A government official from Sweden visited Pleasanton last week, and it wasn't to count the number of Volvos and Saabs on the roads. Instead, Anders Nylander, Director of Science and Engineering for Stockholm Site and Development Company, came at the suggestion of the Swedish General Consulate in San Francisco to review Hacienda Business Park, one of many developments he visited during a tour of U.S. business parks.

The purpose of the visit was to gather information on business expansion into the suburbs, and how this could best be achieved in the rapidly growing Stockholm area. Nylander spent a half-day at Hacienda Business Park meeting with experts in design, engineering, finances and marketing. "I was very impressed with Hacienda, and particularly with the planning and cooperation between the City of Pleasanton and the business development," Nylander said.

When asked his opinion of U.S business parks in general, Nylander said that be found "an overall lack of forethought and consideration for the capacity of the existing infrastructure. At Hacienda, however, you have been carefully considering how traffic can get in and our of the area, how it can best connect with the existing Pleasanton area and with the nearby freeways."

According to Nylander, the one Swedish business park that could be compared with Hacienda is Kista, a 300-acre, high-tech park being developed by his company with the support of the Swedish government. Housing is located just one mile away, a shopping center is located between Kista and the housing area, and there are buses, trains and a subway that provide transportation into Stockholm. "Most people in Sweden commute by public transportation," said Nylander. In making further comparisons, Nylander said that Hacienda's internal infrastructure and service facilities - like the continuous-internal bus route, bus shelters, bike lanes, Par Course and planned child-care center - are better and more complete than such facilities and services found in most Swedish business parks.

"It's not easy for the average company to understand the importance of careful planning," Nylander said. "We have a lot to learn from the Hacienda development and the American example of getting the job done." Nylander hopes to return to Pleasanton in five years to see how the careful planning has paid off.

To see a reproduction of the original article and edition of Pleasanton Pathways, visit: August 26, 1985.