Pleasant Hill · Neighborhood guide
Downtown Pleasant Hill
Downtown Pleasant Hill opened in 2000 as the city's main street, with townhomes and condos near City Hall, shops, and a farmers market. A Tanja Odzak guide.
What is Downtown Pleasant Hill?
Tanja Odzak is a Top East Bay Realtor with eXp Realty, helping buyers and sellers in Pleasant Hill and across the East Bay. Downtown Pleasant Hill is the city's open-air main street, built around Crescent Drive and opened on the Fourth of July in 2000. It has shops, restaurants, a movie theater, and City Hall with its lake and lawn, and it is the part of Pleasant Hill where townhomes, condos, and apartments sit closest to everything.
Ready to find your next home?
Tell me what you're looking for and I'll get you real options.
Start Your Home SearchOr call/text (415) 722-0472
Ready to find your next home?
Tell me what you're looking for and I'll get you real options.
Start Your Home SearchOr call/text (415) 722-0472
Homes for Sale in Downtown Pleasant Hill
Current listings in Downtown Pleasant Hill, updated from the MLS.
Where is Downtown Pleasant Hill?
Downtown sits in the center of the city, near where Contra Costa Boulevard and Monument Boulevard meet, with Interstate 680 just to the east. City Hall is on Gregory Lane, at the downtown's edge. The blocks around it hold most of the city's newer townhomes and condos, and the older single-family neighborhoods begin a few streets out in every direction.
How did Downtown Pleasant Hill come to be?
Pleasant Hill grew from farmland into a suburb during and after World War II and became a city in 1961. By then the older commercial properties around its main crossroads had aged badly, and city leaders wanted a real center, a place that would give the town its own identity.
It took almost three decades. The City adopted a redevelopment plan for the area in 1974, and early ideas ran from office campuses to high-rise hotels. In 1986, residents passed a ballot initiative against high-rise development, and the planning started over. After a long public process, the City chose a traditional downtown that mixes shops, entertainment, homes, and civic buildings, anchored by a new City Hall.
City Hall came first. Designed by architect Charles Moore with Fisher-Friedman Associates, it opened in 1991, and it was designed to echo the city's farming past. Ground broke on the rest of downtown in 1998, and the grand opening on July 4, 2000, came with a parade and fireworks. A hotel followed in 2001.
What kind of homes are in Downtown Pleasant Hill?
Mostly townhomes, condos, and apartments, which is unusual for a city of mid-century single-family homes. The downtown project itself included 36 townhomes, and the 134-unit Gallery Walk townhouse development was built nearby soon after. More condos and apartments line the main roads around the center. Most were built from the late 1990s on, so buyers here are usually looking at newer construction than in the rest of the city.
What should you look for in a downtown home? For a townhome or condo, the homeowners association matters as much as the unit. Read the budget, the reserve study, the meeting minutes, and the rules on rentals and remodeling, and ask what the dues cover. Check the age of the roof, the water heater, and the heating and cooling system, since those are often the owner's to replace.
What schools are near Downtown Pleasant Hill?
The downtown has no school of its own. Sequoia Elementary School and Sequoia Middle School sit side by side just west of downtown on Boyd Road, and Fair Oaks Elementary School is on Lisa Lane, on the east side of the city. All three are public schools in the Mt. Diablo Unified School District. School boundaries don't follow neighborhood names, so check the district's boundary map for any address you're considering. The Pleasant Hill page lists the public and private schools across the city.
Are there swim clubs near Downtown Pleasant Hill?
Downtown has no swim club of its own, but it is close to several. The Pleasant Hill Recreation & Park District's Aquatic Park on Gregory Lane is a public pool complex and home of the PH Dolfins, the district's summer swim team since 1964. Private clubs in the city include the Buena Vista Swim Club on Cortsen Road, founded in 1962, with a family-size pool and a baby pool, and Pleasant Hill Aquatics on Boyd Road, a member-owned club since 1954 and home of the Penguins swim team. Each club has its own membership and fee, and joining is optional.
What else is nearby?
City Hall's lake and lawn are the heart of downtown, and the City lists a farmers market there on Saturdays. Downtown is also where the city gathers: Pleasant Hill's Fourth of July parade ends here, and the yearly Art, Wine & Music Festival fills the streets each May. Pleasant Hill Park, with the Aquatic Park, is a short drive up Gregory Lane. The Iron Horse Regional Trail passes through Pleasant Hill on its 32-mile run between Concord and Pleasanton, and Downtown Walnut Creek is a few minutes south. For young athletes, the Pleasant Hill Baseball Association has run baseball and softball in the city since 1958.
How do you get around from Downtown Pleasant Hill?
Interstate 680 is right next to downtown, and Highway 24 toward Lafayette, Oakland, and San Francisco is a few minutes south. The Pleasant Hill/Contra Costa Centre BART station is just outside the city, a short drive away. County Connection buses serve the main roads.
What should sellers in Downtown Pleasant Hill know?
Pleasant Hill has no extra city transfer tax, only Contra Costa County's. The City does ask for one form of its own: a time-of-sale weatherization disclosure, a short checklist of energy items like attic insulation, weatherstripping, and an insulated water heater, which the buyer returns to the City after closing. Downtown is not in a state fire hazard severity zone, but it is always worth checking the address. For a condo or townhome, ordering the HOA documents early keeps the sale on schedule. My Pleasant Hill home selling page explains the steps.
What draws buyers to Downtown Pleasant Hill?
Buyers who look downtown are usually drawn to newer townhomes and condos, having shops, restaurants, and the theater close at hand, the quick trip to Interstate 680 and BART, and less yard to keep up than a single-family home.
Why do homeowners sell in Downtown Pleasant Hill?
Homeowners move on for all kinds of reasons including (but not limited to): upsizing to a second or third home, divorce, relocating for work, or the passing of a family member.
Work with an agent who knows Pleasant Hill homes
Tanja Odzak knows what to check in a townhome or condo, from the HOA's reserves and rules to the systems each owner maintains, and how a Pleasant Hill sale works, weatherization form included. If you're weighing a move to Downtown Pleasant Hill, that's worth a conversation.
Ready to find your next home?
Tell me what you're looking for and I'll get you real options.
Start Your Home SearchOr call/text (415) 722-0472
Frequently Asked Questions
What part of the city is Downtown Pleasant Hill?
It sits in the center of Pleasant Hill, around Crescent Drive near Contra Costa Boulevard and Monument Boulevard, with City Hall on Gregory Lane and Interstate 680 just to the east.
When did Downtown Pleasant Hill open?
The grand opening was on July 4, 2000, after ground broke in 1998. City Hall, designed by architect Charles Moore, opened in 1991.
Are most Downtown Pleasant Hill homes townhomes or condos?
Mostly townhomes, condos, and apartments, many built from the late 1990s on, including the 36 townhomes built with the downtown and the Gallery Walk townhouses nearby.
Is there a farmers market in Downtown Pleasant Hill?
Yes. The City lists a farmers market on Saturdays at City Hall on Gregory Lane.
Is Downtown Pleasant Hill near BART?
The Pleasant Hill/Contra Costa Centre BART station is just outside the city, a short drive from downtown.
