San Ramon Office Campus Outpaces Urban Cores with Rising Employee Counts, Longer Dwell Times & Localized Commutes
San Ramon, Calif. (Nov. 6, 2025) – San Ramon’s walkable mixed-use campus, Bishop Ranch, is leading the Bay Area in return-to-office recovery, showing stronger momentum than both urban cores and suburban competitors.
According to data from Placer.ai, Bishop Ranch has experienced a 13% year-over-year increase in employees, with office visitation, dwell times and commute behaviors all pointing to sustained workplace engagement. At its peak, the Bishop Ranch campus welcomed approximately 25,000 employees daily. According to the new data, the campus has now achieved a 60% recovery—outpacing Silicon Valley at 49% and San Francisco at 41.8% (Kastle Access Control System data; percentages are weekly weekday averages and are rounded; data as of August 20, 2025).
“Bishop Ranch is proving that a thriving workplace can drive economic vitality across an entire community,” said Alex Mehran Jr., president and CEO of Sunset Development Company. “The strength of our return-to-office numbers reflects a dynamic environment where businesses, employees and residents all benefit.”
Workers are not only returning but staying longer. Average dwell times at Bishop Ranch now range between 322 and 377 minutes, nearly 96% of pre-pandemic levels. Some office neighborhoods within Bishop Ranch, such as Shepherd’s Glen, have exceeded 2019 averages, signaling that employees are spending full workdays on campus.
Commute patterns underscore the shift toward hyper-local living and working. Bishop Ranch is the only Bay Area market where walking to work has increased 11.8% since 2019. Short commutes of less than 10 minutes have grown 28.2%. Census data and commute maps show employees are settling closer to Bishop Ranch, with a pronounced shift toward one- to seven-mile travel distances.
Housing growth at Bishop Ranch is bolstering these trends. With 1,500 new homes in the near-term pipeline—including projects from SummerHill, AvalonBay, KB Homes, Trumark and Eden Housing—plus 400 units already delivered since 2024 and a total of 8,000 homes planned overall, employees have increasing opportunities to live where they work. Senior living options like Belmont Village add further diversity, creating a community where professionals, families and retirees can all share the benefits of a walkable, integrated environment.
The numbers reflect more than headcount. At the heart of Bishop Ranch is the mixed-use destination of City Center where retail, dining, entertainment and wellness amenities are integrated into the surrounding workplace environment. Bishop Ranch has become a hub where employees combine productivity with social and community engagement. Midday activity peaks extend beyond lunch, showing that the campus is being actively and purposefully used. Complementing these amenities is the Roundhouse Conference Center, a state-of-the-art venue for business meetings and events that reinforces Bishop Ranch’s role as both a workplace and a gathering place for the wider community.
San Ramon, often dismissed as a bedroom community, is reshaping its identity. Recently ranked No. 1 in Quality of Life in California, the city’s transformation—anchored by Bishop Ranch—illustrates the suburban model of the future: walkable, amenity-rich, and a place where return-to-office isn’t just mandated, but embraced.
For nearly 50 years, family-owned and operated Sunset Development Company has been a leader in dynamic placemaking, with Bishop Ranch standing out in the Bay Area office landscape for its versatile spaces that seamlessly blend work, collaboration and relaxation to enhance daily experiences. The office campus features expansive open spaces, scenic walking and jogging trails, a private lake and courts for bocce ball and volleyball. Additionally, there are over 60 onsite dining options, six state-of-the-art fitness centers, a conference center, a bike storage and repair station, Bright Horizons childcare center and regular 15-minute bus service to BART that is free to tenants. For more details, visit BishopRanch.com.
About Bishop Ranch
Owned and developed by family-run Sunset Development since 1978, Bishop Ranch is one of the country’s largest privately owned, master-planned communities and a $5 billion mixed-use, walkable neighborhood in the Bay Area. Spread across nearly 600 acres in Northern California’s San Ramon Valley, Bishop Ranch is where community, commerce and culture collide. A significant job center for the region, the six-million-square-foot, next-generation workplace is one of the nation’s largest office campuses and home to 25,000 employees with a dynamic mix of more than 400 businesses ranging from Fortune 500 companies to local startups. Bishop Ranch boasts an award-winning transit program and a steadfast commitment to sustainability. It houses the world’s largest multicampus solar and energy storage installation, with 80% of its energy produced on-site through solar power, striving to rely 100% on clean, renewable energy ultimately.
The heartbeat of Bishop Ranch is City Center, a $300 million, 300,000-square-foot, open-air shopping, dining and entertainment destination designed by world-renowned Italian architect Renzo Piano. With more than 60 distinctive retailers and notable restaurants, including The Slanted Door, LB Steak, Boba Guys and Fieldwork Brewing Company along with Equinox Fitness, the luxurious LOT Cinema and an inviting public square regularly hosting community-centric events, City Center is the cultural hub of San Ramon.
With an unwavering commitment to building the best suburban downtown in America, Bishop Ranch has introduced the first of several distinctive residential communities, which will eventually number some 8,000 homes. Also planned is a new boutique hotel, as well as restaurant and retail offerings throughout the various neighborhoods. For more information, visit BishopRanch.com.
All images courtesy of Bishop Ranch & Sunset Development Co.
