Windemere: Named Associations, Not One Master

Windemere is the other Dougherty Valley village in east San Ramon. Buyers often hear “no HOA” or “one Windemere HOA” in the same week. The City of San Ramon HOA map supports neither slogan. It lists named Windemere associations. It does not publish one master HOA for the whole village.

For the high-level Gale Ranch vs Windemere frame, start with the Dougherty Valley guide. This page stays on Windemere and compares structure, not dues. It does not name a winner.

Where Windemere sits

The City of San Ramon Development Engineering page describes Dougherty Valley as a master-planned community of about 11,000 units, approved in 1994 by Contra Costa County. The two developers named there are Shapell Industries and Windemere BLC. The county processed the applications. The city later accepted public improvements (roads, parks, trails, drainage, and community facilities) for maintenance.

The Dougherty Valley Specific Plan was adopted by the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors on August 2, 2005, and amended on February 11, 2014. Those are planning documents, not a price list. For current sales context, use the San Ramon market report.

Windemere is one village inside that plan. Gale Ranch is the other. Twin Creeks is a different, older San Ramon neighborhood west of Dougherty Road. Do not treat those three names as interchangeable.

City Planning treats Dougherty Valley as a unique community with its own zoning and design guidelines. For an addition or accessory structure, call Planning Services at (925) 973-2560 and ask for the Dougherty Valley rules, not the citywide default (Community Development FAQs).

Multiple associations, not one master

The city HOA map lists Windemere associations that include Canadoro at Windemere, Chambray (Windemere), Fioli Windemere, Shelbourne @ Windemere, and Wyngate at Windemere Owners Association. Use the current map for the address.

Windemere is not published as one single master HOA on that map. Rules and dues follow the named association on title. A listing that says “Windemere” or “HOA: No” is a remark, not a title report. Ask for the current budget, CC&Rs, and any special assessment notice before you remove an HOA contingency. I do not quote dues.

Compare Gale Ranch without inventing a number

Gale Ranch publishes a master HOA for seven neighborhoods (Avanti, Belvedere, Coronado, Gallery, Monarch, Solaire, and Terravista). The honest comparison is not “HOA vs no HOA.” It is: which association name, if any, is on each title; what that packet says this year; and what the current Contra Costa tax bill shows for CFD lines. I will not publish a village-wide dues figure.

I will not say Windemere is cheaper to own or that Gale Ranch is “more HOA.” Add the named association’s current assessment to the current tax bill for each address. For the side-by-side frame, use the Dougherty Valley guide.

Schools: SRVUSD locator, not the village name

Windemere is in San Ramon Valley Unified. Do not use reputation charts or third-party ratings to pick a street. Use the SRVUSD School Site Locator and the published boundary maps. The district states that growth can mean a student may not attend the resident school. Assignment is confirmed at enrollment.

Official maps and school pages show, without assigning your address:

• High school. Dougherty Valley High School is the comprehensive high school located in the plan area.
• Middle school. Windemere Ranch Middle School is at 11611 East Branch Parkway, San Ramon 94582. Gale Ranch Middle School is at 6400 Main Branch Road. Those campus addresses are location facts. Your assigned middle school is still the locator result, not the village name.
• Elementary. Coyote Creek, Hidden Hills, Quail Run, and Live Oak appear in the Dougherty Valley / 94582 area on the official district map. Which campus serves a house is address-specific.

Parks and trails the city names here

The city names Six Pillars Park (12219 Windemere Parkway, 2.74 acres), Windemere Ranch School Park, East Branch Park, Hidden Valley Park, and Tassajara Ridge Staging Area on this side of the valley. Trails include Windemere Ridge, Rolling Hills, and Tassajara Ridge. That is not a promise a lot backs to a trail.

Hillside open space around Dougherty Valley is in the Dougherty Valley GHAD. Owners inside the GHAD boundary pay an annual assessment. That line is separate from HOA dues and from any CFD tax.

Mello-Roos and the tax bill

Many Dougherty Valley homes are in a CFD, commonly called Mello-Roos. Special taxes appear on the Contra Costa County secured tax bill. A parcel can be in more than one district. Amounts, escalators, and end dates sit in each district’s Rate and Method of Apportionment. There is no single Windemere tax figure that is safe to publish.

Read the current bill for the APN, then the preliminary title report. Compare two list prices only after those lines are on the table.

Next steps

1. Confirm the named association (or the absence of one) on the city HOA map and on title.
2. Look up schools on the SRVUSD School Site Locator.
3. Request the resale packet if there is an association on title.
4. Read the current Contra Costa tax bill for CFD and other special-tax lines.
5. For sales context, open the San Ramon market report. For a specific Windemere address, start with a consultation.