Hiddenbrooke, Vallejo vs Pinole / Hercules (Highland, Benicia: buying a house, neighborhoods, buying)

[babelbay]

Hi, can anybody give me some info about the Hiddenbrooke area in Vallejo? I'm considering buying a house there ... and I know Vallejo has a bad reputation. But this neighborhood looks very tempty and is kind of detached from the rest of the city. Other areas I'm considering are Somerset Highlands and Glen Cove in Vallejo and Pinole-Hercules on the other side of the bridge.
Thanks for any advice !

[humboldtrat]

Hiddenbrooke is a gated community of McMansion homes built around a golf course. It's very nice but isolated from Vallejo. It's a bit of drive for shopping and other things. There is easy access to I-80.

[babelbay]

Thank you humboldtrat! Do you know anything about Somerset Highlands and Glen Cove? They are close to Benicia so it should be OK ...

[tanglenet]

Hiddenbrooke has a beautiful golf course, which was the first thing developed there. What happened is that different developers have tried over time, to build "upscale" tract housing, some more successful than others. As a result, some neighborhoods look cheap, because the developer was cheap. So, it's kind of a patchwork affair.

I would not live in Hercules. You have the oil refinery in your backyard with pollution and emission problems. Bencia is better, but is also subject to exposure to the heavy industries along the water there. Vallejo has financial problems.

[bayarea boy]

just like any city in the bay area, there are good and bad areas. Hiddenbrooke is the best part of vallejo, followed by Somerset and glencove. just send your kids to private school.

[tennis368fan]

Originally Posted by tanglenet

Hiddenbrooke has a beautiful golf course, which was the first thing developed there. What happened is that different developers have tried over time, to build "upscale" tract housing, some more successful than others. As a result, some neighborhoods look cheap, because the developer was cheap. So, it's kind of a patchwork affair.

I would not live in Hercules. You have the oil refinery in your backyard with pollution and emission problems. Bencia is better, but is also subject to exposure to the heavy industries along the water there. Vallejo has financial problems.

I thought the oil refinery was redeveloped into Victoria by the Bay?

[nooneknowsmyname]

Originally Posted by tennis368fan

I thought the oil refinery was redeveloped into Victoria by the Bay?

You are right. I live close to Hercules. When I first moved to California in the early 90s, there was a refinery in Hercules, The Pacific Refinery. But it was shut down and the land was re-developed into the residential community, Victoria by the Bay.