By Tony Hicks –
Seven Hill Ranch is surrounded.
And not just by opponents of a planned development on the site. There’s an online petition with nearly 3,700 signatures, asking Contra Costa County to “say NO to a proposal for an oversize development next to Heather Farm Park. Let’s join together to ask that this 30-acre piece of Walnut Creek’s natural heritage is saved.”
Spieker Senior Development Partners wants to build a large senior residential care development at the site, including 354 independent living units, an 85,000-square-feet medical center providing daily care for 100 residents, a multi-story clubhouse, a recreation building, a maintenance building, and a parking garage.
It may be Walnut Creek’s heritage, but those 30 acres are on county land, surrounded by the city.
The group Save Seven Hills Ranch says six of the “seven hills” will become 17,000 dump trucks of dirt.
They also say the project will remove 403 trees, 380 of which are protected, and erect walls up to 21 feet high.
The site will attract a full-time equivalent of 225 employees, though opponents say the number will be closer to 500 when including part-time employees. They won’t be able to get to work without going through Walnut Creek and the neighborhood in which the leaders of the anti-development movement, Michele Sheehan and Rosalie Howarth, live.
“They would have to raze the seven hills and dump them into seven gullies,” said Howarth. “There will be one hill left. And it will take three to four years to blast these hills down.”
“It’s such a huge devastation of the landscape,” said Sheehan.
The site is just west of Heather Farm, owned by the same family for the past century or so, with a caretaker in a hilltop house. To the south is Kinross Drive, a residential street connected to Ygnacio Valley Road that would serve as the main access road.
The fenced-off site is a strange juxtaposition to the city around it — like a private mini-wilderness area (this day deer, turkeys, and a rabbit appeared on the Kinross side, where there’s shade and a seasonal wetland that’s not very wet right now).
The complaints are numerous: too many trees removed, too much traffic on a residential street from hundreds of new commuters that will be too far from public transportation, and no public access.
Despite hundreds of people potentially living there, Spieker likely won’t have to adhere to state and local rules governing residential developments — like providing affordable housing or the equivalent in development fees.
The housing units would be part of occupants’ “care contract” and not owned or leased by residents.
According to the project information and description document on the county’s website, the residential care units “would be licensed by the State of California as a non-residential institutional use and the county has determined the project does not contain any residential component for the purposes of implementing state and local land use regulations and ordinances.”
“The developer does not want it defined as a residential development,” Sheehan said. “The reasoning is they don’t have to provide any open space or inclusionary housing. You can’t have it both ways. That’s our argument to them.”
“They’ve already said they’re not going to mitigate (their plans) because they don’t have to, because it’s not housing,” Howarth said. “They’re going to build right out to the edge of the 30 acres.”
Troy Bourne is one of the principals at Spieker. He’s also a former mayor and currently on the San Juan Capistrano City Council, where there’s a similar Spieker care facility (as there is in Pleasanton).
Bourne says he sympathizes with neighbors but points out the land hasn’t been open space for more than a century.
“It’s designed for development,” Bourne said. “Nobody wants development on their street. It’s a type of housing that’s been identified as a need. It’s senior care a half-mile from John Muir Hospital. There are already 700 families on the waiting list. Those aren’t people who would be moving to Walnut Creek. They’re already here.”
But is Spieker willing to compromise with neighbors?
“Absolutely,” Bourne said, adding he’s talked to Save Seven Hills Ranch members as recently as the second week of June.
Bourne says the project will include “a boatload” of open space, though it likely won’t be accessible to the public, especially after other Spieker care facilities had to completely lock down during the pandemic. He said he can’t even enter a Spieker facility without presenting ID.
He said the company is open to contributing to local affordable housing funds and will preserve at least part of the wetlands.
“If someone wants to do school tours of the wetlands, we’re open to that,” Bourne said. “But not unfettered access.”
Howarth, who is a board member of the Golden Gate Audubon Society, says removing so many native oak trees will have a ripple effect in the area. She said oaks provide far more food for at least 100 species of native birds — including three species of owls and four kinds of hawks — than the younger replacement trees Spiker will plant.
“To take out keystone oaks that protect wild birds and wildlife — it’s the wrong time to take out 400 native trees,” Howarth said. “And they will replace them with landscaping trees. We need a better plan, and I can think of five better plans, easily. The possibilities are endless.”
