Moraga Resident Hopes To Turn Hillside Into A Wine, Arts Center

Right now, it's grazing land on 85 acres of hillside that overlook Campolindo High School and the Rheem Valley Shopping Center.

However, if Moraga resident Roger Poynts has his way that hillside that contains the infamous painted rocks will be home to vineyards, a winery, a performing arts center and a public park.

"It will enhance Moraga," said Poynts, who bought the property in 1999. "It has something for everyone."

The Painted Rock development has a ways to go. Even though the proposal has been on the books in one form or another for a decade, it's still in the early stages of the city's planning process.

One of the first major hurdles will be a lot subdivision. Poynts envisions having 15 viticulture lots where individuals would own 1-acre plots with homes and vineyards on them.

Those plots would sit just north of a main 20-acre parcel that contains vineyards and a winery.

Also on the property would be a performing arts center, a dinner theater, an educational center, an amphitheater and an 11-acre public park.

There is some parking on the drawing boards along with some "caves" for barrel storages and other functions.

Despite all that structures, Poynts said 90 percent of his property will remain agricultural or undeveloped. He added most of the facilities would not be visible from Rheem Boulevard or Moraga Road.

Nonetheless, the project would still need some exemptions from the Moraga Open Space Ordinance because it contains ridges and hills protected under those guidelines.

Moraga Town Manager Jill Keimach said the city will take its time while studying the ambitious project.

"We're not going to rush this through," she said.

There's also traffic concerns on the nearby roads and scenic corridor issues.

"It's an interesting and desirable project," said Keimach. "The question is is this the right location."

Poynts said the Painted Rock development would help the burgeoning wine growing industry in Lamorinda.

He adds the project could bring in as much as $800,000 in revenue a year for Moraga.