NEWS BAY AREA. >> HELLO, I'M SARA DONCHEY. EVERYONE IN THE BAY AREA SEEMS TO HAVE A UNION SQUARE MEMORY AND A LOT OF THEM GO WAY, WAY BACK. LIKE SEEING THE CHRISTMAS TREE AS A CHILD, PEEKING IN THE STORE WINDOWS, ESPECIALLY DURING THE HOLIDAYS. AND WHEN THE SPCA FILLS THOSE WINDOWS WITH PETS WHO NEED HOMES, IT IS AN EXTRA SPECIAL MEMORY. IT'S BEEN IN THE BACKDROP OF SO MANY MEMORIES. MACY'S IS AT THE CENTER OF ALL OF IT. AND SO WHEN THE COMPANY ANNOUNCED IT WILL BE CLOSING ITS FLAGSHIP WEST COAST STORE, PEOPLE SEEMED TO PAUSE FOR JUST A LITTLE LONGER THAN SOME OF THE OTHER HEADLINES WE'VE HEARD ABOUT BUSINESSES PACKING UP AND LEAVING SAN FRANCISCO. AND WHILE IT MAY BE THE BIGGEST BLOW YET TO UNION SQUARE, ONE BUSINESS OWNER IN THE AREA TELLS KELSI THORUD HE STILL THINKS AND BELIEVES THAT THE FUTURE OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD IS BRIGHT. >> Reporter: WELL NOT ONLY ARE CUSTOMERS SHOCKED BY THE NEWS THAT THE UNION SQUARE MACY'S WILL BE CLOSING, BUT LOCAL BUSINESSES ARE ALSO SHOCKED AND WONDERING HOW THIS CLOSURE MAY IMPACT THEIR BUSINESS MOVING FORWARD. JOHN, THE OWNER OF JOHN'S GRILL NEAR UNION SQUARE, TELLS ME HIS RESTAURANT HAS SEEN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD CHANGE A LOT OVER THE YEARS. >> JOHN'S GRILL'S BEEN OPEN SINCE 1908, AND SINCE 1908 WE'VE LOST MANY ICONIC STORES LIKE JOSEPH MAGNUM, WHAT ELSE CAN I REMEMBER, LIBERTY HOUSE, CITY OF PARIS, SO MANY PLACES HAVE CLOSED. >> Reporter: SO WHEN JOHN HEARD THE NEWS THE CITY'S FLAGSHIP MACY'S AT UNION SQUARE ANNOUNCED IT WOULD BE CLOSING, HE FELT A FEELING HE'S FELT BEFORE, SADNESS FOR WHAT THIS CLOSURE WILL MEAN FOR LOCALS AND THOSE WHO WORK AT THE DEPARTMENT STORE. >> YOU KNOW, THE BUSINESSES CONTINUE, THEY'LL MAKE MONEY SOMEWHERE ELSE. THEY'LL MAKE MONEY ONLINE. BUT IT'S SO MANY JOBS BEING LOST, THAT'S WHAT'S REAL SAD. >> Reporter: THE MACY'S HAS ANCHORED THE SHOPPING DISTRICT IN UNION SQUARE SINCE IT WAS BUILT IN 1929. GENERATIONS OF BAY AREA RESIDENTS HAVE SHOPPED INSIDE THE MASSIVE STORE AND MANY OF THEM ARE SAD TO HEAR IT'S CLOSING. >> YOU KNOW, IT'S STRANGE BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THIS BUILDING HAS BEEN HERE, AND MACY'S HAS BEEN HERE FOR SO LONG THAT I THINK IN UNION SQUARE IT'S AN ICON. >> MY WIFE AND I COME UP HERE A COUPLE TIMES A YEAR TO SHOP AND TO, YOU KNOW, DO OTHER THINGS. WE PLAY TOURIST FOR A COUPLE DAYS DURING THE YEAR, AND WE LIKE TO FREQUENT HERE. AND IT'S REALLY GOING TO BE SAD THAT IT'S GOING TO CLOSE. >> Reporter: JOHN TOLD ME THANKFULLY HE DOESN'T THINK THE CLOSURE WILL IMPACT HIS BUSINESS TOO MUCH BECAUSE JOHN'S GRILL IS SUCH AN INSTITUTION IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. IT'S NEWER BUSINESS, THOUGH, HE IS WORRIED ABOUT. >> COUNT A LOT ON THEATERS. WE COUNT A LOT ON LOCAL GENERATIONS OF PEOPLE DINING AT JOHN'S GRILL, SO WE THINK IT WILL HAVE AN IMPACT, WE JUST HOPE IT DOESN'T HAVE AN IMPACT ON US. >> Reporter: STILL, EVEN WITH THE NEWS OF MACY'S CLOSURE, JOHN IS CONFIDENT IN UNION SQUARE. HE LOVES THIS NEIGHBORHOOD AND THIS CITY. >> YOU KNOW, WE'RE A CROWN JEWEL OF A CITY, WE JUST NEED TO PUT A LITTLE SHINE ON IT. AND I THINK WE'LL COME BACK STRONGER AND BETTER BUT WITHOUT MACY'S, SO. >> YEAH, WE HAVE SEEN PROBABLY NOT SURPRISINGLY A HUGE REACTION ONLINE TO THE NEWS THAT THE STORE IS CLOSING. MIKE HILL JR. POSTED, MACY'S UNION SQUARE AS AN SF NATIVE THIS HURTS. OUR CITY IS NOTHING LIKE WHEN I GREW UP. AND EILEEN WROTE, I CANNOT BELIEVE MACY'S IN UNION SQUARE IS CLOSING. THE SF SHOPPING EXPERIENCE THAT I GREW UP LOVING AS A KID IS NO LONGER THERE. COME ON, SAN FRANCISCO. AND ANOTHER PERSON POSTED, MACY'S LEAVING UNION SQUARE IN SF IS CRAZY. IT IS LIKE THE FOCAL POINT OF THE ENTIRE SQUARE. TONIGHT PEOPLE IN THE KNOW SAY MACY'S WILL BE
