Where did Lake Forest's fall changes land? At a shopping center at El Toro Road and Rockfield Boulevard, and at the city venues on its event calendar.
Nothing about this season involves a new development or a new destination. Lake Forest is changing from the inside. New tenants are filling existing storefronts, a coffee bar opened inside a grocery store that has been there since 2019, and the Halloween-to-Thanksgiving calendar runs on venues the city already operates. If you live here, your routes and routines mostly stay the same. What's inside them has changed.
Hunter Court swapped two pieces in one month
Hunter Court Shopping Center sits on Rockfield Boulevard just off the 5. DLC Management Corp. handles its leasing. Its anchor list includes Ross Dress for Less, Sprouts, Jack in the Box and Café Rio. In September, two of its storefronts changed within three weeks of each other.
| Date | What changed | Address |
|---|---|---|
| Sept. 5–7, 2026 | Klatch Coffee grand opening inside Sprouts Farmers Market | 24332 Rockfield Blvd. |
| Sept. 25, 2026 | Burlington opens in the former CVS space | 24372 Rockfield Blvd. |
The coffee change came first. Klatch Coffee, a roaster based in Rancho Cucamonga, held a grand opening weekend for its Lake Forest café over Labor Day weekend, Sept. 5 through 7. It opened alongside new Klatch locations in Santee and San Clemente, and all three served an exclusive mystery drink that weekend in a collectible glass can. The café sits inside the Sprouts store, and Klatch describes the location as just off the 5 Freeway at El Toro Road and Rockfield Boulevard.
It's not a new store. Sprouts opened at 24332 Rockfield Boulevard on Sept. 11, 2019. In late June 2026, Sprouts announced it was expanding its partnership with Klatch to put 11 in-store cafés in Southern California locations. So a grocery run that has been part of local routines for seven years now ends at a specialty coffee counter, in the same spot.
Three weeks later, a few doors down the address range, Burlington opened. The Orange County Register reported that the discount retailer opened Sept. 25 at 24372 Rockfield Blvd., in the space a closed CVS left behind, selling housewares, apparel and more. Lake Forest Patch also covered the opening.
Both changes follow the same pattern. Neither one added square footage or a new building. One filled an empty pharmacy box, and the other found room inside a grocery store.
The same pattern runs up Lake Forest Drive
Outside Hunter Court, Lake Forest's other retail news this year has also been about existing spaces changing hands or going dark, not new construction.
Morena's Mexican Cuisine on Lake Forest Drive closed this summer. Patch reported that the restaurant's final day of service was Sunday, July 19, 2026.
Leslie's, the pool-supply store at 23778 Mercury Road, is closing. Patch reported that it is one of 13 Southern California locations closing in the retailer's nationwide restructuring. The company says the chain itself is not going out of business.
Two other projects are still unconfirmed. In October 2025, What Now Los Angeles reported that Fresh Choice Marketplace was under construction at 22631 Lake Forest Drive, in a former 99 Cents Only space, with no opening date announced. In September 2025, the same outlet reported that Boban was planning a December opening at 20702 Lake Forest Drive in One Stop Commercial Center, near Lake Forest Drive and El Toro Road. Neither report confirms that the business opened, so both are best treated as plans until the doors open.
Every item on that list is a former tenant's space getting a new one, or an existing store closing. The city's retail map is staying the same while the names on it change.
The fall calendar uses venues the city already runs
The events side follows the same logic. The City of Lake Forest and the Lake Forest Chamber of Commerce are spreading the season across a handful of venues: Etnies Skate Park, Lake Forest Sports Park, The Clubhouse and the Performing Arts Center. Here's the run of dates, in order:
- Night of the Living Shred, Saturday, Oct. 17, 7 p.m., Etnies Skate Park. A free Halloween skate night with a haunted maze, skate contests and races. Attendees need to bring a helmet and sign a waiver, according to Patch.
- Spooktacular, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2 to 6 p.m., Lake Forest Sports Park. Food trucks, trunk-or-treating, games, crafts and music. Wristbands are $10, and children under 3 and parents get in free, per Patch.
- Veterans Day Celebration, Nov. 5, 10 a.m., The Clubhouse.
- Horsepower & Heroes Car Show, Nov. 10, 10:30 a.m., The Clubhouse.
- Veterans Day Skate Camp, Nov. 11, 10 a.m.
- Friendsgiving Luncheon, Nov. 19, 10 a.m., The Clubhouse.
- 10th annual Elf Yourself 5K, Saturday, Nov. 21, Lake Forest Sports Park, 28000 Rancho Parkway. The Chamber's race lists an 8 to 11 a.m. window and adds an expo, Santa photos and a pet parade. Registration is on RunSignup.
- "Back to the Future" screening, Nov. 24, 11 a.m., Performing Arts Center.
The Sports Park hosts both of the biggest family dates, Spooktacular and the Elf Yourself 5K, four weeks apart. The Clubhouse hosts most of the November weekday events. Etnies Skate Park opens the season on Oct. 17. The November items come from the city's online calendar, which the city updates on its own schedule, so it's worth checking times there before you head out.
December is still a blank page
As of mid-October, the city's December 2026 calendar shows recurring Thursday Bingo, regular city meetings and the Christmas Day holiday closure. No larger seasonal community event is listed yet. That makes the Elf Yourself 5K on Nov. 21 the last big published community date of the year for now. Schedules can be added later, so the December calendar is worth checking again after Thanksgiving.
The retail side has its own open questions heading into winter. The reporting on Leslie's closing on Mercury Road names no replacement tenant, and the Fresh Choice Marketplace and Boban plans on Lake Forest Drive have no confirmed opening dates in the reporting so far. One small detail at Hunter Court: DLC's leasing page still lists CVS as an anchor, even though the Register reports that Burlington now occupies the former CVS space. For this corner, local news has been the more current record.
For now, the season's map is easy to follow. Coffee and errands are at El Toro and Rockfield. Halloween starts at Etnies Skate Park on Oct. 17, moves to the Sports Park on Oct. 24, and the Sports Park closes out the published calendar with the 5K on Nov. 21.
If you've been watching storefronts change hands on Rockfield Boulevard or Lake Forest Drive and wondering what it means for your corner of town, I'm always happy to talk it through. I follow these shifts closely across South Orange County, from new tenants at Hunter Court to the Sports Park calendar. Reach out to Shannon Parks whenever you'd like a local perspective. Let's Connect.