That will be up to elected officials. The county has collected public feedback on the project’s draft environmental impact, and will likely respond to them this summer, Bourne said. Once that wraps, it goes to the county planning commission and, if successful there, heads to the county Board of Supervisors, likely this fall.
Walnut Creek does have a say, because it needs to approve an encroachment permit for access. But that likely won’t happen until the county decides. The city could also decide accessing through Kinross is a bad idea and ask Spieker to access the land through busy Heather Farm Park. Which would likely create another subset of opposition.
Sheehan and Howarth say a green buffer around the project, public trails, and fewer trees removed might temper their opposition.
“We want a better plan for this site,” Sheehan said. “And I think they can do better. “There are some places worth preserving inside the urban limit line. And this is one of them.”
photo credit: Ray Saint Germain
52 comments
Anyone know where this petition is? I’ll definitely sign it. Building in CA needs to stop!
+1 …. agree – but the political powers that are in play here – with developers $$, and a politically driven EIR, will playout the way they intend … unfortunately… I’d love to be wrong on this
Here’s the link.
https://www.thepetitionsite.com/161/654/270/sensible-not-super-sized-development/
This appears to be it:
https://www.thepetitionsite.com/161/654/270/sensible-not-super-sized-development/
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County Planning and the Board of Supes allow crappy developments to be built and this will be no diffferent.
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Their demand of high architectural and site planning review standards is non-existent.
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Where’s all the water for this coming from? Magic?
NIMBYS to the rescue!
How about the Karens of the NIMBY’s compromise and set aside some Tesla super charging stations for their Teslas?
I thought we have very limited water and electricity.
How about we allow 1 new residence for every 4-6 illegals deported…
Were is the water coming from?
There’s a pond on one side and a cement creek on the other.
Duck Water, yum yum
Winnie the Pooh +1
This sounds like a project for the Seeno’s
This is wrong for a couple of reasons, one it doesn’t fit into the neighborhood, and it is ruining much needed open space. In spite of what some may think it has a good wildlife population including deer. In order to build this they have to connect to neighborhood streets which means not only car traffic but truck traffic changing the neighborhood people bought into. That is not fair.
Sign the petition please.
Unfortunately, many dear die around Ygnacio Valley and Treat and Cherry.
And when they end up in the CoCo Water Canal. ☹️
Why didn’t anyone ever fight John Muir’s HUGH expansion?
That is why senior housing with an emphasis on healthcare is circling your neighborhood. Sorry Ms. Sheehan and Ms. Howarth.
Oops
HUGE
Oops
Deer 🦌
JJ if what you said was true there must be an endless supply of deer because they do live on that property.
Agreed, they might live there, but they die on YVR.
Just ask WCPD dispatch.
Why does everyone have a right for their neighborhood to be frozen in time?? The other side of that coin is that it should always get harder and harder to afford to live here,forever.
They’ll be allowed to keep right on building as they see fit and it doesn’t matter how many signatures are gathered in opposition….
I’m surprised at the amount of people that still truly believe that law abiding, tax paying citizens have any kind of pull in this county…or this state for that matter…..the fix is in and the game is rigged people.
Walnut Creek still has to approve this deal even if the property is in county territory. The county may be lost but there is a good chance with the city to block it. Sign the petition
You my friend are speaking facts, and it’s triggering us, so please stop.
It’s not what you know, it’s who.
jprcards
+1
@Ricardoh
I did sign it because just giving up is not the answer….
jprcards Good job Thanks.
The whole Cherry Lane, Homestead Avenue, Seven Hills area is close to two BART stations, downtown Walnut Creek, yet people want to pretend that it is still the countryside. That whole area should be incorporated and redeveloped.
Troll, Bot, or both…….
SB
Maybe they should develop Golden Gate Park it’s right in the middle of San Francisco. What do retired people need BART for ?
It’s about the $$$.
If Karen and her gang get the $$ they want, there is no amount of public input that will matter.
When will people learn?
+1
This hill will be developed soon for more housing thus more money for the developers. It is all about the $$$
You can fight this all you want.Look at past history it will pass there is to much pocket lining for the politicians.
Crooked land deal?
Hmmmmm…… what would Hopalong Cassidy do in spot like this?
