Downtown Woodland, Woodland, CA

Downtown Woodland is the old commercial center of Woodland, laid out along Main Street around a 1905 Carnegie library and a plaza that hosts the weekly farmers market. The blocks are compact enough to cross on foot in a few minutes, and most of the city's evenings out happen inside them. Victorian-era buildings and brick storefronts give the district its look. Each fall the Stroll Through History opens a handful of private historic homes to ticket holders, a local tradition that goes back to 1989. Homes sit right against the commercial blocks, so a front door can be a few steps from a restaurant patio. Blue Note Brewing Company, founded in 2015 on Dead Cat Alley, pours its own beer, serves pizza and keeps a large shaded patio with live music on weekends. Morgan's on Main does comfort food on Main Street, and Savory Cafe and Osaka Sushi are two other regulars along the same stretch. For coffee, Gallery Coffee Roasters is the local roaster people name first, with Morgan's Mill on Court Street handling breakfast and lunch. The Strand Theatre and the CinemaWest State Theatre fill out a night downtown. Heritage Plaza is the green anchor. The Woodland Farmers Market takes it over on Saturday mornings from nine to noon and returns on Tuesdays from ten to one. Bigger lawns and ballfields are next door in the Historic Core, where City Park and Everman Park are. Errands in Downtown Woodland lean on small stores. El Buen Gusto Market and Half Moon Fruit & Produce Co cover everyday groceries inside the district, and Nugget Markets, next door in the Historic Core, is the full-size supermarket. Yolobus runs through town, and Interstate 5 and Route 113 lead on to Sacramento. Open space is what the district gives up. Heritage Plaza is the only park inside it, so a long run or a ballgame means heading into a neighboring neighborhood. By Saturday afternoon the market stalls have been packed away and the brewery patio has taken over the foot traffic.