Congratulations to the City of Pleasanton on its recent decision to move forward and explore opportunities for a new civic center and library.  Chamber leaders are squarely behind the Council's direction to study the possibility for a new civic center either in the downtown or in close proximity, and which may or may not include a new City Hall because such a planning effort is consistent with our newly updated Community Vision, Pleasanton 2020.

One important factor however, seems largely absent from the discussion and the framework under which  a to-be-named citizens committee will operate, and that's an updated vision for downtown that includes thriving retail, dining and entertainment.

Since the 80's, there has been talk of building a permanent civic center to replace the current patchwork of buildings that includes a former school district building and portables reminiscent of grammar school overflow.

In 2001, the City produced a Specific Plan for Downtown.  A few years later, the City came close to embarking on a planning process for a new civic center and library when the economy went south and all capital improvements in the city were put on back burners. 

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