Sunset Development Lands Rezoning Approvals for California Project
A plan to repurpose a former Bay Area office campus as a mixed-use development took a key step forward.
The adaptive reuse project will offer 2,600 residences. Image courtesy of Sunset Development Co.
Sunset Development Co. has secured approvals to rezone parts of its master-planned community in San Ramon, Calif., to residential use. With the San Ramon city government’s blessing, the site can now be used for the developer’s Orchards mixed-use development, which will feature 2,600 homes.
Sunset Development acquired the 92-acre Chevron Park office campus last year with plans to redevelop the site into the core of its larger, surrounding mixed-use development called Bishop Ranch. The developer plans to start decommissioning the former office campus this summer, with demolition and construction expected to start in approximately two years, according to Sunset Development.
Besides the residential units, Orchards will include 125,000 square feet of retail space, a 2.5-acre park and a perimeter walking greenway. While not part of Orchards directly, the developer is also working on an outdoor performance theater that can accommodate 3,500 guests for live music, performing arts and entertainment events as part of the surrounding master-planned development.
Future-focused redesign
Orchards will be the latest addition to Sunset Development’s overall Bishop Ranch development. The 600-acre master-planned project has been owned and managed by the Mehran family since 1978. Once fully completed, the revamped Bishop Ranch will offer 10,000 residences, a 169-key hotel and 850,000 square feet of retail space. Sunset Development also carved out 30 percent of the master plan to be set aside as open space, which includes parks, trails and gardens.
Besides Orchards, the developer has been working on other residential projects within Bishop Ranch. Mehran said in prepared remarks that Sunset Development is planning to welcome the first residents to City Village by SummerHill Homes in the coming weeks. The 404-unit community will offer detached houses and attached townhomes. In February, the developer broke ground on Belmont Senior Living, a 185-unit community that’s slated for delivery in early 2025 and will also be located within Bishop Ranch.
