City of Walnut Creek

I’m surprised that Walnut Creek only gets a total of 3 stars. I live in Walnut Creek and I think its great. There are so many great shops, restaurants, coffee shops in downtown. Its clean and pretty. You don’t have city type problems here. I find the people to be nice and welcoming. Not snobs at all.
My kids go to elementary school here and we couldn’t be happier. The school system is tops and again the people are quite nice.
We live near downtown and are there often. Walnut Creek is a town of about 65,000 people and different areas have different feels. I am a huge fan of the areas around downtown Walnut Creek. (Tice Valley and Walnut Heights)
The reason I give Walnut Creek 4 stars is because there are a lot of old houses that are in desperate need of updating. It makes the town look less than what it is.

Ah, Da Creek. It’s hard to write a review of a city, but I’ll try my darndest. Like a luscious creek brimming with a multitude of creatures and earthly bounty, the city of Walnut Creek seems to boast a plethora of experiences and material offerings. From a robust shopping district downtown to one of almost every restaurant known to all, this city makes sure it has what it’s residents «needs» (using this term incredibly loosely, y’all!) to stay comfy and catered to. The problem I often find is that while Le Creekage tries to accommodate it’s bustling clientele with plenty of options, most of the shops and restaurants rarely live up to their counterparts in other areas. Everything from the Neiman’s they added a few years back to the Le Cheval on North Broadway dims in comparison to their other-​side-​of-​the-​tunnel counterparts, proving that you can certainly build it and they will undoubtedly come, but the experience may be less than the genuine article.
But there are plenty of parts removed from the bustle of shopping and dining downtown that I do enjoy, such as the sprawling Public Library. There’s also the fact that the DMV is the quickest one I’ve ever been to. Plus, my mechanic’s here! So you win some, you lose some. Like I said, it’s hard to write a review of a city, but you take the good with the bad. I think if Walnut Creek were a person, it would be my pretentious cousin Who-Shan’t-Be-Named who acts hoity-​toity but has the boldfaced nerve to re-​gift presents for the holidays. But, like Renee, Walnut Creek has good parts too. (I recently discovered said cousin was using her stature in the legal community to do amazing things for the underprivileged… No re-​gifting involved.) Again, you take the good with the bad.

I’ve lived and owned houses in many places in the Bay Area. I like Walnut Creek the least. Perhaps I should point to several things as examples, as other reviewers have done… but if I had to point to just one thing I would say: Here is where you can see all the negative influences of Prop 13.

Bunch white thieves here and extremely unfriendly government employees. Also watch out for meter maids officer P399. She waits near meter until it expires to give you tickets that is CASH grab. Dirty scums here.

Walnut Creek or as me and my entourage like to refere to it «The Dub C». I lived out here back in 08 and I liked it. Walnut Creek I like to also refere to it as the halfway point between being bored and doing something exciting. Walnut Creek in itself is a booming little city and suburb. It has most of the qualities that feel most look for when they want to visit a city.
They have a very nice shopping plaza with something for everyone. Seems now a lot of more upscale stores and boutiques are sprouting up here… maybe Walnut Creek is trying to go the Santana Row direction? Not that I do a lot of shopping in Walnut Creek, but I’ve notice the shift in downtown. They have some really nice sports bars and lounges out here, very competitive in prices at most establishments «1515 & Modern China» are ones I recommend.
Pretty nice restaurants out here too, usually you can find something for your taste, home to «Maria Maria by Carlos Santana» and «Stanford’s» you definitely have options here.
Walnut Creek has some of the best Parks and Recreation area I feel out of most of the surrounding east bay area, or at least from my personal experiences. On a nice day you always see people out in about enjoying a walk or riding a bike on one of the trails or even picnicking at the park «Heather Farms» is great. And sits in a great area, they have a pool and a tennis court here as well as pretty well maintained grounds.
In my closing, Walnut Creek is like a small taste of SF and Silicon Valley nestled in the heart of the east bay. Almost like they’re trying to bring more that bigger city vibe in a smaller scale. I feel that is what makes it a nice place but also takes away from the city because I’ve seen many small business operations that I’ve liked here get pushed out because the growing cost. But all in all something here for everyone if you know exactly what it is you plan to do and or looking to do. As always Unilocal your own experience.

