New Development Plan For Saranap Considered By Supervisors

CONTRA COSTA COUNTY — Beefing up Contra Costa County's General Plan regarding development of the unincorporated Saranap area between Walnut Creek and Lafayette will be considered Tuesday by the county's Board of Supervisors.

The proposed "Saranap Area General Plan Amendment" would add a new vision statement, new policies, a new implementation measure and a new map, all relating to development and infrastructure improvements in Saranap.

The rethinking of Saranap development parameters was prompted beginning in 2013, with the proposal of the Saranap Village mixed residential/commercial project in Boulevard Way. That large project of 235 multifamily residential, 30,000 square feet of street-level retail and restaurant space, and an off-street parking structure — with one structure proposed to rise to 78 feet at its tallest point.

Many Saranap residents protested the scale of this project; ultimately, a scaled-down version of Saranap Village was approved by the Board of Supervisors in August 2017.

As a result of that process, Saranap residents called on the county to make some changes for future development in that community. Those changes include adding a formal vision statement for the Saranap area; four new community-specific policies for the overall Saranap area; and five new policies related to a newly designated "Boulevard Way Mixed-Use Corridor."

Tuesday's supervisors meeting begins at 9:30 a.m., and it's virtual only.

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