ON THE SCENE AT SHADELANDS | | Joybound People & Pets Unleash the LOVE Festival & Adopt-a-thon, February 7, welcomed close to 1,400 visitors to its campus. Shadelands neighbors Primrose School; My Lileigh Pad Sensory, Art & Play; and Shadelands Art Center also joined in the fun. | | YOU'VE GOT QUESTIONS; WE'VE GOT ANSWERS | | | Growing up in the Woodlands neighborhood of Walnut Creek, Blair Stientjes knew where he wanted to set up shop when he founded TotalBenefitsCA, a California-based benefits brokerage firm that focuses on building benefits and retirement plans for small businesses. During his fifteen years as a 401(k) advisor and benefits consultant with a multi-national insurance brokerage serving mid- to large-sized businesses, Blair saw opportunities that were often overlooked: small business owners struggling to navigate the convergence of employee benefits and retirement planning, often dealing with multiple vendors and conflicting advice. After setting out on his own and establishing TotalBenefitsCA in 2023, Blair made the move from his Walnut Creek home office to Shadelands in 2025. | | The Great Tomato Plant Sale Coming to Our Garden in Shadelands: Saturday, April 11 & Sunday, April 12; Wednesdays, April 15 & 22 | | The hugely popular Great Tomato Plant Sale is returning to Our Garden in Shadelands the weekend of April 11 & 12, and the two following Wednesdays, April 15 & 22. Home gardeners do not want to miss this annual spring fundraiser put on by Contra Costa County Master Gardener volunteers. This year, shoppers will find more than 25,000 plants for sale, including 178 different plant varieties -- among them, tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, summer and winter squash, cucumbers, beans, artichokes, and other vegetables and herbs. A complete list of available plants is online, as well as a printable shopping list. | |
Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce Wins Top Award for Its Start Up Walnut Creek Program at the 2026 Western Association of Chamber Executives
| | The Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau has won the prestigious Outstanding Chamber Program Award from the Western Association of Chamber Executives in recognition of the launch and success of its Start Up Walnut Creek program, established in 2025. Start Up Walnut Creek aims to transform the Walnut Creek Region into a hub for innovation and economic growth by connecting East Bay and Silicon Valley resources. Start Up Walnut Creek's signature initiative is Funders & Founders. Held in Shadelands, Funders & Founders events bring together hi-tech investors and entrepreneurs for networking, investor panels, and a pitch competition with cash prizes. | | Signature Development Group Gets Final Approval for Mitchell Drive Townhomes from Walnut Creek Planning Commission | | On February 12, in a unanimous vote inside a packed City Council Chamber, the Walnut Creek Planning Commission gave Signature Development Group the green light on its Mitchell Drive Townhomes Project, which will bring 422 three-story multi-family townhouses to Shadelands in what is now Walnut Creek Executive Park. The project will provide much-needed residential housing in Walnut Creek, which is experiencing a housing shortage suffered by most towns and cities in California. Spanning 22.2 acres, the project also includes two acres of shared open space that features a central community area, rain garden, paseo walkways, landscaped and play areas, and a dog park. | | |
Neighbors Helping Neighbors in Shadelands | On Mondays and Wednesdays, Viamonte resident Linda Ault leaves her senior living home and heads north, one block, to Joybound People & Pets, where she volunteers four hours per week, greeting visitors to the popular animal welfare nonprofit and doing loads of laundry to help make sure shelter dogs and cats are safe, clean, healthy, and ready to be adopted. Linda also volunteers at Joybound events, such as the recent Unleash the LOVE Festival & Adopt-a-thon. |
| March Events at the Shadelands Art Center | | Center for Community Arts offers a extensive range of year-round arts-education classes, programs, youth camps, workshops, and community events for all ages. Two exciting events coming up in March at the Shadelands Art Center are Family Art Day, March 14, and Diamonds and Detectives, March 28, an immersive comedy fundraiser put on by Synergy Theater, the San Francisco Bay Area's premiere improvisational theater company. Proceeds from Diamonds and Detectives benefit the Center for Community Arts Scholarship Fund. | | |
A Rainbow of Colors in Shadelands
Know your farmer; eat a rainbow is a philosophy that combines two core ideas: Support local agriculture, and eat a diverse, colorful, and nutrient-rich variety of fruits and vegetables. The year-round Diablo Valley Farmers' Market offers a full color spectrum of fresh, seasonal produce including: Red apples, cherries, pomegranates, red peppers, strawberries, and tomatoes; Orange carrots, cantaloupes, mangoes, nectarines, oranges, peaches, and sweet potatoes; Yellow corn, lemons, squash, and yellow peppers; Green broccoli, chard, cucumbers, green beans, kale, pea pods, and spinach; Blue & Purple blackberries, blueberries, blue carrots, blue kale, blue radishes, eggplant, grapes, plums, purple cabbage, and purple potatoes.
Embrace vitality and the health benefits of eating a rainbow! Visit the Saturday Diablo Valley Farmers' Market, 9am-1pm, in the Kaiser Permanente parking lot at N. Wiget Lane and Mitchell Drive.
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