Walnut Creek is good. As usual for Contra Costa County, it falls victim to extreme heat. There is lots of shopping and some good transit. The freeway does very often get crowded.
I have been here many times. Usually, I go downtown. With a movie theater, Ikes Place and Cost Plus, shopping is a total blast. There is even some nice parks. But traffic and unbearable whether which can be double digits more than Alameda County do leave their mark. Lafayette and Orinda are both miles nicer than Walnut Creek. Concord is just as hot, yet it is far more interesting than Walnut Creek.
Walnut Creek is appropriate mostly for shopping.

Seriously, after reading these reviews you people who put Walnut Creek down need to live in the San Fernando Valley for a month… you’ll end up LOVING Walnut Creek… just saying’…

I read the other reviews and I can understand why some of the them gave WNC such low ratings. Extended parking meter hours and high meter rates are not welcoming to visitors, especially the ones that come to enjoy the late night life.
Before Broadway Plaza was under construction you would think that every one who lives in WNC is wealthy by all the expensive parked cars, expensive restaurants, jewelry and clothing stores.
The real truth is, WNC is a community of mostly older people (boomers) who do go downtown too, but most of the so called «pretentious» people you see are there to enjoy the shopping and night life. People come to WNC to go-​out and to shop.
Walk through the shops downtown and you will hear a families conversing in a number of different languages. Yes international visitor come to WNC to hang out.
I believe all of the most expensive car companies in the world have dealership in WNC, such as Bentley, MBZ, Tesla and Ferrari.
Yes I give it a (Woohoo! As good as it gets!) rating. You can go to the neighboring communities during the day and find all the pretentious people you find in downtown WNC enjoying the scene.
The public schools are great by California standards, many open space parks and trails, Arts, public transportation, low crime and spirit of community.

Rich, pretentious white people & their much-​younger Asian concubines (plus the wailing spawn of those mercantile unions). By all means, eat & drink in Walnut Creek! Your white, privileged ass is gold there, and you won’t have any problems, as there is no crime there, and even if there was, the cops are off somewhere else, screwing around with drunks & potheads.
Everybody else (especially if you have a tan) go to Concord or Pleasant Hill. Cuz yo ass ain’t welcome in Walnut Creek.

Alright asshats, I’m going to vent right now and let you all have it, since all you Walnut Creek people are rude and mean.
In fourscore and seven years, I’ve never seen a city filled with so many God-​forsaken pretentious people. Have you no manners, or at least some sense of courtesy? You like to believe you’re superior to everyone simply on the superficial basis that you live one block away from Nordstrom; You also like to believe you’re from Stanford living in million dollar lofts, but truth be told you have none of their respectability (I should add, Stanford/​Palo Alto is actually home to some of the nicest people on this planet, but I’m more of a Berkeley person so let’s pretend I didn’t say that).
So here is some advice for all you angry beavers in Walnut Creek:
Get out more, explore other cities. It would be good for you. Meet new people. You’ll realize what a magnificent world exists outside of your bubble.
–Sincerely,
Abe L.

