Hercules, CA
Bay Area's Fastest Growing Suburb Combats Sprawl with Town Center
When the Hercules Powder Company left the town of Hercules, CA
in the 1970s and sold the land surrounding the factory to home builders,
a suburb of homes emerged — a sign of prosperity in the latter
part of the 20th Century. Hercules' 1972 City Plan laid
the groundwork for a bedroom community 22,000 strong, and as a result,
Hercules was the fastest growing suburb in the San Francisco Bay
Area in the 1980s. As typical during that time, land use patterns
were dominated by motor vehicles — characterized by low densities,
separation of land uses, strip retail development, and few civic
uses. In addition, the former site of Hercules Powder Company (a
dynamite factory) remained a brownfield in the center of town and
no downtown or "main street" existed.
Through the years, as traffic congestion worsened and municipal
revenue sources became increasingly scarce, Hercules realized it
was time for a change. The 426-acre brownfield site in the middle
of town was slated for development, but it was obvious that a comprehensive
land use plan commensurate with the opportunity did not exist. As
is typical, the City only had the crude tool of zoning, without
the needed craft of urban design. In 1998, the Planning Commission
and City Council began searching for solutions to the growth crisis
and to a mounting fiscal crisis. The effects of Proposition 13 did
not fully hit Hercules until the early 1990s when the refinery shut
down. The City suddenly needed alternative revenue sources to maintain
the services its residents were used to.
 With
funding from the Redevelopment Agency and matching funds from key
landowners and developers, the Planning Commission retained an urban
design firm to assist it in developing a plan for the 426-acre site.
With guidance from Sargent Town Planning and Dover Kohl and Associates, Hercules began
to focus on developing a plan for a new Town Center.
The planning effort was headed by a steering committee that worked
for five months to prepare the community design charrette. Known
for its inclusive and participatory nature, the charrette solicited
input from the community during ten days of workshops. The result
was a Town Center Plan and a typological urban design code —
the first of its kind in California to be adopted by ordinance.
In essence, the plan takes a six-lane road lined with two strip
shopping centers and creates a new Town Center at the intersection
of San Pablo and Sycamore Avenues. It also creates the 167 acre
Waterfront Quarter — a transit-oriented development adjacent
to the Town Center, overlooking San Pablo Bay. The Waterfront Quarter
is comprised of four neighborhoods: the Historic Town Center, the
Refugio Neighborhood — featuring views of Refugio Creek —
the Central Neighborhood, and the Transit Village. Each neighborhood
is characterized by narrow tree-lined streets with a distinctive
architectural appeal.
While implementation of the plan is moving along, it has not been
without its challenges. Hercules Community Development Director
Steve Lawton explains, "If you're looking for a placeless California
bedroom suburb implementing smart growth and running up against
the forces of sprawl, this is it." Nearly the entire redevelopment
area has been identified as either a brownfield site — much
of which has been reclaimed — or wetlands, where endangered
red legged frogs reside. Both of these designations have paved the
way for state and federal agency involvement. The City and the independent
Fire District are also battling over the proposed street standards.
Hercules city staff are also trying to attract regional and national
commercial development firms that are used to operating in conventional
suburban areas with conventional urban zoning.
 In
spite of these obstacles, implementation of the plan is moving forward.
Today, the Waterfront Quarter is under construction, and the three
other quarters — Central, Civic Corridor, and Hilltown —
are in various stages of planning and negotiation.
Within the Waterfront Quarter, the 47-acre Central Neighborhood
includes more than 200 single family lots with granny flats. The
second phase — the Refugio Neighborhood — includes a mix
of cottages and townhomes totaling 78 units. Successive phases of
development will add live-work units, over 400 multifamily units
surrounding the train station, civic and commercial uses. At buildout,
the Waterfront Quarter will provide nearly 1,000 new residential
units and 100,000 square feet of commercial/retail space. Compact
mixed-use development will surround the Amtrak commuter rail station,
Sycamore Avenue will be extended (from the Town Center) to create
a new main street, and 50 acres will be retained as wetlands.
To implement the rest of the plan, including development of the
remaining three quarters, the City is working with Bay Area Rapid
Transit (BART) and other transit agencies to create a new regional
transit hub. City staff is also working with environmental agencies
to achieve an integrated habitat and streambed remediation program
that ties in with the real estate master development plan.
For more information, contact Steve Lawton, Community Development
at (510) 799-8233 or visit http://hercules-plan.org
to download a copy of the plan.
Return to Model Projects | Reports
|
