Dublin Real Estate – 11/30/07 Update

by John M. Zukoski on November 30, 2007  |    No Comments  |  Topics:  Opinions

Dublin Real Estate – 10/26/07 Update

by John M. Zukoski on November 24, 2007  |    No Comments  |  Topics:  Opinions

A new feature to the Around Dublin blog is a chart of Dublin home sales (counts and sales). The source of these values is the Pleasanton Weekly “Sales at a Glance”. Please note that Below Market Rate (BMR) home sales are included. I’ll continue to provide an updated chart each week.For the week ended 10/26/07, the numbers are skewed by an avalanche of home sales reported by the developer at Elan (since condos and townhouses tend to be priced less than single family homes).

Hidden Gem of Dublin

by John M. Zukoski on November 23, 2007  |    No Comments  |  Topics:  Parks

Dublin is known for having hidden gems sprinkled throughout the community. One such gem is located right in the heart of Dublin – the Alamo Creek-Dougherty Hills loop. The loop starts with the Alamo Creek Bike Path which affords lush views of Alamo Creek, local wildlife and untamed plant life. A meandering stroll along the path provides a view for what a Dublin greenbelt along the Iron Horse Trail could look like.

After trekking the Alamo Creek Bike Path, Dubliners are treated with a visit to Alamo Creek Park. The Alamo Creek Park provides visitors with picnic areas, BBQs, basketball courts, a playground, restrooms, a walking path, and drinking fountains. This can be a great brunch/lunch spot or just a brief sojourn along the loop. You can also find public art at the Alamo Creek Park – “Black Pool” by artist Alan Counihan of Dublin, Ireland serves as a visual link between the landscape of the park and the nearby rolling Dougherty hills.

To get to the third leg of the loop, visitors simply need to walk a few blocks down Shady Creek Road to the 107.5 acre Dougherty Hills Open Space. The Dougherty Hills Open Space provides trekkers with sweeping views of Mount Diablo and the Tri-Valley. Visitors can also view the California Poppies that are sprinkled throughout the park space. All is quiet and the air is pure atop the Dougherty Hills Open Space. To the east, the Dougherty Hills Dog Park. To the west, the sleepy neighborhoods along Stagecoach Road. Either direction will provide a satisfying end to the brief journey.

One of the best features of the Alamo Creek-Dougherty Hills loop is that dogs are welcomed and accommodated along every stop. This is a fantastic way to enjoy a beautiful day in Dublin.

Giving Thanks

by John M. Zukoski on November 22, 2007  |    No Comments  |  Topics:  Opinions

Happy Thanksgiving to everybody. In the spirit of the holiday, here is a list of what we can be thankful for in Dublin:

• City Manager – Richard Ambrose has been the City Manager of Dublin for all but 3 months of Dublin’s 25 years as a city. This is phenomenal given that the average tenure for city managers is about 6-7 years. In this time, Dublin’s population has grown from 15,000 in 1982 to 43,630 in 2007. Some of the highlights of Mr. Ambrose’s tenure have included:

1. More than quadrupling Dublin’s property tax split with Alameda County from 6% in 1982 to 26% today (pre state take-aways).
2. Bringing BART stations and transit villages to East Dublin and West Dublin (Dublin Downtown).
3. Procuring nearly 360 acres of park space for residents and visitors (including the future Fallon Sports and Heritage Parks).

• Public Art – Dublin has installed public art in nearly every city park and many public buildings. Public art can also be found in many private developments (such as the Ulferts Center and Downtown Safeway). With an ordinance passed in 2006, all new non-residential and large residential developments must either provide public art on-site or make a contribution to Dublin’s public art fund. Please click here for one example at Dolan Park.

