Discovery Bay California
In 1968 I was in High School and My family lived in South Bay, Southern California. We moved to a new location that was amazing Called Indian Hills in Riverside County just outside a Town Called Rubidoux. Indian Hills was incredibly different from any part of Southern Calif. I had ever known.
There were horse Riding Trails behind 100 X 100 Foot Lots , terraced from the houses behind you so that
Views were available for most homes. Not only were there Riding trails, there was a small business that would rent you a horse for $2.00 per hour, and you could ride forever. There was a Beautiful Community Pool and Championship Golf Course to top that off.
There was also a Restaurant / Bar at the beginning of the Development called ” The Barn ” that Brought in high end Country Singers and entertainment at the time. I know that Andy Devine was promoting this development for sure , because I met him and his wife and also had dinner with him at the ” Barn ” Restaurant. I did not hear much about Andy Devine again until I saw him on TV promoting “Pollock pines”, another Remote location where you purchased land and built your Dream Home.
Fast forward to 1978, when I moved to Northern California with my Family. My husband took a job as a Realtor selling homes for The Hoffman Company My husband and I first settled in San Ramon Calif, long before it was anything , no grocery stores, no shopping, but Crow Canyon golf Course, Country club and housing was built and drawing many people to the area. Then a little development called Black Hawk Sprung up and became little Beverly Hills. In 1980 We Moved to Clayton to give my husband a lesser commute to the developments Hoffman was building and buying. My husband discovered a development that Hoffman was developing, and it was located in another remote area called Discovery Bay. We went for a drive to explore the area, new tract houses were being built on a large lake , where you could have non- motorized boats, kayaks, small sail boats for 1, and paddle boats. In another section of Discovery Bay Tract homes were being developed right on Deep water with direct access to The Delta. You could have a boat and a dock in your own back yard. It was unbelievable. The Hoffman Company purchased much of the Entire development and that is when So many things began construction., A shopping center within the development, a private gas station , as well as Drystack storage for storing boats out of the water. A Marina was under construction . A Boardwalk with Restaurant and shops was being developed as well. This area was about to explode and everyone knew it. My husband began to sell the homes in Discovery bay in 1981. We moved to Discovery Bay in 1983 to a house on the lake. It was amazing to have all this in your back yard. A Restaurant was built right at the foot of the Marina, as well as a Brand-new Discovery Bay Yacht Club which as always been a favorite for many Discovery Bay Resident/members. Soon an elementary school was developed within the community. An Existing Bar Restaurant that used to exist early in the days of Discovery Bay Became a Church for a while and then Local Resident and Dentist Mike Todorovich Purchased the entire front commercial Lot and Began to build his new dental office, Chiropractic office, new restaurant, and other commercial business offices.
On another site, commercial storage units were developed and we gained a New Church and private School/ Day Care facility.
What was Amazing is that Andy Devine was also promoting Discovery Bay in 1970 . History has it that Andy was taking potential developers, buyers, families to Discovery Bay by Jeep , to show them where all the new water ways were going to be developed. Selling Discovery Bay was not an easy sell, as this was very remote compared to any possible jobs. Just finding a grocery store within 5-8 miles was the task at hand. You learned to grocery shop before you came home from work.
In 1983 the ratio of full timers versus Weekenders was 40-50% Full timers. It was much quieter during the week. This is when A Slogan was developed by the Lions & Lioness Clubs which went Viral in Discovery Bay and still used today ” Live where you Play in Discovery Bay ” Some times our new friends were those that were only there on the Weekends. In 1985 We moved to our 2nd home in Discovery Bay, which was on Deep water, and we now could experience the full spectrum of Discovery Bay with a boat behind our house.
By 1987 Discovery Bay was Well developed, a New Golf Course was developed and designed by in hopes to attract high end Golfers to the community as well as Boaters. Soon so many custom builders were every where throughout Discovery Bay building as fast as they could. Lot Prices were going up quickly and Deep water Lots were now at Big premiums. The Real Golden egg properties’ now were considered two or three lots bundled together on Deep water or the Golf course locations. In 1987 we hired a Builder to build a custom for us on Deep water. We went from 1787 Sq. ft. now to 3000 Sq. Ft. and 1,000 foot deck and we proceeded to go boat shopping. At this point Discovery Bay is now 75% full time residents and 25% Weekenders. In 1992 the Discovery Bay Shopping Center was developed outside the compound of Discovery Bay walls. This was a much needed full service Shopping Center, Grocery Store, drug store, deli, Real Estate, hair salon , Video Store, sub way and Mc Donalds. The biggest thing was the new Gas Station .
