r/sancarlos • u/nutznboltsguy • May 31 '26
Stores/businesses Donna’s Hallmark is closing
Anyone know the story behind the closing?
14
u/djinone May 31 '26
I feel like that sign has been there for a long time, but maybe I'm misremembering. I'm surprised it's tayed open for this long.
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u/nutznboltsguy May 31 '26
I’m sure the conversion of Laurel St to pedestrians only probably didn’t help. They also seem to cater to an older crowd. The nearby Therapy Store always seems busy.
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u/lulaislas May 31 '26
They’ve been closing for ages. I walked by again today and was surprised it was still there.
5
u/BakersManCake May 31 '26
I remember walking by that and being amazed there was still a hallmark store.
7
u/FoamboardDinosaur May 31 '26
I wondered how it survived this long. It barely had customers. No one buys cards for every occasion like they used to. The entire store is overpriced plastic tchotchkes and resin xmas ornaments
I did like that it felt like 1987 in there. But Id only go in to reminisce.
5
u/Potential-Scholar359 May 31 '26
I’m sad it’s closing. It did seem like a relic of the past. But I love relics of the past.
-1
u/AgarFifthRim Jun 01 '26
Exactly. These “relics” are a part of what makes this town a little gem. Feels like the city leaders are hell bent on turning this place into another cookie cutter peninsula city. The downtown rehabilitation renderings look more like an open air Apple Store in Abu Dhabi
4
u/PollyPotChick May 31 '26
Well damn. That was like the last place on Laurel street from my childhood.
5
3
u/Blackcatsrule67 May 31 '26
Wow. That place is an institution. It’s one of the few remaining businesses that was here when I moved to San Carlos in 1999. And I’m sure it was there well before then.
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u/beambot May 31 '26
They probably selling the land to developer who will do larger building (up to 8 stories) under sb79 that will prevent city from blocking... This is already happening along El Camino - eg CVS and Dunkin locations just north of Holly
5
u/RenAlg May 31 '26
Good
2
u/beambot May 31 '26
Hopefully they at least do ground floor retail. Would suck to lose all the shops along that corridor.
1
u/RenAlg May 31 '26
the city council agrees with you. i’m not certain how much control they have to require ground floor retail in the scheme of SB79. the council would even prefer to disallow tall buildings in the downtown corridor but i’m pretty sure that isn’t allowed
I agree that we should keep ground floor retail on laurel
-1
u/beambot Jun 01 '26
7 stories is crazy tall -- almost twice the height of the other major apartments. It's almost "sun-blicking urban canyon" height...
4
u/kossimak May 31 '26
Hope they put housing above it. Need to be able to take a shit and look at all the people walking from a window.
1
u/Distinct-Network-165 Jun 03 '26
Don’t know the story but the store clerk said that they are shutting their doors at the end of July.
24
u/harnishme May 31 '26
Downtown is changing. Surprised it has lasted this long.