For years, students that attend Bonita Vista High (BVH) have been crossing the street to Bonita Point Plaza before and after school. Majority of students go to the shopping centers next to the school either to hang out with friends or be picked up or dropped off and avoid traffic. It ranges from Starbucks, Tapioca Express, Little Caesars, Ralphs, Taco Bell, and much more. The close access of students to these businesses have led to both negative and positive impacts on the area and employees.

“I think anybody that works in customer service would know that it does get chaotic, but overall, it’s a really good experience and you get to meet new people all the time. I like seeing a bunch of the kids and getting to know them better,” Starbucks barista, Olivia Saunders said.

At the shopping center, students play an important role as visitors, affecting the overall atmosphere. There are various positive benefits students can provide to the variety of businesses at the shopping center. High school and middle school students have had multiple positive impacts on many of the family owned small businesses such as Crispy’s Donuts and iWok [a Chinese restaurant] as they bring diverse age ranges and new customers daily to stop by for something quick to eat.

“I believe [BVH] drives a lot of attraction towards the businesses. For local businesses like the donut shop here, [students are] very beneficial to them. As long as the students come here and behave, it should be a pretty safe environment,” junior Haydn Lopez said.

Students from BVH have also supported businesses financially. Since many stores sell items that students want right after school such as a refreshing drink or quick snack, there has been an increase of students who cross over to the shopping center to try more popularized businesses that sell boba or smoothies. The high attendance of students increases sales, and provides more financial growth for the businesses. 

Although the shopping center provides students with a place to relax and enjoy time outside of school, there have been many instances of students disrupting the area. With the high amount and high demand for BVH students coming to the shopping center daily, stores such as Ralph’s have tried to make an effort to create protocols and policies that remind students how they should behave in a public area.

“I’ve heard that they used to have students take their backpacks off and leave them at the door, so [students] would not [try to steal] anything,” junior Luna Rosas said.  

There had been several occurrences reported of students fighting in the public mall in front of stores. iWok employee Hannah Noyes recalls when a group of students had erupted into a fight in front of their store.

“There was a weird instance one or two months ago where a couple students were getting into a fight with one of the students’ moms trying to stop it, then the other kid started hitting the mom. I [thought] that was wild,” Noyes said. 

Aside from multiple fights, there had been another occurrence violating the safety of visitors and employees. There were instances where it had created an uncomfortable and unsafe setting for employees and visitors of the plaza.

“Someone brought a BB gun a few weeks ago and these guys were chasing each other. This one guy who I think goes to the school got arrested in front of Rite Aid,” junior Renata Carrillo said. “A lot of people think it’s unsafe, and I’d say so because it is an open [and very big area].” 

Aside from the issues, some students understand their role in respecting the property and boundaries of local businesses, creating a welcoming atmosphere. Even when there are many orders needed to be taken and long lines full of high schoolers, workers know what to do to ensure every customer is satisfied

“The workers seem overwhelmed or stressed but I say they handle it pretty well, but there are a large number of people which usually wouldn’t happen at any other place. It is just because we are near a high school,” Lopez said. 

Employees who work at the popular stores in shopping centers have different opinions and ideas of how students behave and act in the public space. They believe that the shopping center is a safe place but can be a little chaotic when there are many students, and they don’t respect or contribute their own part to the plaza in a peaceful way.

“It does get a little tedious when things are kind of left around the stores [and] when we have to go pick up the item because it takes away from what we’re supposed to be doing when we have to go and manage what’s going on in the lobbies,” Saunders said. “It just gets too rowdy. Sometimes it’s kind of hard to ask them to settle down or ask them to leave. There’s a lot of defiance.” 

Regardless, students play a huge role in contributing to the growing economy of the shopping center. Students can respect the atmosphere of the shopping center by acknowledging that it is a public area where people want to be respected and acknowledged by those around them. 

“The only thing is to keep coming. But also, just remember to respect the spaces that you guys are coming into, because these are all businesses that everybody works hard on,” Suanders said. “Keep enjoying the spaces that we’re providing for you guys, but just as long as you’re remaining respectful of the rules that we have. That’s all any of us can ask [for].”

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