BRENTWOOD'S DEVELOPMENT
	November 2003

by Cindy Ehling
Photos by Brad Shifflett

East County residents who drive through the development projects in the area near the junction of Hwy. 4 bypass and Lone Tree Way can be forgiven for occasional attacks of dizziness and disorientation. Living in East County naturally acclimates most of us to change, but the magnitude and pace of the change going on in this area sometimes leaves us breathless and confused.

Many of the landmarks and reference points that we used just a few months ago to keep us oriented are not only missing, but we can't even remember where they used to be. Driving south along Lone Tree Way on more than one occasion recently I have come to the corner of Fairview without even knowing how I got there.

I interviewed Courtland Holman, Brentwood’s Economic Development Department Project Manager, about development plans that are taking shape within the Economic Development Department. The city is involved in a number of exciting projects that will make East County living even hotter than it is now. The following projects represent some of the development effort going on.

Lone Tree Plaza
The Lone Tree Plaza project will be built on 52 acres at Lone Tree and the SW corner of the Highway 4 Bypass. The developer, Donahue Schriber, is creating a facility that will include 454,000 square feet of building space, which will be home to 23 retail businesses, plus several restaurants. The following businesses are already signed up:

• Home Depot — Due to open January, 2004
• Kohl’s — an upper end Department Store
• In & Out Burger
• Chevron Gas Station

Lone Tree Center
This new Center is located on twenty acres situated on the north side of Lone Tree, West of Empire, and will include 121,770 square feet of building space. The most prominent tenant is the 96,500 sq.ft. WinCo supermarket.

WinCo is a cash and carry discount store like Costco, except it carries only food and grocery items.

Another reported advantage of the new shopping venue is that you don’t have to buy enormous quantities of food in order to get low prices. Who needs a gallon of olives, after all? WinCo supposedly will sell you a pint of olives for almost the same price-per-olive as the gallon size in the bulk discount stores. However, WinCo will offer the bulk size quantities for anyone interested in huge amounts of food.

The following services will also be provided.

• A fresh bakery
• A pizza shop with made-to-order pizza
• A large delicatessen and seafood department
• A fresh meat department
• A gigantic fresh produce department
• A variety of organic products
• A full selection of health and beauty aid items

The Lone Tree Center has another 33,000 square feet retail building in the works.

The following new businesses are also opening.

Les Schwab Tire Center
The Tire Center will open for business in 2004 on 2.5 acres near the southeast corner of Highway 4 Bypass. It will be located in an 18,000 sq.ft. building and will offer a complete line of tire services.

Tri City Plaza
The new Tri City Plaza will be located on five acres on the southeast corner of Fairview and Lone Tree. The Plaza will open next year and will include a Hand Car Wash, a gas station, and a restaurant with drive-thru convenience.

John Muir Mount Diablo Medical Center
The new 110,000 sq.ft. three-story medical facility will be
located on the southwest corner of Balfour Rd. and Concord Ave. It will be a medical building that will offer out-patient surgery.

Balfour Center
The Balfour Center, to be located at the southeast corner of Fairview Ave. and Balfour Rd., will include 101,460 total sq. ft. of buildings, housing a 65,600 sq.ft. Safeway and six other shops and or restaurants with space ranging from 3,000 to 8,250 sq.ft. It is supposed to open in February.

InShape City
The new 30,600 sq.ft. fitness center will be located on 2.4 acres situated on the southwest corner of Balfour Rd. and Griffith. It will include a rock wall and a swimming pool.

Walgreens/Bank of the West
These new businesses, located on the southeast corner of Walnut Blvd. and Balfour Rd., are already open and serving the Brentwood Community.

Hand Car Wash
This already opened and is located next to the Tower Gas Station on the southeast corner of Brentwood Blvd. and Balfour Rd. My sister, Debbie, went there the other day and said, “My car hasn’t been this clean since I drove it off the dealer’s lot.”

Signature Properties Retail
Located on the corner of Brentwood Blvd. and Balfour Rd., the property will house retail stores, offices, a restaurant, and a bank.

Walnut Development
Ralph Strauss of SDG (Strauss Design Group) is responsible for the new office buildings on Walnut Blvd. at Continente. He is planning two more buildings, a restaurant with a drive-thru window, and another retail business.

On the Horizon
I spoke with Buzz Walker, developer for California Family Fitness, which will be opening around September 2004. This 65,000 sq.ft. building will be located by Golden Hills Church on Lone Tree Way, on the southeast corner of Highway 4 Bypass.

It is difficult for me to imagine an exercise facility built on the scale that Walker described. His two-story building will house a dazzling list of exercise facilities, including:

• The largest rock climbing wall in the state
• Two volleyball courts
• Four indoor racquetball courts
• An indoor running/jogging track
• A full-size basketball court
• A separate women’s exercise room
• A cycling room
• General facilities for men and women

The grounds of the facility will contain four different outdoor pools, including:
• A lap pool
• A jazzercise pool
• A beach entrance pool
• A wading pool for kids

The Fitness Center will be geared to families to an astonishing extent. A full 10,000 square feet of supervised facilities will be dedicated to kids, infants, toddlers, and young people all the way up to preteens.

As if this wasn’t enough, six retail businesses will be located nearby including a five-star restaurant, related retail stores, and a gas station.

So, life in the East County just keeps exploding with new opportunities for shopping, working, and fun. I’m going to have to get a second (third, actually) job if I’m going to have a hope of paying for all that extra fun.