City, Contra Costa County
© McCormack's Guides
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.
Click for regional or detailed map
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
