Pruneyard Shopping Center recently announced on social media channels that starting May 1 it would reopen a pass-through that connected the Campbell outdoor mall\u2019s front and rear parking lots. The reaction was swift from South Bay families who say it\u2019s not just a wrong move \u2014 it\u2019s also unsafe.<\/p>\n
When the paved pathway was closed during the pandemic, the stretch between Sweetgreen and Books Inc. became a pleasant pedestrian plaza, surrounded by popular eateries like Peet\u2019s Coffee, Luna Mexican Kitchen and Humphry Slocombe ice cream, where people could enjoy sidewalk seating without the noise of cars passing by.<\/p>\n
You could also hear the sound of children having fun. There\u2019s a kids play area next to the road, with four bright blue gorilla statues on a field of artificial turf that kids crawl on and jump around \u2014 and that\u2019s what has parents up in arms. Allowing cars back in would not only degrade the peaceful atmosphere, but could lead to a horrific accident if a child stumbles into the roadway. There\u2019s a buffer zone between the road and play area with intermittently spaced posts and small shrubs, but it\u2019s not much of a barrier.<\/p>\n
![\"Parents](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SJM-L-PIZARRO-COL-0429-02_18d33c.jpg\")
Parents watch their kids play in a children’s zone at Pruneyard Shopping Center in Campbell. The play area is close to a roadway between the shopping center’s front and year parking lots that Pruneyard says it will reopen to traffic May 1, 2026. (Sal Pizarro\/Bay Area News Group)\u00a0<\/p>\n
Luke Blauch said he and his wife take their two young daughters, aged 21 months and 7 months, to the play area multiple times a week because it\u2019s a safe space.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is the best and most consistent public area where they can play, we can grab a coffee, and spend time together as a family,\u201d said Blauch, who wrote to Pruneyard owner Regency Centers urging them to reverse course. \u201cI am worried that with the proposed changes to the plaza allowing cars, this desperately needed third place in our community will disappear for our family and others.\u201d<\/p>\n
Other parents vented on Reddit<\/a>, and a post on the Facebook page for playground-review blog Silicon Valley Family decrying the decision<\/a> got dozens of responses in agreement.<\/p>\n Pruneyard\u2019s posts say reopening the road will improve traffic flow and make parking easier. Interestingly, commenting was limited on Pruneyard\u2019s Facebook announcement, and there were no comments on the similar Instagram post \u2014 probably an indicator of negative reaction. (An email sent to Pruneyard owner Regency Centers did not get an immediate response.)<\/p>\n Admittedly, the Pruneyard parking lot is simply atrocious, with tight spaces, two-way aisles that suddenly become one way, and a few parking areas that feel like the Twilight Zone if you get caught in them. But losing customers who don\u2019t feel safe letting their kids wander in a play zone seems like a bad way to improve traffic congestion.<\/p>\n
![\"Fair](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SJM-L-PIZARRO-COL-0429-02.jpg\")
Fair Downs Director of Operations Armando Carlos, left, Santa Clara County Fairgrounds Executive Director Salene Duarte, center, and Daryle Lupretta, the fairgrounds’ food and beverage director, pose in front of a display for the Kentucky Derby party at the Fair Downs off-track-betting facility at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds on Saturday, May 2, 2026. (Sal Pizarro\/Bay Area News Group)\u00a0<\/p>\n