"SAN RAMON - The Golden Skate's smooth rink and cosmic carpets helped Shayan Khosravanifarahani relearn how to balance on eight wheels - the perfect "controlled environment," he said, to strap on roller skates for the first time in years. It's also one of the few places he can revisit teenage memories of growing up in San Ramon. The 33-year-old has returned to the half-century-old rink nearly every Wednesday night for the past few months, worried the welcoming community inside isn't going to last."
"Three years ago, with development plans looming, The Golden Skate's owner Hassan Sharifi vowed to remain open "indefinitely" after receiving an overwhelming outpouring of support for one of the last two roller rinks in Contra Costa County and the greater East Bay. By that time, the 3.5-acre property had already been in limbo for two years after San Ramon's Planning Commission approved Sharifi's pitch for Windflower Fields, a 47-townhome development in eight three-story buildings on his land near Interstate 680 and the Diablo mountain range."
"Progress, however, has rolled to a halt on the infill project, which was granted an 18-month extension in December. Roller skaters have Mother Nature to thank for the ongoing delay. After torrential rainstorms in early 2023 triggered a landslide just west of the roller rink, some of that loose dirt rolled down onto the Golden Skate property at 2701 Hooper Drive - sparking an ongoing dispute over cleanup of the private, open hillside."
The Golden Skate in San Ramon functions as a nostalgic community hub where longtime patrons return weekly to skate and preserve social ties. Owner Hassan Sharifi vowed to keep the rink open after local support, even as city approval advanced for Windflower Fields, a 47-townhome project on the 3.5-acre site. Construction stalled after early 2023 storms triggered a landslide that deposited dirt onto the rink property, creating a dispute over responsibility for cleanup. The development received an 18-month extension while legal and remediation issues between Sharifi and neighboring property owners remain unresolved.
Read at The Mercury News
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