Peterson Ranch, Suisun City, CA

Peterson Ranch is the newest neighborhood in Suisun City. It marks the city's northeast edge and was its last major subdivision. Hovnanian started building in late 2002, and the 578 homes went up over the following years. The houses are mostly single-family homes with three to five bedrooms, built in the 2000s with open kitchen and living areas, attached garages and compact backyards. Because they went up in one long push, the blocks read as a single planned place, with the finishes and landscaping of that era. Two stories are the norm, and the floor plans lean toward bonus rooms and dens that can double as offices. Peterson Ranch Park and Patriot Park on Charleston Street are the neighborhood's own parks, and a 2005 city write-up counted three. Quail Glen Park and Samuel Goepp Park in Montebello Vista are within a mile for a different set of courts and playground equipment, and Tolenas Park sits just across the line in Fairfield. There is little to eat inside the boundary. Fatburger and Buffalo's Express is the one restaurant, so dinner out usually means heading to the Sunset Avenue restaurants in Heritage Park or into Fairfield. A Starbucks and a Bonfare Market sit about a mile away in Montebello Vista. Daily errands are drive-to. Raley's and the Walmart supercenter are the closest large stores. Highway 12 is the way to Interstate 80, and from there it is Sacramento one way and the Bay Area the other, and the Amtrak station sits on Main Street across the city. Nothing inside the neighborhood pulls in outside traffic, so the streets stay residential and quiet. Rush Ranch's marsh trails are a few miles off for a weekend walk. The cost of that quiet is distance, since the nearest cafe and the waterfront are both a drive away.