Valencia Town Center's Old Canyon Club Space Lights Up Again for the Festival of Trees

On the New Year's Eve that rang in 2023, a Prince tribute band called Prince Again played The Canyon at Valencia Town Center while the room flooded. Five days later, The Signal reported that the club was closing. It had been open a little more than five years, in a space that had once been a Red Robin. The club's shows that week went to its sister venues in Montclair and Agoura Hills.

On Friday, Nov. 20, that same room opens to the public, this time filled with decorated Christmas trees. The 24th annual Festival of Trees, a Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clarita Valley fundraiser, is coming to Valencia Town Center "in the former Canyon location," according to the City of Santa Clarita's community calendar. The festival spent the last two years in Canyon Country. Its move to Valencia puts the valley's best-known holiday kickoff inside the same mall that hosts Santa's arrival, a handmade market and a reopened coffee counter. For Valencia residents, that means most of the next two weeks happens on one property.

A 17,000-square-foot room built for concerts

When The Canyon was announced in 2017, The Signal described it as a 17,000-square-foot dinner-show club with a full bar, dining, VIP seating and a general-admission floor for dancing. It took over space that included the old Red Robin. Dozens of designed trees, wreaths and gingerbread houses fill the floor, and visitors spend the day walking among them.

For 2024 and 2025, that walking happened at the Canyon Country Community Center at 18410 Sierra Highway. The Signal's coverage of the 23rd festival described dozens of Christmas trees turning the community center into a winter wonderland for the Magic of the Lights Gala on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. Community viewing followed on Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. That building is a regular stop for Canyon Country, which we wrote about in Sierra and Soledad: How One Corner Became Canyon Country's Weekly Habit. This year, the trees come to Valencia instead.

How the festival weekend runs

The 2026 schedule keeps the same three-day shape. Santa Clarita Magazine's preview lists these dates:

• Friday, Nov. 20, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.: The first Community Day, billed as a special Senior Day.
• Friday, Nov. 20, 5:30 to 9 p.m.: The Magic of the Lights Gala, with food, drinks, live entertainment and a live auction of designed trees, trips and experiences.
• Saturday, Nov. 21, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.: Community Day with live entertainment.
• Sunday, Nov. 22, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.: The final Community Day.

Community Day admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children, military members and seniors. All weekend there's a children's craft corner, and visitors can bid on silent-auction trees. Proceeds support the club's programs for young people ages 7 to 17. The festival honors the legacy of Don Fleming of Valencia Acura. Pamela and Dennis Verner return as chairs.

"Festival of Trees brings together so many people who care about the future of young people in our community," Boys & Girls Club CEO Matthew Nelson told Santa Clarita Magazine. The magazine reports that the club serves more than 2,500 members at 14 locations. Tickets and details are at the club's site or by phone at 661-254-2582.

Saturday, Nov. 21 is the crowded day

With the festival at the mall, Saturday stacks up three events within a few miles of each other.

The SoCal Etsy Guild Market sets up near Macy's on Nov. 21 with handmade goods and live entertainment. The guild's Eventbrite listing shows an 11 a.m. start and has the current ticket details. The trees are open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the same building, so one parking spot covers both.

That evening, the city's Light Up Main Street runs in Old Town Newhall from 4 to 8 p.m., with the tree-lighting countdown at 5:30 p.m. The city's announcement says Lyons Avenue and Main Street close from 6 a.m. to midnight. Saturday's Festival of Trees hours end at 6 p.m., after the countdown. A family that wants the trees and the tree lighting can do the mall first and head to Newhall around 4. Or they can see the countdown Saturday and save the trees for Sunday. If you're making a night of it in Newhall, our Old Town Newhall dining and arts guide covers the street.

Saturday also has theater at College of the Canyons. COC Theatre's "Village of Idiots" plays the Black Box Theater Nov. 19–21 at 7 p.m., with 2 p.m. shows on Nov. 21 and 22.

Before the festival: Santa's arrival and a new coffee counter at The Patios

The mall's season started two weeks before the festival. Santa photos began Nov. 6 and run through Dec. 24 on the first floor near H&M. They're closed on Thanksgiving Day. Reservations are encouraged but not required. The free Santa's Arrival Celebration is this Saturday, Nov. 14, from 1 to 3 p.m. in the same spot, with face painting, balloon twisting and hot chocolate.

Over at The Patios, the outdoor dining side of the mall, the lineup looks different than it did a month ago. Solita Tacos had been there since February 2015. On Thursday, Oct. 22, it closed permanently during lunch service, and the restaurant pointed guests to its sister location, El Torito in Northridge, KHTS reported.

The next day, a coffee counter reopened behind that same storefront. Just Brew It is a client-run coffee shop from Agape Village, a nonprofit adult day program headquartered at Valencia Town Center that serves adults with special needs. It celebrated its grand reopening on Oct. 23 in a renovated space. "It's their place to learn, to practice job skills, to practice job training," co-founder Jessica Escorza told KHTS. According to SCVNews, the shop is at 24201 Valencia Blvd. #3402, behind Solita and The Stand. KHTS lists its first hours as Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 9 to 11:30 a.m., with drinks and coffee cake by donation. Friday morning of the festival is also Senior Day, and both open in the 9 to 10 a.m. range, so coffee and the trees can be one trip.

If you've been following the mall's tenant announcements since spring, our September post Gelato Beat Bowling sorts out which ones had actually opened.

After the trees come down

The rest of the season moves outward from the mall to the rest of Valencia:

• Thursday, Nov. 26: The Santa Clarita Thanksgiving Day 5K/10K starts at Heritage Park, 24155 Newhall Ranch Road. The 10K starts at 8 a.m. and the 5K at 8:15 a.m., per the Elite Sports registration page.
• Nov. 30 to Dec. 10: COC Music hosts free 7 p.m. concerts most weeknights. They include the Community Jazz Band on Nov. 30, the Mariachi, World Percussion and North Indian Music Ensembles on Dec. 2, and the Vocal Jazz & Choral Concert on Dec. 5.
• Sunday, Dec. 6: Valencia Town Center hosts a sensory-friendly Santa visit near H&M from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Reservations are strongly recommended but not required.
• Dec. 19 and 20: Santa Clarita Ballet performs "The Nutcracker" at the COC Performing Arts Center, 26455 Rockwell Canyon Road.

Here is the mall's piece of the calendar in one place, all at Valencia Town Center:

To see the trees in the old Canyon space, park at 24201 W. Valencia Blvd. any time from Friday morning, Nov. 20, through Sunday evening, Nov. 22.

The Festival of Trees has been part of the Santa Clarita Valley holiday season for 24 years, and we're glad to see it in Valencia this year. If you're out at the trees and wondering what's happening with homes near Town Center and the paseos, Armando & Valerie are happy to talk it over. A good first step is a free home valuation, and our Valencia neighborhood page covers the rest.