Hilltop Mall

Hilltop Mall hosts pilot for futuristic public shuttle system

At the once-abandoned Hilltop Mall in Richmond, the golden Macy’s sign has faded, moss grows in the cracks of the parking lot, and vines climb the building’s vents. But if you listen closely, the rumble of excavators signals that new activity is starting here. A Silicon Valley-backed automated transportation company, with investors like Bill Gates and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, has begun building a one-mile test track at the former Hilltop Mall. The construction team is transforming the northern parking…

What is going on with Hilltop Mall?

Twenty years ago, the Hilltop Mall was the place to be in Richmond. It was a bustling shopping area full of life, and around this time of the year, it would have been extra busy with holiday shoppers. Today, the mall is vacant and isolated, stores are empty and dark, with only Walmart open.  But Hilltop’s owner says the site has a promising future providing three things Richmond needs: employment opportunities, retail space and mixed-use housing.  Prologis, an industrial real…

Hilltop Mall, Revisited: Developers Envision Nearly 10K New Housing Units – But Critics Worry Current Residents Could Be ‘Priced Out’

When Cesar Zepeda, president of Hilltop’s Neighborhood Council, met with investors and developers prior to LBG’s purchase, he emphasized the Hilltop community’s vision: a mixed-use development that incorporates affordable housing units. But while housing is needed all over the Bay Area, Zepeda said the new owners and the community need to be “realistic and understand what the Hilltop area is able to give.”

It’s not 9,600 housing units, he said.