Center responded by bringing in fresh tenants.
On April 28, 1994, T.J. Maxx opened as a new anchor, catering to bargain hunters and fashion-conscious shoppers. Despite these efforts, Bayfair Center faced growing challenges.
From Traditional Mall to Power Center (2000s–2020s)
The early 2000s were a tough period for many shopping malls, and Bayfair Center was no exception. In 2001, long-time anchor Montgomery Ward shut down after the company filed for bankruptcy.
Rather than leave the space empty, Bayfair’s owners took a different approach—demolishing the vacant building and replacing it with a 145,000-square-foot Target Greatland, which opened in October 2002.
Ownership changed hands shortly after. In late 2002, Chicago-based M & J Wilkow Ltd. acquired the mall with plans to redevelop it into an open-air shopping center called Bayfair/580.
The vision was to move away from the traditional enclosed mall format and bring in more big-box stores and lifestyle-oriented retailers.
However, those plans never materialized, and in late 2003, Madison Marquette took over ownership.
By 2012, Bayfair Center had fully transitioned into a hybrid retail center, with stores more typical of a power center. While Macy’s still operated inside, most other tenants followed the big-box model.
Retailers like Kohl’s, Staples, Old Navy, PetSmart, and Bed Bath & Beyond replaced smaller specialty shops.
Entertainment options also played a role in keeping visitors coming. A 16-screen Cinemark Century theater became a key draw, offering a reason to visit beyond shopping.
The shift in tenant mix helped Bayfair Center adapt to changing retail trends, but it also marked the beginning of a new chapter—one in which traditional malls were no longer the dominant force in shopping.
Retail Struggles and Anchor Store Closures (2020s)
By the 2020s, Bayfair Center was facing new challenges. Bayfair, already operating as a hybrid power center, saw its tenant mix begin to shrink.
In September 2022, when Bed Bath & Beyond announced that it would close its Bayfair location.
This was part of a national plan to shut down 150 stores as the retailer struggled with declining sales and financial troubles. By early 2023, the store was gone, leaving another large vacancy at the center.
In 2023, the enclosed portion of the mall was permanently closed. Retailers that remained, such as Target, Kohl’s, and the Cinemark Century 16 theater, continued to operate, but the mall itself was no longer open to the public.
The biggest departure, however, was Macy’s. The department store had been at Bayfair Center since 1957, making it one of the mall’s longest-standing tenants.
On January 18, 2024, Macy’s announced that it would close five locations nationwide, including its Bayfair store. By March 2024, the store was empty, marking the end of an era for the shopping center.
Bayfair Center’s Transformation into a Tech Hub
In mid-2024, B3 Investors, a local development firm announced ambitious plans to convert the 42-acre Bayfair Center into the Speedway at Bayfair, a research and development campus tailored for tech companies.
This redevelopment aims to create a 400,000-square-foot facility equipped with the necessary infrastructure to support cutting-edge research and production.
To facilitate this transformation, Colliers Mortgage secured a $33 million bridge loan in August 2024 to refinance the Bayfair Center redevelopment project. This financial support underscores investors’ confidence in the site’s potential as a tech hub.
Vantage Robotics, a company specializing in nano-drones, established its operations in a former bookstore within the mall. The spacious atrium provided an ideal environment for drone testing and development.
Similarly, Berkeley Yeast, a biotech company, set up its laboratory in another part of the mall, utilizing the ample space and infrastructure to advance their research.
The City of San Leandro has been proactive in integrating the redevelopment with broader community goals.
The Bay Fair Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) plan envisions a mixed-use district that combines residential, commercial, and technological spaces, all centered around the Bay Fair BART station.
To date, approximately 500 units of multi-family housing have been approved adjacent to Bayfair Center, signaling a commitment to creating a vibrant, connected community.
As of 2025, Bayfair Center’s evolution from a traditional retail mall to a burgeoning tech and residential hub exemplifies adaptive reuse in urban development.
The influx of tech companies, coupled with strategic redevelopment plans and community integration efforts, positions Bayfair as a model for revitalizing underutilized spaces in the modern era.