Fremont is the fourth-largest city in the San Francisco Bay Area, with 230,000 residents across 90 square miles. The city was planned as a suburban “new town,” formed through the merger of five villages in the 1950s, As the city approached buildout, it began to rethink its future. In 2008, the City Council adopted a goal of becoming a national model for transforming an auto-oriented suburb into a strategically urban, modern city. The updated General Plan advances this vision while respecting neighborhood character, maintaining public services, and protecting the natural environment.

Barry Miller was retained by the City in 2007 to develop a work program for the General Plan Update. His role was expanded to include preparation of the Land Use Element, Mobility Element, and a new Community Plan Element. Working closely with staff and incorporating input from more than 30 City Council study sessions, Barry helped produce a responsive, innovative, and highly usable Plan.

Adopted in December 2011, the new General Plan accommodates 12,000 new homes and 40,000 jobs, directing growth to existing and planned BART stations. It also seeks to enliven the City’s Downtown Area by focusing growth in a new “City Center” with civic uses, cultural amenities, and higher density mixed use development. The Plan received APA Northern California’s Comprehensive Plan Award of Merit for a Large City.