«Walnut Creek,» sung to the tune of «Shake It Off»
(My apologies in advance, T-​Swift)
This city’s really lame
Everything just looks the same
That’s what people say-​ee-​ay ooo ooo
That’s what people say-​ee-​ay ooo ooo
The parking downtown really sucks
And the roads are full of schmucks
That’s what people say-​ee-​ay ooo ooo
That’s what people say-​ee-​ay ooo ooo
But I keep cruisin’
Can’t stop won’t stop movin’
It’s cause I’ve got a caaaar
That I drive on roads that are really tight
(Clap, clap)
[Chorus]
Cause the Friscos gonna Frisc Frisc Frisc Frisc Frisc
And the Towners gonna Town Town Town Town Town
Baby I’m just gonna Creek Creek Creek Creek Creek
Walnut Creek, Walnut Creek, hoo hoo!
San Ho’s gonna Ho Ho Ho Ho Ho
And the Haywards gonna Hay Hay Hay Hay Hay
Baby I’m just gonna Creek Creek Creek Creek Creek
Walnut Creek, Walnut Creek, hoo hoo!
I never miss a feast
When I’m at La Scalla eating quiche
And that’s what they don’t see-​ee-​ee ooo ooo
That’s what they don’t see-​ee-​ee ooo ooo
I’m dancing on my own (dancing on my own)
At Spoontonic’s DJ «show» (Spoontonic’s DJ «show»)
And that’s what they don’t know-​oo-​oh ooo ooo
That’s what they don’t know-​oo-​oh ooo ooo
But I keep cruisin’
Can’t stop won’t stop movin’
Right on down the Iron Horse Trail
It runs through town and it’s actually really nice
(Clap, clap)
[Chorus]
Hey hey hey hey,
Just think while you were gettin’ down and out about the rent and the dirty dirty streets of the city
You could’ve been gettin’ down to this… sick… suburb
My good friend brought his new girlfriend,
She’s like «oh my god,
I just love this suburb
And its hella cool Target
Let’s all go to the Farmers’ Market»
So we all went over there,
In the Dub… Dub… C…
Yeah-​ee-​yeah-​aah!
[Chorus]

Beware that this revolting city runs their parking meters on Sundays.
When I complained to an officer over the phone about that, she said it’s marked clearly on the meters, but who looks at meters on Sundays???
$ 45 down the drain for no reason.

Walnut Creek’s impressive library has seen it’s hours cut (closed Sundays now!) and the roads needed repaving in most of the city two or three years ago. The police have a shiny new fleet of Explorers (which has become almost a requirement to drive on the broken streets). Though you seldom see the police except when they are giving your elderly relative a ticket for a burned out brake light.
A massive redevelopment of Broadway plaza is in progress while they have started a city-​wide $ 2/​hr parking rate (was free, just last year).
Time for a new city council, mayor and chief of police i think. Priorities, Walnut Creek?

I will not be be bringing my $$ to Walnut Creek. Received a parking ticket after 7pm in an area where most of shops are closed or reduced business (near downtown PO). Most cities in the USA stop charging after 6pm. No signage to tell people parking that the meter hours are «extended». Shame on you Walnut Creek. Shame on you.

Things that are great about the WC.
1. The Sunday Farmer’s Market –only reason these days that we will brave going downtown.
2. Outskirts of WC are beautiful. Avoid the downtown and you’re golden. Nice neighborhoods. Lots of open space.
3. Lots of great things for the kids. Highlights are the Lindsey Wildlife Museum, the Railroad Museum, Castle Rock, Heather Farms. All without visiting the downtown!
Things that are not so great about the WC.
1. Downtown. Don’t even think about parking illegally here. Be very careful about parking meter hours and getting back to your parking meter on time. The parking cops will ticket you if you are even 1 minute late. Also, think second thoughts about parking in parking garages because you may get hit by drivers who don’t seem know that you shouldn’t accelerate in reverse. I also wouldn’t recommend driving around downtown, because the drivers in general suck here. Come to think about it, I wouldn’t recommend walking around downtown either, because of the drivers… unless you have a death wish.
2. I’ve never seen so much plastic surgery in my life since my graduate school days in La Jolla. Also, in the downtown.
Avoid downtown like the plague and you’ll have a 5 star experience in the WC! Enjoy!

The pin and address are located at city hall and the police department. There is a small lot in back and meters on the front. The lobby is open with window a on both sides, benches, art and a few potted trees. If you need them there are some restrooms too.
There are a few self service bins for prescriptions and sharps and a police & information desk. The person before me was talking with an officer about a case. There is also a bulletin board listing city council meetings and items up for current discussion.
Overall the building looks nice enough and seems to fulfill basic needs. It’s also a government building and I ended up waiting a bit. This is why I mainly use the website.

