In 1997, Catellus acquired the land for an undisclosed amountand demolished the Pacific Refining Co., which had been there for30 years, and began a massive industrial cleanup that involvedremoving the refinery, eliminating the soil of petrochemicalcontaminants and cleaning up the groundwater. Although companysources decline to say how much the cleanup costs, publishedreports indicate the company shelled out more than $20 million.

Hercules, first developed 100 years ago as the home of HerculesDynamite Co., is located 18 miles from the San Francisco BayBridge, north of Richmond on Interstate 880 and in between Pinoleand Rodeo. The industrial community was not always a first choicefor homebuyers. However, for a community eager to catch up with theeconomic boom taking a stronghold in the Bay Area, the affordablehousing, compared with the rest of the Bay Area, is likely toattract homebuyers with its $200,000 to $400,000 price tag.

"I was there the day we first looked at the site. When I walkedthe property on the rainy, blustery day, I stood there and thought,'If you could get rid of that refinery, this would be the world'sgreatest residential community,'" says Tim Unger, president ofCatellus Residential Group.