There are two places on a Calabasas map where the work is visible this fall. One is on Commons Way at the east end of town. The other is where Agoura Road dead-ends into Las Virgenes Road on the west side. The two projects are at different stages. Still, between now and January the work you will notice at both is at the edges you already use. At The Commons that means a drive aisle and a row of storefronts. On Las Virgenes it means the curb lane. The new buildings arrive later.
The east end: what the first nine months have already changed
The Commons Lane Mixed-Use Project at 4719 Commons Way is smaller than many people remember. The City Council approved the first version on December 6, 2023. On October 9, 2024 it approved a revision that cut the plan down to 80 apartments and 27,411 square feet of new commercial space, per the City of Calabasas project page. That 80 is the number to use. The 119-unit figure from the 2023 coverage no longer applies.
The Acorn reported that ground broke on February 3, 2026. The new shops and restaurants go north of Commons Lane, and the apartments go south of it, on the old theater site. Corinne Verdery, Caruso's CEO, put it this way at the ceremony: "Today, we are proud to break ground on its next chapter."
The first chapter of construction has mostly been about subtraction. When the groundbreaking began, the Regency Calabasas theater next to Barnes & Noble closed. In its August report, The Acorn said Fresh Brothers Pizza had also closed "in the wake of the construction." Marmalade Cafe, one of the center's original 1998 tenants, served its last day on August 2. In a statement The Acorn quoted, the restaurant gave its reasons:
"Unfortunately, the ongoing construction throughout the shopping center has resulted in a devastating decline in business."
According to the same Acorn story, Marmalade also said it had asked for rent relief during the construction period and did not get it. The Westlake Village location of Marmalade at The Promenade is staying open, Valley News Group reported.
Plenty of the center's longtime tenants are still open. As of The Acorn's August report, that includes:
- Barnes & Noble, the anchor
- Ralphs, an original tenant
- Polacheck's Jewelers, an original tenant
- See's Candies
- King's Fish House
What the center says about getting in and parking
Day to day, the developer's answer is to keep the existing center usable while the new section goes up around it. The construction FAQ on The Commons' own site says entrances, parking and walkways are meant to stay open. It also says part of the two-way drive aisle between the new buildings will become one-way, surface parking will remain, and valet runs near SUGARFISH and Polacheck's. That one-way stretch is the edge most drivers will meet before they see any finished building.
The FAQ's latest timeline covers July through September 2026. It said construction of the new shops and restaurants was "well underway," with some spaces being handed over to incoming tenants for their build-outs. Work on the parking structure for the new apartments was also well underway. The center has not yet named any tenants for the new space. The center's FAQ says only that a small portion of the west side of the center will get 12 to 14 new shops and restaurants.
The sources describe opening timing a little differently. The developer says the shops and restaurants will open first, "about midway through the project," and the residential building will be finished in Fall 2027. In August, The Acorn described the new stores as opening "starting at the end of the year." Neither source gives a date. Either way, the retail half is the part of the east end with a near-term finish.
The west end: the work begins on the road
The Commons is nine months in. West Village at Calabasas is just getting started, and its schedule puts the visible work right next to the travel lanes.
The site is a 77-acre vacant parcel at 4790 Las Virgenes Road, at the eastern end of Agoura Road. The New Home Company is building 70 single-family homes there. The plan took years to settle. The city denied an earlier 180-unit version. In 2023 a Superior Court judge ruled against the city, and the two sides then settled on no more than 76 single-family homes. The City Council approved the revised 70-home plan on August 14, 2024, per the City of Calabasas West Village page.
That page lays out the pre-grading schedule for this fall and winter:
- September 2026: site surveys and staking, fencing, and a temporary sound wall along Las Virgenes Road
- October 2026: oak tree removals and soils testing
- October through December 2026: off-site street work and utility connections
- December 2026: pre-mobilization
- January 2027: grading begins
These are the city's planned activities, and the order matters. The street work and utility connections run from October through December, before any grading of the lot begins. So if you are driving Las Virgenes between the 101 and Agoura Road this holiday season, the work beside you will be in the public right-of-way. The homesites come after that. The city has not posted day-by-day lane closure details. The project page has a link to sign up for email notifications about project updates.
What the road and the trail get when it's done
The off-site work leads to permanent changes on Las Virgenes. At the August 2024 approval, the project's description included a 0.08-acre roadway dedication for a third northbound lane on Las Virgenes Road, with curb, gutter and sidewalk. The project summary also lists a new right-turn lane, bike improvements, signal upgrades and sidewalk connections along Las Virgenes to the north and south of the site.
The approval describes the two largest uses of the 77 acres. Together they account for about 98.5% of the site, and the rest goes to basins, the roadway dedication and other features listed in the approval:
| Use | Acreage | Share of site |
|---|---|---|
| 70 homes | about 12.45 acres | 16.1% |
| Permanent open space | about 63.83 acres | 82.4% |
The homes come in three plan types, all four-bedroom and two-story, from 2,596 to 3,077 square feet. The architecture is Monterey, Spanish and Santa Barbara styles.
The project also dedicates a public hiking trail through the property that connects to the New Millennium Trail to the east. Los Angeles County's trails listing lists the New Millennium Trail as a 9.5-mile, hiking-only trail managed by the MRCA. Today, one way in is the Bark Park trailhead and parking on Las Virgenes Road, about a mile south of the 101, according to the Ventura County Trails Calabasas map. The new connection will add access from the Agoura Road end of that same stretch of road.
Side by side
| The Commons Lane | West Village | |
|---|---|---|
| Address | 4719 Commons Way | 4790 Las Virgenes Road |
| Developer | Caruso | The New Home Company |
| Approved | Dec. 2023, revised Oct. 2024 | Aug. 2024 |
| Work started | Jan.–Feb. 2026 | Pre-grading Sept. 2026 |
| Edge residents meet first | One-way drive aisle, closed storefronts | Sound wall, street and utility work on Las Virgenes |
| Public improvements | New shops and restaurants, about midway | Third northbound lane, sidewalks, trail link |
| Final phase | Apartments, Fall 2027 | Grading from Jan. 2027, then homes |
The Las Virgenes corridor has a third project on the way as well. On September 30, the City Council denied an appeal of the Avalon Calabasas expansion, The Acorn reported. That clears the way for 135 apartments in nine three-story buildings on existing tennis courts and surface parking at the complex between Lost Hills and Las Virgenes roads. No construction schedule for that project has been published.
If you are a Calabasas homeowner wondering how a winter of road work and a reshaped Commons may affect your street or your plans, Michael Bloom Homes is happy to go through it with you, privately and in plain terms. Schedule a Confidential Consultation.