I grew up in Walnut Creek and still go back often. It’s gotten a lot more crowded with people shopping and dining from all over the region, which makes is more vibrant, but it has lost some of its quaint small town charm because of it. If you want a taste of the «old» Walnut Creek, I suggest checking out some of the outlying attractions like the Old Borges Ranch, Shadelands Museum, or the Ruth Bancroft Garden, where it’s still a little country.
As a visitor, you can’t beat the downtown area for safe, clean, outdoor shopping and restaurants. There are a lot of upscale chains, but also independent shops.
As a resident, there is some downtown housing, but most of the housing stock is suburban tract homes from various post-​war decades. I mostly remember spending the entire summer in our backyard pool, barbecues with other families, and sleeping under the stars. Probably like many American suburbs.
The area does have tremendous scenic beauty, with regional, city, and state parks surrounding the city. For outdoor enthusiasts, there is tons of hiking, biking, golf, tennis, swimming, and other sports. Great place!

IMPORTANT QT: BRING YOUR OWN GLOVES!
This was a perfect day to work outdoors. Walnut Creek Open Space Foundation (WCOSF), is all volunteer service and their goal is to restore the habitat.
On the day we volunteered 3÷15÷14, we were assigned to clean around the area where the new trees were planted. We removed the wire cages, the plastic cylinder and removed all weeds around the tree. Some trees were planted there for more than 10 years. I later found out the trees are actually planted using a seed and not a tree already half grown. There were 3 types of oak trees planted. Some of them looked dead, due to the lack of rain, deer brushing up against them or little mice eating it.
We also saw some other plants being planted such as golden poppy and buttercups. The entire experience was fun. Great exercise climbing up and down the hill and meeting new people. I commend a lot of leaders who put this together as they are senior citizens. I hope when I get that old, I can climb hills without needing an oxygen tank.
The only downside I would say with this program, it’s not very organized. Most of the leaders did not know where the plants are, so we were circling around the area. When we received the email regarding WCOSF, I wished they told us to bring gloves. It made it very hard to do the job using our bare hands. I left here with lots of scrapes and cuts.
Thank you to Phil (our team leader) for the wonderful insight on WCOSF. Thank you to my honey for coming with me, I’m sure he would have preferred to sleep in.
Want to volunteer here: Email

«IN THE SPRING, AT THE END OF THE DAY, YOU SHOULD SMELL LIKE DIRT.»
Margaret Atwood, Bluebeard’s Egg
How true this is! I spent a wonderful winter day (is it spring yet?) helping out with the Live Oak Maintenance Project that is headed by the WCOSF. I had an opportunity to get to know two other board member/​volunteers as we worked up in the hills of Lime Ridge. Almost four hours of time in the sunshine and I was home by early afternoon!
The trees that we cleared space around are in danger of being attacked by rodents. However, the ones we encountered had nests of wasps all around the tubing over them, which we agreed is probably a natural deterrant to the rodents that target the baby oak trees.
Walnut Creek Open Space Foundation leads projects in each of the four open space areas. I intend to work with them again on Shell Ridge (named for its scalloped appearance.) Perhaps I will see the Oaks again when their leaves come back (both Blue and Valley Oak trees lose their leaves in winter so it’s hard to tell them apart.)
I worked with
to set up the volunteer hours for this group — my main contact with the WCOSF was Mr. Daniel, who was very helpful in getting me placed as a volunteer.

