Walnut Creek's Western Downtown: A Future Facelift in the Works

New office buildings with first floor retail. New condominium complexes near the BART Station. A pedestrian bridge over Ygnacio Valley Rd. And a stairway at the end of Stow Ave. and California Blvd.: these are some of the ideas now being tossed around during the creation of the West Downtown Specific Plan.

According to the Contra Costa Times, the panel charged with the initial creation of the plan has chosen a scenario that will now move forward through the approval process. No action on the plan is expected until next spring, at the earliest. The panel, the 13-member Citizens Advisory Committee, meets today (Aug. 22) at 4 p.m. in the third floor conference room, City Hall, 1666 N. Main St.

The area is bounded by the BART Station, Highway 680, Olympic Blvd. and California Blvd. The plan has been reinvented several times over the 13 months it has been in the works, and the subject of many public workshops.

No final decision on the specific plan will be made until 2015, after at least seven public hearings before various city panels are held.