City Center Bishop Ranch plans wider San Ramon re-openings
Office workers also will return but face daily health checks
SAN RAMON » City Center Bishop Ranch, an East Bay destination restaurant, retail and entertainment complex, is preparing a wider array of re-openings in the wake of coronavirus-linked business shutdowns, the center’s owner said Monday.
“It’s been open the whole time, with curbside pickup and delivery, and now some of the shops are opening up,” said Alex Mehran Jr., president of Sunset Development, the principal owner and developer of the Bishop Ranch business park and the City Center commercial and entertainment complex.
City Center is currently open for in-store retail with modifications, curbside pickup, to-go services, with plans to reopen more broadly pending further guidance from Contra Costa County.
“In about two weeks, we will be fully open, except for the gym and the movie theater,” Mehran said. “One of the problems for movie theaters is the lack of a pipeline of product.” Movie and television production remains hobbled in Hollywood.
As the office buildings reopen at Bishop Ranch in San Ramon, arriving employees and visitors will be asked to visit health-check stations that will be located at each property.
“This program was created with one goal in mind, to protect the health and safety of all Bishop Ranch tenants and their employees as we begin the important task of reopening our local economy,” Mehran said.
A tent has been set up for people who are visiting
the business park’s various sections. John Muir health care professionals have trained the staff at the business park’s screening and temperature check stations. Non-touch thermometers will be deployed for the tests. Some stations began operating May 18, with more slated to roll out during June.
Sunset Development has been working with tenants — office, retail and restaurant tenants among those — to provide assistance with rents during a time that government-ordered shutdowns have erased or badly eroded the ability of businesses to generate revenue.
“We haven’t forgiven any office rents, but we have done some deferrals of rent,” Mehran said.
Of the approximately 600 office tenants at Bishop Ranch, about 110 contacted Sunset Development inquiring about deferrals, forbearance or restructuring of their rents, Mehran estimated.
Sunset Development has employed a case-by-case basis to determine an approach for retailers and restaurant operators, as well as for office tenants.
“With retailers and restaurants, some of that will be forgiveness of rents, some of it will be deferral and amortization for the rest of the rental term,” Mehran said.