Shadelands Ranch Museum
The history of Shadelands dates back to 1852 when Hiram Penniman (1824-1907), one of the earliest pioneers of the Ygnacio Valley, purchased 500 acres of land in the area now known as Shadelands. Penniman planted hundreds of fruit and nut trees, and his “Shadelands Fruit Farm” became the first large-scale commercial orchard operation in the valley. His house, designed by the firm of Eckers & Sells and built in 1903, is one of the finest remaining examples of redwood-framed Colonial Revival architecture in Contra Costa County and the only major Colonial Revival house in the Walnut Creek area. Over the years, the house changed hands and the land was divided and sold. Today, the house at 2660 Ygnacio Valley Road is known as the Shadelands Ranch Museum and is home to the Walnut Creek Historical Society. The house, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is open to the public, showcases numerous historical artifacts, many of which belonged to the Pennimans, and houses a rich archive of Contra Costa and Walnut Creek history in the Historical Society’s collections of old newspapers, photographs, and government records. For more information, visit www.walnutcreekhistory.info.
Built in 1975, Shadelands was Walnut Creek’s first business park, designed as a traditional office and R&D center. Shadelands attracted a variety of businesses and nonprofits, from sole proprietors and small businesses in professional services to large anchor corporations, such as Del Monte Foods. Through the years, scores of local elementary school students have toured Del Monte’s facility and returned home with canned corn coin banks as souvenirs. Today, Del Monte shares Shadelands with a variety of innovative enterprises, including the premier youth athletics facility, Shadelands SportsMall; award-winning digital commerce agency Object Edge; national provider of emergency responder equipment Curtis; the entrepreneurial Calicraft Brewing Company; a number of distinctive, state-of-the-art medical facilities, including UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, BASS Medical Group, Kaiser Permanente, John Muir Health, and Golden State Orthopedics & Spine; and The Orchards retail, dining, and lifestyle shopping center.
In 2001, Walnut Creek Civic Arts Education, now known as Center for Community Arts, expanded beyond its downtown Walnut Creek campus and opened its new Shadelands Campus on Ygnacio Valley Road at Wiget Lane in Shadelands at the site of the former Contra Costa Realtors offices. Center for Community Arts thrives as the regional center of arts learning, offering high-quality visual and performing arts instruction and educational experiences to participants of all ages.
In August 2014, the Walnut Creek City Council approved the creation of the Shadelands Property and Business Improvement District (PBID), a unified group of Shadelands property owners who advocate for and direct the future of Shadelands to enhance opportunities for economic growth, job creation, and park rejuvenation. The property district had been in the planning stage for three years, prompted by the leadership efforts of the Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau, in partnership with the City of Walnut Creek. The ten-member Shadelands Steering Committee is committed to a collective and cooperative process of working together with the City of Walnut Creek to improve the business climate, amenities, aesthetics, and value of Shadelands, a thriving and robust business and lifestyle center that actively supports existing and expanding businesses and nonprofits and welcomes new, diverse, and innovative organizations and commerce to the Shadelands community.