Timeline of Discovery Bay
1772 Spanish Explorers travel through East Contra Costa
1820 Trappers arrive in search of beaver, mink and otter
1900-1966 The Winhold’s and Baird’s of Stockton owned Byron Tract and reclaimed it for farming
1912 Reclamation District #800 was formed to build and control the levy system in order to reclaim what was then swampland
1966 The land was purchased by U.S. Plywood
1967 U.S. Plywood and Bixland Inc. propose to the county planning commission a development named Riverlake. The project was later renamed Discovery Bay.
1969 William Baldwin buys the project.
1970 The first lot was sold for $12,000
1972 A major radio ad campaign in launched staring Andy Devine saying “If I could be a kid again…” (Do I relate with that!) Also that year, the first home was built.
1975 With 100 homes, the Discovery Bay Property Association is formed.
1976 Discovery Bay Yacht Club is formed
1977 Ken Hoffman Buys the project.
1978 Hoffman builds models on upper Willow Lake and sells homes for $68,950 and the Discovery Bay Inn opens at the entrance to Discovery Bay. (I miss that place!)
1980 The official census reports 1,297 residents in 639 homes.
1981 Jim Plunkett is the honored guest at the opening of the new Discovery Bay Marina.
1986 The Discovery Bay Country Club opens on July 4th. Bill & Verna Clark are the first residents of the gated community. That’s Bill’s story and he’s sticking to it.
1987 The Discovery Bay Yacht Club moves from the boardwalk to the new clubhouse.
1989 Discovery Bay’s population swings dramatically from weekenders to 75% primary residents. Also the Discovery Bay Chamber of Commerce is formed.
1992 The Discovery Bay Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) is formed
1997 The Discovery Bay Community Services District is formed, taking control of water and sewer facilities.
2000 The “Town of Discovery Bay” is registered with the State of California.
2001 The U.S. Post Office opens the Discovery Bay Station.
2001 The first of almost 2,000 new homes is built in “Discovery Bay West”.
2003 The Sandy Cove Shopping Center is opened bringing shops, restaurants, a bank and most importantly a Safeway to Discovery Bay.
2006 The Lakeview Business Plaza opens at the entrance to Discovery Bay, bringing upscale dining establishments, a spa, and several in demand services including the best Real Estate office in town.
A special thanks to the Discovery Bay Chamber of Commerce for this information. Timeline information came mostly from Kathy Leighton’s book “Footprints in the Sand”.