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Dame: Building Twin Creeks

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Published July 11, 2026

Dame Construction Company, headed by Carl Dame (pronounced dah-MAY), was one of the builders that shaped San Ramon's transformation from an agricultural valley to a suburban community. In 1968, Dame acquired approximately 100 acres on the western edge of San Ramon and began developing Twin Creeks, a planned residential community built across former ranchland and rolling hills.

Built out in successive phases over the following decades, Twin Creeks became one of San Ramon's largest residential communities and the most substantial example of Dame's work in the city.

Mapping Twin Creeks

Annotated aerial map showing the Twin Creeks neighborhood in San Ramon.
Annotated aerial map showing the extent of the Twin Creeks development and its successive phases.

Dame acquires the Twin Creeks property

In 1968, Dame acquired approximately 100 acres on the western edge of San Ramon from San Francisco resident James Kilpatrick. Contemporary plans called for about 70 acres to become subdivisions, with the remaining land reserved for commercial use.

By then, Dame was already an established Bay Area homebuilder. In July 1968, the Oakland Tribune described him as the builder of more than 4,000 homes in the region as he opened Danville South in Danville.

Planning Twin Creeks

Twin Creeks was planned as a large residential development rather than a single housing tract. Dame's plan followed the hills west of San Ramon Valley Boulevard, with residential areas laid out across the site's rolling terrain.

The property was intended to be built out over time, with individual housing tracts and named sections taking shape across the development. Contemporary advertisements and newspaper coverage use several names for these developments, including Twin Creeks, Twin Creeks West, Twin Creeks VII, Twin Creeks South, and Twin Creeks Hills.

Building the first homes

The first Twin Creeks model homes opened in April 1969, introducing Dame's designs to buyers looking for new homes in western San Ramon. Newspaper advertisements promoted the development's former orchard setting, nearby creeks, rolling hills, and access to Interstate 680.

May 1969 newspaper advertisement announcing the preview opening of Twin Creeks. Early marketing emphasized the development's former orchard setting, proximity to creeks, and Carl Dame's distinctive home designs as western San Ramon began its transition from rural landscape to suburb.
Preview opening advertisement for Twin Creeks, published in May 1969. The development introduced Carl Dame's vision for western San Ramon, marketing suburban homes as a balance of country surroundings, modern design, and commuter convenience.

Building a community

By the 1980s, Twin Creeks had developed into a substantial residential community with schools, shopping centers, churches, and a movie theater serving its residents.

By June 1986, the Oakland Tribune reported that Twin Creeks had built homes for almost 4,000 families. What began with Dame's first model homes in 1969 had become one of San Ramon's major planned communities.

Dame and Rancho Solano

Dame's development work in San Ramon extended beyond Twin Creeks. In southern San Ramon, he entered a joint venture with Kay Homes to develop the Rancho Solano housing tract.

The partnership did not last. After disagreements between the two companies, the joint venture was dissolved, and Dame ultimately took over the Rancho Solano housing tract.

Rancho Solano was separate from the Twin Creeks plan, but it reflects Dame's broader role in building San Ramon's residential landscape during the city's transformation from an agricultural valley to a suburban community.

Explore Rancho Solano, San Ramon: Kay Homes and Dame's 1966 housing tract.

The Twin Creeks phases

The Twin Creeks plan was built out in a sequence of named phases. The original Twin Creeks development was followed by Twin Creeks West, Twin Creeks VII, Twin Creeks South, and Twin Creeks Hills.

Twin Creeks

The first phase began with the opening of model homes in 1969.

Twin Creeks West

Twin Creeks West opened in 1972 and focused on cluster-style garden homes.

Twin Creeks VII

Opening in 1974, the Twin Creeks VII development included 130 view homes.

Twin Creeks South

Twin Creeks South opened in 1977 and included individual housing tracts developed during the later stages of the Twin Creeks buildout.

Twin Creeks Hills

Representing the final phase of large-scale development, Twin Creeks Hills opened in 1981.

Newspaper advertisement from February 1987 for Twin Creeks Hills in San Ramon, showing a newly constructed home with mountains in the background and text promoting a suburban lifestyle.
February 1987 advertisement for Twin Creeks Hills, the final phase of the Twin Creeks development. The campaign reflected how the once-rural edge of San Ramon had become an established suburban community.

Beyond Twin Creeks

Dame's development work did not end with Twin Creeks. By the mid-1980s, he was also developing Canyon Crest at Canyon Lakes, another planned community in San Ramon.

The development was part of a broader pattern of planned residential communities that transformed San Ramon during the second half of the 20th century. Twin Creeks was one Dame's largest projects, but it was not his last.

Sources

  • “More San Ramon Land Bought by Carl Dame.” Oakland Tribune, vol. 95, no. 98, 7 April 1968, p. 6-C.
  • “New Danville-South Offers Many Exterior Elevations.” Oakland Tribune, vol. 95, no. 196, 14 July 1968, p. 10-C.
  • “Twin Creeks growing in San Ramon Valley.” Oakland Tribune, vol. 115, no. 166, 15 June 1986, sec. G, p. G-1.

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