Lafayette

Downtown Lafayette is the centerpiece of its namesake city, home to a community of around 25,000 east of the Oakland Hills. Elevated eateries, grocery stores and shopping malls fringe upscale enclaves of summer homes and cottages. This charming neighborhood in the hills is a true East Bay getaway. “It’s just the sweetest, cutest downtown. It’s got great restaurants and shopping, but it still has that small-town feel,” says Realtor Erin Martin of Compass Real Estate, a top Lafayette seller. Downtown Lafayette has a resort-like atmosphere that’s becoming increasingly popular as a commuter destination for young professionals seeking laid-back lifestyles outside the confines of bigger Bay Area cities. Lafayette’s downtown corridor draws people from all over the region who are looking for shopping or a night out. Retail chains mix with local shops like First Mile Cycle Works. Dining options are equally as diverse here, where locals can reserve a table at Reve Bistro, a classic French restaurant known for repeat appearances on Bay Area “best of” lists and in the Michelin Guide. Postino is the go-to for hearty Italian cooking, and The Hideout is a New American favorite. For groceries, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and Safeway are convenient, as well as Diablo Foods, a family-owned, independent grocer selling locally sourced, specialty produce. Public schools in Lafayette are a major attraction for young families who want to relocate to the city. Students can attend Lafayette Elementary School, an A-rated Bay Area institution where students consistently rank among the best in the state in standardized testing. M.H. Stanley Middle School also receives an A rating and is the No. 10 public middle school in Contra Costa County. Kids can finish their studies at A-plus-rated Acalanes High School, which has been recognized as a California Distinguished School for its academic excellence. Over 95% of graduates continue to post-secondary education. Apartments comprise a large portion of this well-positioned community, built up around the retail-dense areas of town. Quiet corridors with single-family homes stretch away from the downtown strip in Craftsman styles, ranch homes and split-levels dating to the 1950s and 60s. Many have been updated and renovated with modern amenities. “There are lots of summer cottages for people looking to escape the fog of the city,” Martin says. It's common for front yards to have brushy hedges and mature trees. Even farther from downtown, the streets curve and climb upward into the woodsy countryside, accommodating spacious homes on larger lots. Prices can range from $800,000 for a modest condo to more than $1.5 million for a single-family ranch style with hilltop views. Brook Street Park is a daily getaway for many, a compact natural pocket with a playground tucked away beneath leafy tree canopies. Downtown Lafayette locals can also spend an afternoon paddling a canoe at the Lafayette Reservoir, a forested recreational area with a fishing pier and trails that twist and turn along the water’s edge. The mountainous nature preserves at Briones Regional Park are minutes away, where hikers take on the bristly, brush-laden valleys and steep, grassy hilltops that tower above the horizon. The Art and Wine Festival is one of Downtown Lafayette’s top annual events, 27 years running. It’s the largest outdoor festival in the greater Lamorinda area, featuring hundreds of art vendors, four stages for live music and lots of local provisions. Downtown Lafayette is also home to the Lafayette Library, where locals visit for events like the popular Craft Buffet or check out the current exhibition at the public art gallery. “It has the walkability people like about city life,” Martin says. Many locals travel to and from social gatherings and days at the office on foot or bike, with the help of Downtown Lafayette’s sidewalk-lined streets and biking infrastructure on the main roads. City buses make frequent stops along Mt. Diablo Boulevard, and commuters can also catch the BART train at Lafayette Station, to just about anywhere in the region, from San Francisco to San Jose. Route 24 is also nearby, which runs through the Caldecott Tunnel, beneath the Oakland Hills and straight into Oakland.

Tucked into the foothills of Mount Diablo is Springbrook, a neighborhood known for its sweeping hillside views, large homes and highly rated schools. This sought-after community also offers relaxed suburban living with convenient proximity to major highways, BART stations and a trendy shopping and dining scene in downtown Lafayette. “People in this area tend to have a high standard and a higher net worth,” says Holly Sibley, a realtor with Dudum Real Estate Group who has been selling homes in the East Bay area for over 13 years. “It’s a very desirable area for the highly rated schools and the surroundings.” Springbrook’s wide, tree-lined residential streets wind through the hills. Homes are situated on lots ranging between a quarter and half-acre, with typical architecture being classic ranch-style homes, midcentury ranches and split-levels. Some homes are higher up on the slopes with views of Mount Diablo, while most homes are on ground level with mature landscaping, offering privacy and seclusion. Housing prices range from around $1.25 million for a 3-bedroom, 1,200-square-foot home to 2.5 million for a 4-bedroom, 2,800-square-foot property. “As far as the market goes, it varies from neighborhood to neighborhood,” Sibley says. “In Springbrook, it may take around 25 days, on average.” Students may attend Springhill Elementary School, which gets an A-rating from Niche, and then they may go to the A-rated M.H. Stanley Middle School. The A-plus-rated Acalanes High School offers extensive AP classes and career and technical education courses, including architectural design and medical technologies. There are multiple ways to enjoy the outdoors in Springbrook. The Lafayette Ridge Staging Area, which leads to the vast 6,117-acre Briones Regional Park system, offers light hiking trails among rolling green hills with backdrop views of Mount Diablo. The Acalanes Ridge Open Space on the neighborhood's eastern side is another 1.5-mile hiking trail with views of the valley. The membership-based Lafayette Tennis Club features tennis and pickleball courts plus a swimming pool, while the public Springbrook Pool, bordering the neighborhood, has playscapes and volleyball courts. Shopping and dining options are available outside the neighborhood, particularly along Mount Diablo Boulevard, which leads into Downtown Lafayette. Here, Boneheads Texas BBQ is known for its classic beef brisket within a Texas ranch-style interior space. Headlands Brewing is a popular spot for smash burgers and local beers. Metro Lafayette is further down the boulevard, offering a blend of California and French cuisine and ample patio dining, and behind it is Plaza Center with a Whole Foods for groceries and casual chains like Peet’s Coffee. Downtown also has a mix of local boutiques and retail chains such as Chico’s, and less than a few miles east is the open-air Broadway Plaza with big box chains like Target and Nordstrom. Route 24 and Interstate 680 both border the neighborhood, making it easy to travel around the city and outside to big hubs like San Francisco and Oakland. For public transportation, the Lafayette BART station is less than a few miles west. Kaiser Permanente Walnut Creek Medical Center is the closest major hospital, just under 3 miles east, while the Oakland International Airport is 24 miles south. Residents can enjoy numerous events just a few miles away in downtown Lafayette. The biggest gathering of the year is the Art and Wine Festival in September, a community favorite for 28 years. It features hundreds of art vendors, four stages for live music and food and drinks from top local restaurants. Other seasonal downtown events include the city’s annual holiday tree lighting ceremony, with live music and train rides, and a Halloween trick-or-treat event along Mount Diablo Boulevard.