In 1994 My Husband and I Purchased our 4 home in Discovery Bay , a Beautiful home on the Golf Course with stunning views of the Golf Course from Most rooms. We lived in that home for 22 years and loved Every year of that experience. Peaceful and serene. Living in Discovery Bay was a dream come true for our family and I can tell you for every family that moved to Discovery Bay after that. You were always able to see the Cloud formations, the Sunrise or the Sunset depending on your home location. Because we did not have fences in most of our back yards, and the water separated us from the next street by several hundred feet or more, the View are unbelievable by most. Even if you have lived in Discovery Bay for years, You NEVER get tired of that view. Let just say it is a lot like going to Hawaii, and seeing that ocean and those sunsets, That is exactly what you get in Discovery Bay Daily. It is not the ocean, but it does not matter, you still feel the same with the Clouds, sun and Water always unobstructed. On a perfect Day , you could go out water skiing early morning when by the way the water is like glass, and spend an hour doing something before work you might dream of doing once in a while on a special weekend. That is exactly why they call it “Living where you play” You can come home from work and take little boat cruise and see other homes, other boats and feel like your on vacation and your 5 min. from your own Dock. Does everyone live on the water, No , not everyone, Some people live on the Extra large Man made lake, where you still have no fences and your home is still on the water and in our case we brought in Sand and created a beach front in our own back yard. You could get in your paddle boat, or mini sail boat or kayak and move around at your own pace on the lake. Others have their boats in a Dry Stack Storage, which means you do not have to have your boat in the water all the time, it is pulled out when you finish using the boat then a fork lift Places your boat on a shelf ” Kind of like a larger Costco Shelf, but in a much grander way. “There is a beautiful Golf Course developed in Discovery Bay. The Beauty of this Course is that if you live in the Golf Course Gated Community You have a home on the course. Unlike many golf course communities that you may live in that Golf course gated or non gated community but not actually have your home on the course with any view of the course.. So Discovery Bay Golf Course offer that benefit. But keep in mind not all lots offer the same views, spacing , facing , play on the course or in some cases not really on the playing course. Even if you Live in the Golf course community, You still have to separately join if you want to join the County Club and have the benefit of all the Social functions that the County Club puts on Monthly and annually. Golf Tournaments, Holiday Dinners, Wine Tasting Events, and many Outdoor concerts to please the summer Crowds.
As a Boat owner , big or small , you also have the options of joining the Discovery Bay Yacht club, which is a beautiful club located on the Water, however , you rarely see the water from this club. Many weekly functions, Fri Nights at the club are very popular with membership because they bring in live Bands on Fridays or a DJ, or some form of music to entertain their members. Drinks are well priced and Membership is always open to new possibilities. Food is served at the club, need to check calendars to make sure you know who is cooking and what is being served. Members can bring guests and the New Years Eve Party is always a lot of fun. Once you live an experience Discovery Bay as a way of living, it makes it difficult to move to other locations that do not offer all the possibilities of Living where you play as Discovery Bay Does. I have lived in Discovery Bay since 1983 37 years and I have lived in 5 different houses. Today in 2020 the residency is more like 75 % Full timers and 25% Weekenders.
This community is about comradery and Friends and socializing. If you live in Discovery Bay You will befriend 30 people very soon. A Giant Family all within the confines of ” Discovery Bay” Living on the Delta offers you the opportunity to Hop on the Boat (in your back yard) and go to Breakfast, or go to lunch , or go all the way to Sacramento or San Francisco via Delta Water Ways. There are Boating clubs that have a destination trip and overnight stay as a club at one of many Yacht Clubs on the Delta and or other Marinas that may be on the way to where your destination is located. There are cocktails, Games, Music Dancing . Always a good time
About the Author – Discovery Bay Real Estate Agent Debbie Read-Klug
Debbie Landrum Maiden name, Married Name Debbie Read-Klug . Born in Kansas and Raised in Southern Went to 3 different High Schools and Graduated from Ramona High School in Riverside. Attended River City College for General Ed. Moved to Palos Verdes and then to San Pedro Ca. Divorced and Remarried Paul Read and relocated with him to Northern California San Ramon Cali f. California Married Paul Read and moved to Northern California . I raised my 3 children in the Northern California area.
Attended Real Estate School and Many Real estate Law Classes. Obtained my License in 1986 . I needed a real Estate License to become a Mortgage Lender. I worked in Lending for 30 years. I am now 100% Realtor and I am also known as a home Stager / Decorator. I love the art of putting a room together, it is so much fun for me, I hardly call it work. I have taught a few into into Basic Design
I am very creative and love art in any form. I am never board, because I always have a project to work on.
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