• Grand Events – the Dublin St. Patrick’s Day Parade and the Day on the Glen are major events that are enjoyed by tens of thousands of residents from throughout the Tri-Valley and beyond. This year’s events upped the ante from past years. The 2007 St. Patrick’s Day Parade included arts and crafts for the kids, the world-famous green pancake breakfast, and the 5K fun run. This year’s Day on the Glen brought out over 15,000 residents and non-residents alike with the City Hall meet and greet, the Parrotheads concert (Jimmy Buffett covers), and the fireworks show.

Fallon Sports Park – Phase I Launch

by John M. Zukoski on November 21, 2007  |    No Comments  |  Topics:  Parks

The City of Dublin will be hosting a workshop on November 28th at 7pm in the City Council Chambers at City Hall to launch the Phase I development of Fallon Sports Park. Attendees will be provided with the Phase I conceptual plan overview and will also be asked to provide input related to the overall design elements.

Potential elements for the built-out Fallon Sport Park could include the following:

• Children’s play area
• Group picnic facilities
• Basketball, volleyball, and tennis courts
• A BMX track
• A dog park (to complement the immensely popular Dougherty Hills Dog Park and the little-known Bray Commons Small Dog Park)
• Bocce ball courts
• Fountains and reflection pools
• Walking pathways
• Rose gardens

We’re really only limited by our imaginations. The entire park will be about 68 acres. However, Phase I will “only” include 26.5 acres. The park is bordered by Lockhart Street to the west, Gleason Drive to the north, Fallon Road to the east and Central Parkway to the south. The total budget for the entire Fallon Sports Park will be about $20M – so residents will have plenty of funds to work with to bring our collective vision to fruition. Fallon Sports Park will arguably be the most ambitious public works project that Dublin will have undertaken in it’s history. This park will be a testament to the vision and dedication of our City Council, Staff, and residents.

Here We Grow Again!

by John M. Zukoski on November 20, 2007  |    No Comments  |  Topics:  Development

Exciting plans are in the works involving development of some of the Camp Parks acreage directly across from the Eastern Dublin BART station. The City of Dublin has been working with officials from the Army Reserve for the last few years about their vision for the Parks Reserve Forces Training Area (Camp Parks). The Army Reserve has determined that approximately 185 acres of Camp Parks is in excess to their needs (the area between

on the base to the north, Iron Horse Trail to the west,

to the south and

to the east) and they hope to sell that land to a private developer. The City, working with the Army Reserve, developed a plan (guidelines) for the amount of development the City would find acceptable. The interesting twist is that Camp Parks won’t actually be selling the land for cash – rather, they will barter their land for improvements that will be made to the remaining Camp Parks property by the developer.

The Dublin City Council was presented with 5 possible alternatives for planning the Camp Parks development. Each option provided a distinctly different look and feel. The current Council has indicated that they preferred the 5th alternative – aka “Dense Villages”. As the name implies, this alternative would be more of the same in terms of a focus on townhouses and multi-family dwellings and fewer single family homes. There would be about 2,000 units with all but 200 dedicated to townhomes and multi-family dwellings. However, given the recent about-face with respect to the zoning on the land plots around Fallon, the Council may be more inclined towards the more balanced alternatives (specifically alternative #1 – which includes a perfect balance between single-family homes, townhomes, and multi-family dwellings).

Please click on the picture to see a larger version:

The good news with all of the proposed alternatives is that they include anywhere from 157,000 to 198,000 sq. ft. of retail space and anywhere from 152,000 to 300,000 sq. ft. of office space. This retail and office space will bring in valuable jobs and property/sales tax revenue, which will in turn help Dublin attract more residents and businesses.

