Burlingame celebrates opening of new town square

“For me, it is a little emotional, because, as many of my colleagues know, this has been a passion of mine for about 16 years,” he said. “When I ran for council in 2009, it was in my campaign document, ‘let’s build a town square.’ Sixteen years later, I finally delivered.” 

Finally opening the town square to Burlingame residents and visitors is a testament to the city’s mission of growth, Brownrigg said. 

“Great cities — and I think Burlingame is a great city, maybe not a big one, but a great one — are either growing or dying. And for cities to thrive, they need to evolve and change and be ready for the next generation,” he said. 

Rather than shying away from growth, Burlingame has turned its downtown into a space for human connection, complete with restaurants, shops and now, a new gathering space. 

“What makes a great downtown isn’t really great parking, it’s great vitality. It’s great liveliness. It’s great restaurants,” Brownrigg said. “It’s seeing other human beings because, as humans, we want to be with humans.” 

Directly adjacent to the town square is the 220 Park development, which features 100% leased 185,000 square feet of office space in six floors, 17,000 in retail including Sweetgreen and Local Kitchens, and the restored 1940s Burlingame post office. Putting the post office back in place was no easy feat, Seres Regis Vice President Andrew Turco said. Seres Regis was the developer on that project, as well as a contributor to the town square. 

“There are always ways that parties involved can get bogged down, that those challenges can overwhelm,” Turco said. “But it’s a different type of city, a different community, and a different partnership, where everyone looks at the opportunities around them and figures out how to bring that vision to life.” 

The development at 220 Park will also add a high-end restaurant from Bacchus Management Group, known for other Michelin-starred Bay Area restaurants like The Village Pub in Woodside and Selby’s in Atherton, in the fall. 

“We took seriously that we were creating an icon and a landmark of downtown, that our building would kind of be the beacon and the landmark that would show people where to go for the town square,” Turco said. “And we took seriously that the open space that we were contributing to, collaborating in the design with, becomes a valuable resource in the decades to come.” 

Bringing the new, $6.4 million town square from an idea to real life, complete with a restroom, trees and a fountain, was truly a collaborative effort that took work from many current and prior councilmembers, including Councilmember Donna Colson, and Burlingame city staff, Brownrigg said. 

“Effective government is a we thing,” he said. “It’s not an I thing.”