I dropped by Hamilton Marketplace this afternoon and had a quick look at Marin's newest Safeway. The supermarket is the only part of the Marketplace that is open so far. It sits by itself at the southern end of the car park, alongside a Safeway gas station. The specialty shops and restaurants are located at the morthern side of the car park and are still being fitted out. 
Wells Fargo bank has its own building and looks ready to open. Peets Coffee & Tea is also nearly finished, and is scheduled to open tomorrow. 
The other units look like they need more work, and aren't likely to be open before the end of the month. These include a couple of eateries: Toast, La Boulange and Latina Grill, a phone shop and Pet Food Express. 
The center is built in the popular mock-Tuscan style that you also see at Strawberry Village and the Town Center at Corte Madera. There's some nice attention to detail, such as the awnings, beams and cast iron streetlamps, but it's the architecture of the roofline, including the orange tiles and false turrets that really gives the center its character. 
But of course this is a retail center, which means that the architecture of the roofline is only there to show off the retailer's name. Contrast the Safeway storefront with the unfinished (and as-yet un-labeled) building opposite. 
A nice mess has been made of the front of the Safeway, with some rather ugly logos for US Bank and Safeway's pharmacy and cafe. As if this wasn't enough to bring the visual impact of the store down to the level of some of its neighbors, the Safeway store manager has also piled high several crates of sodas and watermellons at the front entrance. 
But of course this is a retail center, which means that the architecture of the roofline is only there to show off the retailer's name. Contrast the Safeway storefront with the unfinished (and as-yet un-labeled) building opposite. A nice mess has been made of the front of the Safeway, with some rather ugly logos for US Bank and Safeway's pharmacy and cafe. As if this wasn't enough to bring the visual impact of the store down to the level of some of its neighbors, the Safeway store manager has also piled high several crates of sodas and watermellons at the front entrance. Inside, the Safeway is big (55,000 sq.ft), with wide aisles and a large selection. It's Safeway's "Lifestyle" concept store, which has the wooden flors in the produce section, a full flower kiosk, pharmacy and the usual deli, bakery and meat & fish counters. The row of checkouts is book-ended by Starbucks and Jamba Juice kiosks, which get great exposure by being close to the entrance/exits. There's a cafe area near the entrance, which has sofa seating as well as tables and chairs. 
The good news for safeway is that the store was buzzing, with plenty of local shoppers chcking out the new strore, and checking out with fully-loaded shopping carts. One strong advantage the store has is the gas station: today's customer special = 20c discount per gallon. 
As the photos below show, there's a diverse mix of buildings in the town, reflecting both its early history as a small working town and more recent past as the center of an afluent neighborhood.
Starting at the south end of the town, the Lark Creek Shops is a small strip of stores located beside the beautiful Lark Creek Inn and the redwoods of the Madrone Canyon. 
The buildings are in poor condition but there are some popular local businesses here, including the Lingerie Shoppe and Yankee Pier.
At the intersection of King and Magnolia is the historic City Hall building, north of which starts the main part of the downtown shopping strip.
Fabrizio is a highly-rated Italian restaurant. Left Bank is also always busy with its french-influenced menu. 
The town's watering hole is The Silver Peso, complete with shuffleboard.
There are more eateries at the northern end of the town, including Burritoville, the Ward Street Cafe, sushi at the King of The Roll and Fukusuke and pizza at Cafe Lucano.
The town has several signature boutiques, including Nicolette, Gala and Canvas
A few stores focus on home furnishings, ranging from the pricey custom-made furniture to everyday gifts/furnishings. 
Stores to note include Coquelicot, Susana, L'Ambiente and Country Gift Shop. 
The Lucky supermarket is a second rate grocery store, just about good enough for essentials. 
The retail profile of the downtown area is diverse and constantly changing. 
Fourth Street provides the start-up retailer with a decent amount of pedestrian traffic at rents that are reasonable by Marin standards. 
Some retailers get the right recipe and survive, while others fail. 
The downside to Fourth Street is that it can be a bit sleazy, mostly at the eastern end near the freeway and the bus station. 
Fast food restaurants and Hispanic convenience stores cluster around this end of the street. 
Think seedy bars, tattoo artists and “massage” parlors, clustered along Fourth and the adjacent side streets and on the upper levels above the stores. 
There is plenty of (metered) car parking, both on-street and in a couple of garage structures on the south side.
At "A" street is Courthouse Square, where two large office buildings are set back from the road behind a grassy square. 
Next to the square is San Rafael Town Center, which includes a 5-storey apartment and office development that was built around two years ago. It also has restaurants on the street level set around an outdoor area called the City Plaza. This area seems to be the busiest part of the strip, although there are still a few vacant stores on either side of the street. 
Further west the vibe changes. There are restaurants, some with outside seating, a few boutiques, antiques and home furnishing stores. It’s almost genteel. 
Many shoppers on Fourth Street are local residents and workers. Others visitors come from elsewhere in Marin to shop at specific well-known stores, such as Scandinavian Designs or the Bike Shop. 
I’m guessing that there are quite a few browsers as well. If you haven’t been there for a while, I would recommend a visit. 
There are many independent stores that you won’t find elsewhere in Marin. I didn’t have enough time on my visit to go in all the stores, so I’ll be heading back soon. 
This time I’ll schedule my visit around lunchtime to sample a meal at one of the restaurants.