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Hercules

Hercules

McCormack's Guides

City, Contra Costa County

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Zip Code: 94547

Bedroom town that just about tripled its population in the 1980s and as of 2008 counts 24,324 residents. Recently opened a middle school and high school and with passage of bond may open another middle school. www.mccormacks.com

In 2006, after much agonizing, the city council turned down a Wal-Mart, for a variety of reasons, including traffic. Some residents said they wanted local shopping to go upscale: Whole Foods, Banana Republic, etc.

Until 1970s, Hercules was a company town with a few hundred workers living in homes owned by Hercules Powder Co. (dynamite). Then the company closed the plant and sold most of its land.

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Up went a modern suburb. Hercules is master-planned, one of its strengths. Parks are located in each neighborhood, homes are buffered from arterial traffic, and arterials lead straight to the freeways.

Shops, restaurants, Home Depot, coffee house and supermarkets have arrived to make life easier. More are being added. In 2006, the town celebrated the opening of a library.

Hercules has also attracted some high tech, notably Bio-Rad, located on the waterfront. www.mccormacks.com

Integrated community. Town makes a strong effort to help people get along. Annual cultural fair. Middle class to upper middle.

Zero homicides in 2005, one in 2004. Zero between 1998 and 2003, two in 1997. Previous years, 0, 1, 0, 1. In the 2006, the man accused of the 2004 murder dropped dead while playing hand ball at the county jail. He was known to have a weak heart, said the coroner. See Crime.

With the exception of one neighborhood, children attend the schools of the West Contra Costa Unified School District. Three elementary schools in town. Scores generally 60th to 80th percentile. New high school and middle school well received. School district passed measure in 2004 to retain many sports and academic programs. See Schools.

In 2005, school district passed $400 million bond. Money may be used for another middle school and to rebuild Ohlone Elementary. Interest high in kid activities.

Just north of Highway 4 and east of Interstate 80, there’s a neighborhood that looks like it’s part of Rodeo but is within Hercules. The children, however, attend the schools of the John Swett district (Rodeo and Crockett). See Rodeo. www.mccormacks.com

Seniors center, community center, swimming pool open year round. Five parks. Usual sports. Trails around city and down to San Pablo Bay.

City runs tutoring classes for kids. The new  tracts are coming as ”master planned” with homeowner associations. Some of these developments have a pool or a rec center  run by the  homeowners  association.

Public golf course, called Franklin Canyon, on east side, spread over hills and valleys. Every 10 years or so, a developer envisions homes around the golf course but residents have said no-no-no.

From freeway, Hercules looks boring: tract homes marching over the hills. But the hill homes give views of San Pablo Bay and large ships heading to and from the Carquinez Strait.

Down by the bay, Hercules has welcomed innovative housing designs. When the powder company closed, Hercules saved some old company cottages and bungalows near the water and had them renovated and rewired. These homes have porches and features that recall the modest homes of 100 years ago.

As more housing came, Hercules nudged developers to retain the craftsman-bungalow motif but give it a modern spin. www.mccormacks.com

The town, in this section, also built apartments and condos mixed with retail stores and offices, an approach that encourages people to shop locally and walk, not use the car.  Hercules has also welcomed new housing  designs in the form of three-story homes and homes with small porches and rear garages. Many of the newer homes have small front yards. Duplexes here and there.

Ornamental street lights. Utility lines buried.

The state in 2008 tallied 8,304 housing units: 5,508 single homes, 1,631 single-family attached, 1,165 multiples.

Among recent additions: a large apartment complex for elderly.

Trains pass near some homes. Check out the noise. Two lines run through town, the Union Pacific and the Burlington Santa Fe. The first travels the shore, the second, the middle of Hercules.

The shore has two parks but access to many parts is difficult because Union Pacific tracks run close to the water.

The city wants to open an Amtrak station near the shore. Amtrak runs a service called the Capitol that starts in Sacramento, stops in Martinez and goes down to Emeryville, Oakland and San Jose (Silicon Valley). The station also would allow the locals to ride over the nation and throughout California. Coupled with the train station, Hercules intends to build a ferry terminal and dispatch the ferries to downtown San Francisco. www.mccormacks.com

This idea might seem far fetched. But Vallejo, about 10 miles north of Hercules, runs a successful ferry service to the City, making the trip in about an hour. Hercules might be able to do it in 45 minutes.

Hercules, working with the transit agencies, hopes to field more buses and faster buses. Park-and-Ride lot near freeway and bus station. See Commute.

17 miles to Bay Bridge but bridge and its approaches are often congested at peak hours. East span of Bay Bridge is being replaced. Diamond lane for those who do not drive alone. Hercules is divided by Highway 4, which has been widened and improved. This makes the commute to central Contra Costra easier.

BART stations in El Cerrito and Richmond. WestCAT buses. Also Dial-a-Ride. Richmond Parkway leads to San Rafael Bridge. Transit center (buses, car pool connections) near the freeway.

Chamber of commerce (510) 741-7945.

• Land trust in 2004 purchase of 700 acres for hikers and wildlife. www.mccormacks.com

City web site: www.ci.hercules.ca.us

 
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