Ground was broken this week on Heritage Park, the first of 50 new acres of parks and open space promised to sprout in the heart of Bishop Ranch in San Ramon.
Heritage Park will be located within Bishop Ranch’s CityWalk BR1A zone, right near the Belmont Village senior living community.
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The 1.4-acre park will be built around a folly called The Little Big House, an oversized playhouse by artist duo Roberto Behar and Rosario Marquardt. It’ll be the first display of many coming via a $20-million public art program that was funded by the property owners, Sunset Development Company.
“We love parks and love to provide people with places to play, places to enjoy nature and find those positive spaces to gather,” said San Ramon’s new parks director Henry Perezalonso. “When people are partnering with the city for that, how can you not like that? We gain so much from the arts and beautifying the areas.”
In addition to the artistic playhouse, Heritage Park will include a garden, picnic grove and lawn space, surrounded by a tree-lined promenade.
It’s expected to open by the end of the year.
“Heritage Park is the next step in our vision to create a vibrant, people-first neighborhood,” said Alex Mehran Jr., CEO of Sunset Development Company. “It’s designed to be a true community hub—a place where families can picnic, kids can explore and neighbors of all ages can come together and enjoy connection and relaxation. Heritage Park marks the debut of our public art program as we work to create an enduring and evolving world-class destination for the arts, one that reveals, reinforces and elevates Bishop Ranch’s identity and sense of place.”
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The parks project continues the dramatic evolution of the Bishop Ranch property, which has gone from being a suburban office park to a lively downtown hub.
There’s also a sizable housing project underway. Mehran Jr. recently estimated that once it’s complete, Bishop Ranch could have 8,000 housing units that could accommodate 25,000 to 30,000 residents across the 585-acre property.
Meanwhile, the City Center at Bishop Ranch continues to add restaurants and shops; as of March, it was at 93% capacity.
Sunset Development Company broke ground this week on Heritage Park, a new public green space in Bishop Ranch (photos courtesy of Sunset Development).