2,000 Homes and Hotel to Replace East Bay Power Plant

Newport Beach-based Integral Communities has proposed transforming 1,000 acres into a mixed-use development that would bring nearly 2,000 single family homes to the East Bay suburb of Pittsburg, according to plans filed by the city.

The project is located at the intersection of Willow Pass Road and Honker Bay, and will require the demolition of the now-vacant Pittsburg Power Plant, which was once the largest power plant in the Bay Area. Along with the residential development, plans also call for commercial buildings and a 120-key hotel.

As proposed, the project would come in three phases. The first phase calls for developing 700 units on the southwest corner. The next phase would build 445 units near Willow Pass and a commercial center that could house business, medical, technology and warehouse tenants. The final phase, located by Honker Bay calls for 561 units, a mixed-use building and the hotel.

The mix-use building will feature 300 additional units and 60,000 square feet of commercial space. The proposed community is 10 minutes away from the Pittsburg BART station and Interstate 4.

Contra Costa county has actively pursued large-scale housing development as it tries to address the housing shortage. The city of Brentwood recently rezoned more than 400 acres of largely undeveloped, privately owned land for up to 3.5 million square feet of commercial development and up to 3,000 homes. The goal was to attract tech, life science and industrial jobs to the city.

“Normally our city becomes a ghost town during the day, because the workers head west or south,” Economic Development Manager Ricardo Noguera said. “It’s about putting Brentwood on the map beyond a place to go to pick cherries.”

Concord is planning the largest development in the Bay Area, transforming a former naval station into 13,000 homes. Those plans took a hit when the city dissolved its partnership with the development team, Concord First Partners, and now is looking for another developer to carry out the project.