In a neighborhood long known for furniture and antiques, Santa Rosans may be seeing more teens and young adults than ever thanks to free train fares, interest in Santa Rosa Plaza and a flourishing gaming and comic community.

High school sophomores Madeline Clark and Aya Brown said they made the trip on a Thursday in June on SMART from Petaluma to Santa Rosa, landing in Railroad Square. They found a local comic book, collectibles and figurines store, The Batcave Comics and Toys, because Brown said she knew her friend would like it — they both have an interest in comic books and card games.

Brown said she and Clark often visit downtown to shop, and Wednesday Night Market is one of their favorite attractions. The pair named stores that bring them to the mall, including Spencer’s, Hot Topic and Box Lunch.

Brown said they ride the train to visit Santa Rosa “all the time.” “In Petaluma, it’s a lot of small boutiques, very touristy. I find stuff I like here,” she said.

Special interest shops like The Batcave and, down the block, Goblin Bros. Games and Gear are among some local businesses that say they’re benefiting from the presence of younger shoppers in downtown Santa Rosa, despite past concerns about retail development opportunities in Sonoma County’s largest city.

Goblin Bros. Games and Gear — which caters to board and card game enthusiasts and readers — has been drawing teenagers and younger children for years, with several “summer camps” taking place. On a Wednesday in June, several children arrived at the shop looking to learn how to play Dungeons and Dragons as part of several weeklong sessions the shop is offering to children during their summer break. The store currently holds classes for ages 9 to 12, and in July will also offer weeklong classes to youth ages 13 to 18, to play campaigns.

Staff at the store say growing interest from younger people in theirs and other local businesses is changing the demographic seen in Railroad Square over time. Business partners Jereme Anglin and Ted Woolley say the store has seen growing success since it opened in Santa Rosa in early 2024. The Petaluma store has been open since 2021.

Woolley said at first when the store opened, longtime Railroad Square tenants seemed uncertain about the business and what it brought to the area. However, as they saw the draw the store has for a wide age range of customers, he said, “We’ve won them over since then.”

The Historic Railroad Square Association agreed that the demographics of the area are shifting. While the local hotels are still the biggest draw, the association said there are more families and children showing interest in the programming and shops.

A.J. Trombetta, the association’s business development committee chair, said while its mobile analytics data can’t fully capture youth foot traffic, she thinks youth and families in the region are a big driver of business. She provided data showing that of the association’s most visited businesses, the restaurant Chevy’s Fresh Mex tops the list at 92,000 visits from Jan. 1 to May 31 this year, followed by A’Roma Roasters at around 55,000 after the local hotels.

Simon Properties, which manages Santa Rosa Plaza, also could not provide youth foot traffic numbers. However, spokesperson Jackie Garcia said the company knows younger shoppers “gravitate toward trend-driven retailers at the center,” noting that the mall is a link connecting Railroad Square and the Downtown District.

The SMART downtown station has increased people’s access to these shopping districts, including as families utilize it, according to Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit agency spokesperson Julia Gonzalez. She said the agency’s data shows the performance among youth riders is “growing substantially” although it is difficult to find the total of riders younger than 18 because they ride for free.

“We’re definitely seeing this now that school is out,” Gonzalez said. “There are a lot of teenagers out exploring and using the train as part of their summer fun plans.”

Sonoma County Transit general manager Emily Betts told The Press Democrat that, anecdotally, SMART and other agencies have seen more parents and teenagers utilizing the train for leisure purposes, thanks to “having free fares for youth and the positivity around SMART.”

“Parents feel safe having their kids on the SMART train,” Betts said. “In many ways people don’t feel transit is safe in other parts of the Bay (Area), but here … there are many young people out and about all over the place on SMART.”

Several families who spoke with The Press Democrat said the train factored into their plans to visit downtown, including at The Batcave. Joann Rose of Rohnert Park said she had brought her grandson, Rich Douglas, to find comic books for his collection.

It was her first time visiting, and “I have younger grandsons who would love it here,” Rose said of the store’s selection of comic books and toys.

Amy Loflin of Marin County also brought her children, ages 9 and 11, to visit for the day. They chose to browse the store while waiting to meet up with her son’s 11-year-old friend arriving by train, she said.

SMART has made such trips easier, said Loflin (who is the market manager for the Napa, Sonoma and Marin region for Bank of America). She said she has had her 11-year-old son ride the train on his own, and sees this becoming a popular approach with families who want to teach their children to travel alone on the region’s buses and trains.

She was also happy to find more options for her children in the downtown core: “I was so thankful to find more things for kids to do.”

The Goblin Bros. partners said they have also seen how public transit has helped increase the mobility of younger visitors.

“I think the SMART train is what’s making it more successful,” Woolley said. “We see kids in groups coming from the train and likely from Windsor and other places, coming here and going to the mall.”

The store, while targeted at adults as well, has garnered interest from younger visitors thanks to offering year-round attractions such as Monday nights for Magic: The Gathering players and Tuesday nights for open card game playing, as well as Dungeons and Dragons gatherings and a chess club.

Anglin said Goblin Bros. started to see interest in community gathering opportunities during the pandemic. As they worked to provide that community for adolescents, parents signaled their appreciation, and teens have echoed gratitude for a place outside their home, “a third space they can be.”

Parents are an important draw for their store, as families browse after eating at local restaurants or visit to find new games for their children.

“It becomes a family experience,” Woolley said. “They feel like it’s their third space, their little hangout.”

Anglin added that he often sees parents getting their children excited in what was a formative interest during their adolescence: “They say, ‘oh, I used to love this when I was a kid, you should try this.’”

The Goblin Bros. staff said it’s important to them to see teenagers seeking out in-person experiences to learn alongside others, rather than exclusively online. Woolley said such community spaces help youth learn about themselves through gameplay and roleplaying, as well as how to work with others cooperatively.

The Batcave co-owner and comics curator Amanda Barlow agreed that such stores fill a need that adolescents have had since before the internet and smartphones, when comic book and games stores were vital spaces for meeting friends and sharing interests.

“It’s also a place to go talk with your friends,” she said, of the basement store. It not only carries DC Comics toys and about 70 feet of vintage comics, but “G.I. Joe” action figures, original “Star Wars” toys and “Transformers” figurines and original artwork and prints from local artists.

Barlow, who spoke to The Press Democrat while aiding a consistent stream of customers on a Thursday, also thought the SMART train has made a big difference helping visitors find the shop since she moved to the area a decade ago. The Batcave has been open for nine years, and garners many visitors from the Bay Area and beyond, including tourists from Germany and Japan.

She said it’s special to her to see parents bringing children to the shop and introducing them to pop culture from their youth: “They don’t have to buy anything, but they can tell them about their childhood.”

Barlow spent time with newer DC Comics fans Clark and Brown, discussing Batman and other comic book characters. Clark, for her part, said she was excited by her first visit as Petaluma only has one comic book store, The Mighty Comic Vault.

“There’s more to do here. There’s more of everything,” Clark said.

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