With over 1 million residents, Contra Costa County is the third most populous county after Santa Clara and Alameda County.

Contra Costa County has experienced two very large growth spurts, one in the World War II years and another over the last 20 years. By 2030, Contra Costa is anticipated to have over 1.2 million people living within its borders, or an additional 228,500 people.

Over one third of Contra Costa County's population growth since the early 1990s has occurred in the East County communities of Antioch, Brentwood, and Oakley. Considerable new housing also has been built in the south county Tri-Valley area, where employment is growing as well.

The predominantly blue-collar West County cities of Richmond, El Cerrito, San Pablo, Pinole, and Hercules are home to a concentration of oil refineries and other industrial land uses, pockets of low-income communities and the region's most congested freeway: westbound Interstate 80 on weekday mornings.

Jobs and housing are in relative balance in the central part of the county, including the cities of Concord, Clayton, Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill, and Martinez. Yet Highways 4 and 24 and Interstate 680 are often severely congested with commuters traveling through the area to regional employment centers in Silicon Valley and San Francisco.

Historical Development Patterns

Primarily an agricultural county prior to the Second World War, since 1940 Contra Costa County has experienced a population growth rate that has generally exceeded the Bay Area average over every decade. In fact, three cities grew by more than 50 percent in the last decade. Brentwood's population, for example, has increased almost 200 percent since 1990. As a consequence of growth in the postwar era, the character of most communities is oriented to the automobile.

Projected Growth in Contra Costa County

Since the adoption of policy-based projections, Contra Costa's forecast is based on a conceptual growth pattern that may be different from existing local general plans and zoning. It is expected that Contra Costa County will maintain roughly two-thirds of its rural open space and agricultural lands. Most of the County's moderate housing growth will occur in and around the existing cities, including the unincorporated communities of Alamo-Blackhawk and Rodeo-Crockett.

Moderate employment growth is expected in several of the County's existing employment areas, while significant employment growth will occur near the Orinda, Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill, North Concord, and Pittsburg-Baypoint BART stations.

New transportation linkages between Central and West County are expected to allow for significant reinvestment in downtown and urban core areas, while creating new housing opportunities for the County's residents.