Who Puts On Thousand Oaks' Fall Weekends, and Where They Borrow the Space

On Sunday, October 18, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Rotary Club of Thousand Oaks fills a stretch of Moorpark Road between Hillcrest and Wilbur with the 34th Annual Thousand Oaks Rotary Street Fair, and admission is free. The fair's site says free parking is available across the street at Janss Marketplace.

The largest community gatherings in Thousand Oaks between now and mid-December are run by volunteer clubs, the park district and a historical society. They take place on ground that has a different job the other 360-odd days of the year: an arterial road, the outer parking lot at The Oaks, community centers and a museum yard. The city has approved a plan for a permanent gathering place. That plan hasn't been built, so for now the season depends on borrowed space and on the groups willing to borrow it.

A Road for a Day, and Where the Money Goes

The Street Fair is the clearest example. The organizers promise more than 300 vendors, live entertainment, rides and children's activities, food, and a chance to meet local police, firefighters, first responders and medical professionals. The club describes it as "the largest event of its kind" and says that 100% of net proceeds have gone to local causes over the years.

That list of causes is longer than most people would guess. The fair's sponsorship breakdown names nearly a hundred organizations and programs that sponsorship money may support. It doesn't give amounts per recipient, but the names read like a directory of the Conejo Valley's civic life:

• Food and shelter: Manna, Many Mansions, Conejo Valley Thanksgiving Meals, Conejo Backpack Program
• Health: Conejo Free Clinic, Westminster Free Clinic, Hospice of the Conejo
• Open space and history: Conejo Open Spaces Foundation, Conejo Botanic Garden, Conejo Valley Historical Society, Stagecoach Inn Museum
• Youth: Thousand Oaks Teen Center, Boys & Girls Club, Conejo Valley YMCA Strong Kids, Redwood Middle School Band
• Arts: Arts Council of the Conejo Valley, Conejo Players, Kingsmen Shakespeare Co.

The Stagecoach Inn Museum and the Conejo Valley Historical Society both appear on that list, and two weeks after the fair they host their own event. Money from one borrowed-space event helps support the groups that put on the next one.

The same Sunday is also closing day for 5-Star Theatricals' Les Misérables at the Bank of America Performing Arts Center. The run started October 9. Families who want both can walk Moorpark Road in the morning and see a show in the afternoon.

Late October Runs Through Community Centers and a Museum Yard

After the fair, the next few events move into smaller spaces owned by the park district or the city. Most are free.

The Conejo Recreation & Park District's Haunted Trail and Costume Contest runs Saturday, October 24, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Thousand Oaks Community Center, 2525 N. Moorpark Road. The schedule lists a costume contest, reptile and puppet shows, trunk-or-treat, games, a petting zoo, food and a trail walk. That's the same road as the Street Fair, six days later, at a building made for gatherings like this one.

The same night at 8 p.m., TOARTS presents Dorrance Dance at the Fred Kavli Theatre. It's a New York City tap company whose work connects tap history with contemporary urban culture.

On Wednesday, October 28, TOARTS and the City's Cultural and Community Services Department put on a free CelloGayageum performance at Grant R. Brimhall Library from 7 to 8 p.m. The City's announcement says seating is first come, first served. The library takes its name from Grant Brimhall, who served as city manager from 1978 to 1998.

On Halloween, the Conejo Valley Historical Society hosts "Happy Owl-o-ween!" from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Stagecoach Inn Museum, 51 South Ventu Park Road. It's a daytime option before evening trick-or-treating.

A First for the Park District, on the Newbury Park Side

The newest event on this fall's calendar is in a building that has hosted plenty of others. CRPD calls its Festival de los Muertos "a first of its kind for CRPD." It's free and runs Saturday, November 7, from 4 to 8 p.m. at Borchard Community Center, 190 N. Reino Road in Newbury Park, with crafts, live music, vendors and food. Vendor applications are still open through the district, and questions go to the Borchard Community Center at 805-381-2791.

A building the district already runs puts a ceiling on how big an event can get. December's biggest event hit that kind of ceiling on a street and had to move.

How a Westlake Village Market Ended Up in a Thousand Oaks Parking Lot

Holidays in the Village, a European-style holiday market, began on the streets of Westlake Village. The Acorn reported in December 2024 that Westlake Village's two Rotary clubs, the Rotary Club of Westlake Village and the Rotary Club of Westlake Village Sunrise, ran it for its first two years at Lakeview Canyon and Agoura roads. Crowds of 5,000 to 10,000 people sent organizers looking for more room. For its third year they moved it to the outer parking lot at The Oaks, the same lot used by the weekly farmers market.

The 2026 edition returns to The Oaks on Saturday, December 5, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sunday, December 6, from noon to 6 p.m. Entry and parking are free, and no tickets are required. This year's website names the Rotary Club of Westlake Village as presenter and says 100% of proceeds go to local charity. It doesn't list individual beneficiaries.

According to the organizers' plan-your-visit page, the market spreads across several named areas: the European Marketplace, Kris Kringle Village, the Festive Gardens and stage, Le Place des Amis, Tannenbaum Grove and Sugar & Spice. The closest lots are on the west side of The Oaks. Volunteers direct traffic at busy times, and Saturday late afternoon is the peak. The event is wheelchair accessible, and dogs are allowed subject to venue and event rules.

The food and drink list includes bratwurst, Italian pizza, German deli favorites, bakery treats, French crêpes, Kinderpunsch, hot chocolate, Glühwein and craft beer. Artisan vendors announced so far include 2 True Soaps, Ancient Zen Remedies, Buttercup Lynne Boutique, Aprons by Deanna, Beca Piascik Hand Papermaker and Belmonte Homestead. Organizers say 60 artisan vendors took part last year. Vendor lists can change before December.

The Full Calendar, by Who Runs It

Of the ten listings, only the three theater dates take place in a venue built for crowds coming in to watch a show. The other seven depend on a club or district setting up in a space meant for something else, or in a community building with limits on its size.

The Square That's Still on Paper

The city has approved a plan for a permanent home. The Acorn reported that on June 23, 2026, after nearly seven hours of discussion, the City Council voted 5–0 to approve the Downtown Project's final environmental review. The vote also changed the land-use designation on 5.33 acres from institutional to mixed-use, at the Civic Arts Plaza and the area to its west. Along with housing and a hotel, the project includes a park plaza, an amphitheater, children's play areas and open green space, much of it on the Civic Arts Plaza campus.

The plan has drawn opinions on both sides. The Acorn counted 63 speakers in favor and 39 against at that meeting. Of the comments submitted before the meeting, just over 60 favored the plan and just over 190 opposed it, and a petition urging rejection carried more than 1,900 signatures. No opening date for a plaza or amphitheater was part of that vote. Through December, the season's community events will be held on Moorpark Road, in community centers on Moorpark and Reino roads, at the Stagecoach Inn Museum on Ventu Park Road, and in the parking lots at The Oaks.

We love seeing neighbors fill a stretch of Moorpark Road to raise money for groups like Manna and the Conejo Free Clinic. If the season has you wondering what your own place is worth, McQueen & Associates can put together a home value for you, with no pressure and whenever it suits your calendar.