Northeast Vacaville Awash With Development
By Amanda Janis/Business Editor
TheReporter.Com
Eileen Mosley/The Reporter
Slowly but surely, commercial development is taking shape in northeastern Vacaville. As the area gears up to serve thousands of households in the nearby North Village communities, the intersection of Orange Drive and Leisure Town Road is undergoing dramatic changes.
Not only has the adjacent freeway overpass been widened and revamped, but a series of retail establishments are taking shape, with one - a QuikStop convenience mart, gas station and car wash - already open for business.
Perhaps most visible, however, as it will abut Interstate-80, is the shopping center being built by Hearn Construction on the site of the former Hick'ry Pit restaurant.
The 14,000 square foot Leisure Town Plaza will consist of three buildings, housing "upscale food and retail" establishments. Property owner and developer Jayne Ham didn't return requests for comment regarding specific tenants, though she has noted the complex is slated for completion in February 2007.
Construction crews are also hammering away daily across the street at the former Beacon gas station on Leisure Town Road. Once completed, the site will boast a new Unocal 76 gas station, car wash and McDonald's fast food restaurant.
And, should all go as planned, the vacant lot in front of the Extended Stay America hotel will become an 11,500 square foot retail center. Already a sign on the lot proclaims the imminent arrival of a Subway sandwich shop and a Starbucks, which the site's broker, Chuck Krouse, notes will be a drive-through location for the Seattle-based coffee chain.
At present, however, the city's planning department hasn't received any applications for the parcel, said Senior Planner Peyman Behvand.
"Sometimes, for vacant commercial properties, some signs will go up saying a retail development will come here, but at this point there's no official application," he said.
Approval of a drive-through food outlet may take a bit more time to be approved, he explained, because it's considered a conditional use. Nonetheless, Behvand expects to see an application soon, which means the myriad workers and residents in northern Vacaville may soon have a slightly shorter drive for the nearest non-fat caramel macchiato.
Amanda Janis can be reached at business@thereporter.com.