I finally drank the Kool-​aid. When I was in college I told someone I would NEVER live in a place like Walnut Creek. Flash forward and this 31 year old city boy is living in Walnut Creek and loving it.
After spending 6+ years in SF, 4 years in Berkeley, 1 in Emeryville (worked in Fruitvale of Oakland) and 2 in Larkspur/​San Rafael I can say I’ve experienced different parts of the bay area.
For context I grew up in Los Angeles in what I will kindly describe as very urban areas. I grew up in areas with gang violence, tagging and lots of police activity.
I moved to Walnut Creek in April 2012 and have a better grasp of the city now.
These are the things I love about the city:
1. It is beautiful. There is no denying the area is beautiful. It is clean and homes and apartments have done a great job with upkeep. In addition the city and citizens have done a great job of keeping infrastructure clean unlike San Francisco which is pretty dirty in many parts of the city despite higher real estate prices.
2. Walnut Creek owns a ton of open space. According to wikipedia it owns more open space per capita than any other community in the state of California. You can tell. I love taking the Iron Horse trail throughout the city and to neighboring cities. I’ve taken the trail as far as San Ramon on my bike and tons of people walk, run and bike it. Walnut Creek owns parts of Lime Ridge Open Space, Shell Ridge Open Space, Acalanes Ridge Open Space, and Sugarloaf Open Space. The East Bay Regional Park District operates Diablo Foothills Regional Park, and Castle Rock Regional Recreation Area, in Walnut Creek.
3. Despite being a fairly large suburban city (64,000 people in 2010) it has a small town feel but with the conveniences of a larger city with high end shopping centers and other stores you would need (Safeway, target, costco, best buy etc).
4. For those of us that work in San Francisco it has two BART stations: Walnut Creek and Pleasant Hill (technically in Walnut Creek). BART stations are close to 680 and 24 freeways so it is easy to get to other parts of the bay area.
5. «A plethora of shopping and dining downtown, with a free bus running up and down the main streets and back and forth to BART. Many of the downtown retail shops and restaurants have received «The Best of the East Bay» award from Diablo Magazine as well as high Zagat ratings and, of course, many with high Unilocal reviews. «
6. Walnut Creek is among the top school districts in the state of California.
7. The public library system here is awesome. Swing by the main library. You’ll be impressed.
8. If owning a home isn’t for you yet there are high end apartment complexes live the Avalon, medium priced ones like the Archstone and more affordable ones closer to the Concord/​Pleasant Hill border.
9. There is a huge farmer’s market every Sunday. It is bigger than the one in SF at the Ferry building. They actually shut down several city blocks for it to operate.
10. Demographics — While it has a reputation for being conservative that is pretty relative. For the 2012 election in Walnut Creek, the outcome was decisive. Of the 36,755 votes cast (an 84 percent turnout, by the way), Obama received 22,918 votes to Romney’s 12,718 in 2012.
As far as ethnicity goes it is 78% white. Latinos like me are at 9%. I haven’t had any issues here and don’t expect to because people are educated and don’t need to start trouble if you act like an adult.
The median age was 47.9 years so it is definitely a settle down to retire kind of place. Unlike SF you will see a lot of families and older folks.
11. I swear there is a Safeway on every block. You won’t need to go far for groceries. Trader joe’s and Whole Foods is also nearby though not as plentiful as safeway.
12. Easy parking. Unlike living in SF there is parking galore and usually for free (unless you’re at the mall around the holidays).
13. This is a cyclist’s paradise. With Mount Diablo in your backyard what’s not to like? Walnut Creek is also a great hub to bike to the Berkeley hills and around the San Pablo Reservoir (3 bears) and many many other rides.
14. The weather here is phenomenal. Over the summer it will be 65 in SF and 95 in Walnut Creek. It may be too hot for some but I love the warm weather. It is cold in the winter (high 20’s low 30’s) so it balances out.
15. Crime — it seems to be a very safe place to be. I am not afraid to walk around at night. Everyone has been very respectful and nice. This is anecdotal obviously but very different than my experience in Los Angeles, SF or Berkeley.
Last but not least I would say people are «haters». I worked hard to get to a safe place with nice homes and apartments. There is no need to hate on others due to them being white, middle-​class/​upper middle class and suburban. In the end we all want a safe place to live that makes us happy. To each their own but Walnut Creek in my opinion is a great place to live.