Walnut Tree Painting on Front Entrance of Ascent to Welcome Residents, Visitors

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. – Oct. 30, 2015 – Downtown Walnut Creek wasn’t always home to popular restaurants, high-end retail stores and entertainment destinations. It was once open space lined with a natural blend of the Oak trees and majestic Walnut trees that gave the city its name.

The picturesque scene from the past is what Leo Bersamina, professional artist and professor of art at Diablo Valley College, is injecting back into downtown Walnut Creek with his newest public art piece that will make up the front entrance of the Ascent Walnut Creek apartment community. The piece, which is a two-layered archival print between two pieces of glass fixed into a storefront entrance that can be seen from inside and outside of the apartment community, will be unveiled at 6 p.m. on Nov. 5 as part of Mill Creek Residential’s grand opening ceremony for the apartment community.

“I wanted to take the history of the neighborhood and the more contemporary landscape and blend them together,” Bersamina said of his piece titled Warming up in California. “I drew these trees, scanned them in and manipulated them to be made into the windows and overlayed a creative sense of warmth and welcoming that both residents and passersby could enjoy.”

The idea was the result of Bersamina asking his students and friends living in the Walnut Creek area about what drew them to the area.

“Most people spoke to the surrounding nature and landscape, the oak trees and the walnut trees,” he adds. “I grew up on the coast so what drew me here was the was the sense of warmth, as it’s always 20 degrees warmer than where I grew up.”

Mill Creek selected Bersamina’s piece with guidance from Artsource Consulting out of San Francisco from an original pool of seven pieces from different artists, because it integrated well into the architecture of Ascent Walnut Creek, enhanced the visual identity of the community and added to the cultural landscape of the city.

What drew Mill Creek Residential to develop the apartment community in the area was downtown Walnut Creek’s extensive array of pedestrian-friendly amenities. Ascent Walnut Creek, which offers 126 apartment homes, is within steps of hundreds of professional jobs at the corporate offices along Main Street – including Wells Fargo Advisors, Global Capital Markets and Fidelity Investments – as well as blocks from the Walnut Creek BART station offering metro service to Downtown San Francisco.

“Today’s apartment resident wants easy access to everything they need to live, work and play without necessarily having to get into a car and drive,” says Dave Fiore, managing director of Northern California for Mill Creek Residential. “Ascent Walnut Creek gives them exactly that with its close proximity to public transportation and its location in the midst of Walnut Creek’s best. The addition of Leo’s extraordinary piece even further enhances what it truly means to live in the incredible City of Walnut Creek.”

That’s not to mention the vast array of popular restaurants, retailers and entertainment destinations. Among the nearby attractions are The Lesher Center for the Arts, Blu42 Sports Bar and the eclectic mix of restaurants and shops along Main Street.

Inside the Ascent Walnut Creek apartment community is a host of lifestyle-enhancing features and amenities. Residents will have access to a fitness studio, stunning pool area with a large sundeck as well as an on-site car share program, electric car charging stations and multiple social hangout zones.

The apartment homes are also filled with upscale features and finishes, including open floor plans with high volume ceilings, wood plank-style flooring, walk-in closets and large balconies or terraces.