Livermore Officials Honor Three New Downtown Properties

LIVERMORE, CA — Representatives from three occupants of core sites in downtown Livermore met Friday with Livermore Mayor Bob Woerner and the Livermore City Council at Stockmen’s Park.

Representatives from housing developer Eden Housing, the Shakespeare & Performing Arts Regional Company, and Quest Science Center received recognition from the city for their developments. Mayor Woerner presented representatives from Eden Housing and SPARC Theater with framed copies of their grant deeds.

Quest Science Center, which has operated a 5,000-square-foot plaza at Stockmen’s Park devoted to community science learning since October 2021, received a certificate of acknowledgement. Quest is leasing the land to build a permanent Science and Society Center in the future, the city of Livermore reported.

On Sept. 7, Eden Housing closed escrow on a 38,000-square foot property at the corner of L Street and Railroad Avenue where 130 units of affordable housing are planned. The proposal, which the Livermore City Council unanimously approved in May, has been mired in controversy and lawsuits since it began. Proponents say that it will bring much-needed affordable housing to the city, while opponents say that while affordable housing is needed, the specific site is not right and will increase downtown congestion.

Most recently, the state Court of Appeal approved a motion to expedite review of a challenge filed by Save Livermore Downtown, which opposes the housing. In July, Livermore City Clerk Marie Weber refused to accept an 8,000-signature petition to place a referendum on the housing on the November ballot, arguing that because the matter was administrative rather than legislative, it is not eligible for a voter referendum.

In May, the Livermore City Council approved SPARC Theater’s $10,000 purchase of a 14,000-square-foot plot in the southwest of Stockmen’s Park, according to The Mercury News. The group, which puts on the Livermore Shakespeare Festival every summer, is raising $20 million to build a blackbox theater anticipated to host at least 100 performances, rehearsals, training, cultural events and more throughout the year. Founder and Artistic Director Lisa Tromovitch told The Mercury News she expects the theater will be completed between 2026 and 2028. She also said she hopes the space can accommodate arts groups that cannot afford to rent space at the neighboring Bankhead Theater.

“There are a dozen Cultural Core groups looking forward to sharing their work in a small affordable space downtown,” Tromovitch said in a city news release. “We’ve received donations and pledges of almost 4 million dollars to-date and the design process is well underway. Purchasing the land will help us continue to raise funds as people see the project moving forward.”

Quest Science Center, a 5,000-square-foot shaded area on 29 South Livermore Avenue, has been the site of numerous events dedicated to promoting science and technology, notably the annual innovation fair. On Saturday, Sept. 24, it will host its monthly Science@Stockmen’s Park, which will host a number of engineering challenges like bridge and rocket building.

Mayor Woerner said that the three groups are helping revitalize Livermore’s downtown.

“The Council enthusiastically embraced their ‘Unified Design Concept,’ which beautifully blended the arts, science, our western heritage, historic downtown and support for wine industry tourism, while also providing much needed workforce housing,” he said. “Now that these partners control the land, they are focusing on securing the funding needed to build it within the next few years.”