Seems plausible, but it's very odd to me that a place like San Marcos Growers has never stocked those, if they do well in CA.

Also, though white ones exist, the colored forms are far more common in the trade. I feel like one of our old Norcal people would get this right away, but they all seem to be gone these days. [sad emoji]

Why not an Oleander?

Doesn't look right for oleander to me.

Nor me. Leaves are not long and narrow. Blooms wrong shape.

Ok. Here's an off the wall suggestion. Phlox paniculata.

Arizona dwarf Oleander

Occam’s Razor

I know I'm late but I think this is Rhododendron maximum.

I went to the channel’s archive and looked at this to settle the question, and it is……

a Hydrangea.

Thanks but, sorry, I'm still a little skeptical!

Could be something like a white Mussaenda.

No way. Not even remotely viable in this part of the world.

Go watch the video on their website - it is a Hydrangea.

I am also sceptical. Suggest you contact SFSU grounds people and ask.

"No way. Not even remotely viable in this part of the world."

Are you sure?

I will admit a problem with Mussaenda is from a quick spin through efloras China, most of them appear to be summer blooming, as is the case of hydrangeas. (though of course w/San Fran climate, I accept that in-bloom hydangeas can probably be seen at any time of year)

They aren't a winter blooming Rubiaceae like Luculia.

It's possible though, that they've used stock footage for part of their Dec 4th report.

If it’s hydrangea-like but not actually a hydrangea, one possibility that comes to mind is Tibouchina, sometimes called princess flower. The blooms can form dense clusters with that rounded look, and depending on the variety the leaves can be fairly large and textured. Another plant that throws people off is Clerodendrum, which can have clustered blooms and broad foliage but doesn’t quite match hydrangea structure. Without seeing it, I’d focus on leaf texture and whether the flowers are true clusters or just tightly spaced individual blooms. A photo would make it much easier to narrow down.

I found some pictures of white Tibouchinas, and they have much more open inflorescences.

Yes. Mussaenda is way too tropical.

Go watch the video.

Hydrangeas are as common as dirt itself here.

" Hydrangeas are as common as dirt itself here "

They may be very common but in my experience, they are highly unlikely to be fully leafed out and in bloom in December (when video was made), especially in Northern California/Bay area.

I've also examined the video closely and the single shot - see above - that shows the plant in question does not reflect a clear view of any type of hydrangea I am familiar with. So yeah, I am skeptical as well.

Well, you are just not here in December, are you?

I am skeptical you went and found the video.

It could also be the vid was made with stock footage of a campus shot at any time of year.

Enough about this stupid Hydrangea.

LOL: definitely not a Hydrangea!

I had a long discussion with Claude about this. It went off on some clearly incorrect tangents like Hoheria, but I was patient with it.

The best guess so far is Luculia pinceana, maybe 'White Frills'. I had been thinking only of the more typical Luculia in the Bay Area, L. gratissima, that has more open flower clusters. But the 'White Frills' cultivar is specifically described by some sources in Australia as 'looking like a Hydrangea'. Note that the compression algorithms used by both news cameras and Youtube tend to 'morph' things into simpler looking shapes, so it's possible it's been made to look even more hydrangea like that it really is, and that IRL, there's a bit more separation in the flowers. Luculias also have the pointy leaves seen in this picture, which are so clearly un-hydrangea-like.

Interestingly, with Gemini, I tried to prod it without suggesting a possible member of the Rubiaceae as I did with Claude. So far, it has glommed onto Drimys winteri as a likely candidate. The problem with these LLMs in a case like this is their approach is far too lexical vs. visual.

Foliage looks possible but overall shape is off imo. Did you contact SFSU grounds people? I have found in the past that asking organisations often works. Gardeners like talking about gardens.