Dublin Gateway Medical Center

by John M. Zukoski on November 18, 2007  |    No Comments  |  Topics:  Local Businesses

The Dublin Gateway Medical Center opened its modernistic doors in October 2006. The Gateway Medical Center is located on the corner of Tassajara Road and Dublin Boulevard (right next to the Koll Dublin Corporate Center and Ulferts Center). You know that you’ve arrived when you see the towering palm trees and sculpture with water careening into a shallow basin. This ethereal water sculpture is a product of Dublin’s public art initiative. The Gateway Medical Center is the home of the Palo Alto Medical Foundation (PAMF). The PAMF provides the following services:

• Family Medicine
• Internal Medicine
• Pediatrics
• Obstetrics and Gynecology
• Laboratory and X-ray
• Urgent Care
• Community Health Resource Center

The Gateway Medical Center currently has about 68,000 square feet of available space to host additional practices and medical administrative offices. Based on the building option approved by Dublin’s City Council, the Gateway Medical Center will most likely be building a full-service hospital within the next few years. To accommodate patients and visitors of the Gateway Medical Center, a parking garage will be tucked away on the southwest corner of the property.

More information on the PAMF may be found in this article. Also, check out the free community lectures offered by PAMF:

http://www.pamf.org/classes/lectures/dublin.cfm

It’s very family-friendly indeed.

A Dublin Weekly Newsletter?

by John M. Zukoski on November 17, 2007  |    1 Comment  |  Topics:  Local Issues

Residents of Dublin are getting closer to having their own newspaper. Embarcadero Publishing Company, the folks that own the Pleasanton Weekly, is going to be launching a Dublin circular that will initially only carry advertisements for local businesses. Assuming that the “Dublin Weekly” is a success, they will begin to provide editorial and other journalistic content. Who knows, maybe the Tri-Valley Herald’s own Sophia Kazmi could moonlight for the Dublin Weekly.

Embarcadero Publishing would love to hear about your vision for the “Dublin Weekly”. Please feel free to email Publisher Gina Channell-Allen with your thoughts/suggestions/questions at gallen@pleasantonweekly.com.

The Best Restaurants in Dublin

by John M. Zukoski on November 16, 2007  |    No Comments  |  Topics:  Restaurants

As the Heart of the Tri-Valley, we have some of the best restaurants in the East Bay – something for everybody and every occasion. Here’s a list of the best restaurants in Dublin:

Best Value – Wok’s Up.

Ted and Annie Lee treat visitors to their healthful Asian fusion cuisine at a reasonable price. Wok’s Up is tucked away in the Dublin Corners shopping center (adjacent to Hacienda Crossing). Annie is continually treating guests to new dishes and is always happy to make substitutions and modifications. Ted and Annie make visitors feel right at home.

Best Lunch Spot to Impress Your Client – Stacey’s at Waterford

It makes sense that the author of the best workplace comic strip – Scott Adams – would be the owner of the best lunch spot for the workday lunch crowd. Visitor’s are impressed by the comfortably luxurious setting of Stacey’s as they walk in through the entrance and stroll through the warm yet modern enclave. Stacey’s provides their customers with lunch options ranging from the standard cheeseburger to Blackened Salmon Sandwich to Jambalaya to the sumptuous Thai Beef Salad. Stacey’s is a bit pricey for lunch…but who’s keeping track when your company is picking up the tab?

Best Dinner Spot to Impress Your In-Laws – McNamara’s Steak and Chop House

There’s not a whole lot of mystery about what McNamara’s specializes in…however, what isn’t obvious from the name is that they also have an impressive array of seafood, salad, lamb chop, and chicken dishes. McNamara’s also has an inviting lounge and wine room to start and finish your evening off. If you’re in the market for a magnum of wine that’s so huge that you can take a bath in it, McNamara’s has got you covered. McNamara’s price list is comparable to other steak and chop houses in San Francisco. However, their convenience and excellent service put McNamara’s a notch above Ruth’s Chris or Hap’s (in Pleasanton). While the evening may set you back a few hundred bucks, your in-laws will be impressed by your good taste and generosity (as long as your not sticking them w/ the tab).

Best Restaurants That Should Move to Dublin (or at least open a location in Dublin):

• Sweet Tomatoes (Pleasanton)
• Rising Loafer (Pleasanton)
• Chipotle (San Ramon)

These are restaurants that could easily capitalize on Dublin’s burgeoning East Dublin communities.