The crux of the biscuit is they want WC seniors to sell their homes. WC seniors don’t realize it’s turning to sh** yet, so they still desire senior housing with a WC zip code. The county wants the quintupled tax revenue on the homes they sell. Isn’t it amazing how the smell of tax blood in the water completely trumps environmental green new deal open space rhetoric.
The traffic on Ygnacio Valley Road is currently really bad.
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The project EIR will state traffic’s marginal increase on YVR will only be a small percentage…
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… a small percentage of the thousands and thousands of vehicles on YVR during peak times. It’s all relative, right?
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Numbers lie and can be stated in various ways to make it appear that peak traffic generation will be negligible. The traffic consultant who is preparing or has prepared the traffic impact study will be no different in softening the reality so it appears “insignificant” under the environmental analysis.
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NIMBYism at its finest.
This land has been designated for development since forever. If the neighbors didn’t want it developed, they should have raised the money and bought it themselves to keep as open space. They did not.
Are any of you familiar with continuing care communities? They fill a need for aging seniors. Check out the website for the developer and see his other communities, including one in Pleasanton. They look fantastic, exactly the kind of place you’d want for your parents or for yourself when you get up there in age. They provide all the amenities the older folks need while they live in their own apartments: a dining room, maid service, transportation, a gym, a pool, tennis courts, a woodworking studio, an art studio, a movie theater, and other activities. They can get aides in when they deteriorate enough to need assistance, and there’s a nursing home when that time comes. Once they move in, they can age in place.
Added bonus for the community: It brings in more jobs and it frees up existing housing stock for younger families.
For those of you who are always worried about Section 8 housing and “those people” in Pittsburg and Antioch, rest assured this development is not for them. It will cost a small fortune to live there.
Have to agree. I’ll bet 99% of the petition signers have no idea where this property is even located. Walnut Creek tried to change the General Plan to Open Space on this property and were promptly sued by the owners resulting in it being reverted back to residential. This site WILL be developed. Only thing to consider is “with what?” NIMBYS wanted Orchards shopping center to remain “Open Space” too, remember?
Absolutely agree with you that this is a positive development for our area. I attended Seven Hills when it was Canterbury Day School and have lived near this location for over 55 years. 90 seems to be the new 80, as people live longer with sharp minds but failing bodies. The senior care needs in our community are a priority and this is a thoughtful, compassionate answer.
Just for laughs I went to see the comments on the SaveSH petition site.
Most comments were the same, traffic, property value, wildlife, or “I went to Seven Hills and my memories”. Side note, think of all the children who attend Seven Hills and walk to their school.
Funniest posted comment, “Walnut Creek will end up looking like … “
Not gonna post what she wrote in full. You gotta read them all.
JJ so happy you were amused. Real class.
Why thank you. I did graduate college, top of my class. 👨🎓
If you lived on the street that will connect to this retirement business it wouldn’t be the same as what you invested your hard earned dollars in. Your life will change completely.
Piffle, you don’t own the rights to control everything surrounding your home or keep it *exactly* the same as when you bought it. That’s ridiculous. This land has been marked for development for years and years.
People who bought their houses in WC years ago weren’t buying multimillion dollar houses either … should they have to give that money back?! Of course not. Things change. It’s good for incumbents to have a say, but they can’t have complete veto power.
And destroy the homes of countless creatures who are voiceless in this matter. Man will not stop until every square inch of land is built on and concreted over. Nature always bats last.
“Nature always bats last” meaning what, in this context?
WC is almost completely surrounded by dedicated open space and a massive state park. Gimme a break with this NIMBYism.
A senior facility across the street from a hospital. There are worse places to put it.
Greedy developers are in a way very similar to smash and grab looters. They are destructive and don’t care who gets in their way. Those hills are like a glass case full of expensive diamonds. WC council are similarly paralyzed by fear of both.
Exactly correct. I am related to one from near LA and he only cares about the money. He tells me no details, but interestingly lives in a gated community, behind yet another security gate around his property, and alarms and more. Gee, I wonder why he needs all that.
City of Walnut Creek could get creative and build a parklet in the area between Kinross and the property. Do the same at the corner of Homestead and 7 hills ranch road. Force all of the traffic out of the residential neighborhoods and route through Heather Farms.
500+ employees with at least 2 trips daily plus the families coming to visit along with medical transport, emergency vehicles, vendors, etc will probably push the daily trip count up to around 2000 additional vehicles per day.
Exactly. right down your quiet residential street. That is horrible.
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