Ulta Will Be Target's New Neighbor in City Center

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Our friends at Curbed reported earlier this week that a "slew of chain stores" were queuing up before the San Francisco Planning Commission for permission to set up shop in City Center on Masonic. Thursday, the Commission unanimously approved those requests to operate formula retail stores in the space. That means —drumroll!— Ulta is coming to San Francisco!

Ulta —the beauty supply chain that rivals Sephora in greatness— plans to open a 10,000 square foot store in what remains of the former Office Depot space on Geary at Masonic. The store will include a full-service salon, and is expected to create approximately 20 new jobs. GNC, Panera Bread, Sleep Number, Chipotle, and Starbucks also received the thumbs up from the Commission.

Despite the city-wide hand-wringing over formula retail restrictions, the Planning Commission barely paused before approving the requests, noting that the new formula retail tenants were merely replacing old formula retail tenants. (Sears Roebuck and Mervyn's previously sold their wares at City Center, and Best Buy has been in the shopping center for years.)

When can you stop driving to Colma for your Ulta fix? It's hard to say. This is San Francisco, after all, and construction takes time. The good news is that City Center had a much-needed facelift before Target moved in, so the parking lots and facade are shiny and new. Ulta, however, still plans to update the exterior on Geary with additional windows and a fancy gloss finish, so you should make peace with the peninsula for now.
· Ulta [Official Site]
· Slew of Chain Stores Hoping to Join City Center on Masonic [Curbed]