Ellis Got Its Shopping Center in About Three Years. The Pool Next Door Has Been Waiting Since 2013.

"For the first time, you have incredible commercial development here in South Tracy," Mayor Dan Arriola said at the Sprouts Farmers Market ribbon-cutting at Ellis Village Center in early September. Tracy Press reported that a line of customers wrapped around the building before the 7 a.m. opening.

Two projects share this corner of town. The shopping center went from planning to opening in a few years. The public aquatic center planned just south of it got its land and money tied up in a development agreement, then in two rounds of litigation. In August the city and Surland settled. A judge still has to approve the deal, but once that happens the pool's schedule mostly depends on a budget decision the city council hasn't made yet. For anyone living off Ellis Town Drive, that is the most useful thing to understand about the next three years.

Thirteen Storefronts, One Confirmed Open So Far

The Sprouts at 2106 Ellis Town Drive is the anchor. Ellis's own announcement called it open as of September 7, 2026. The store has 23,300 square feet and, according to store manager Angel Tindell, a staff of 114. That makes it the largest space in the center by a wide margin. The next largest belongs to BMO Bank at 4,650 square feet.

Craig Ramey, a partner with leasing firm Regency Centers, told Tracy Press that all 12 of the other retail spaces are leased. He called the center "an accumulation of 3-plus years of hard work." Sam Serpa of Surland Communities, the Ellis developer, said the rest of the shops would open through the end of the year. As of early October, no source we reviewed confirmed an opening date for any individual tenant other than Sprouts. Here is the lineup by suite, from Regency Centers' Ellis Village Center site plan:

The two sources disagree on suite 130. Tracy Press names NT Nails, and Regency's site plan lists Open Sky Nail Lounge. Chocolate Fish Coffee's own website still listed its Ellis location at 2050 Ellis Town Dr. #135 as "coming soon," with no date.

The tenant mix covers daily errands: groceries, a bank, a dentist, haircuts, and coffee, plus seven places to eat. Ramey said the leasing took a while because the team wanted the right combination of "eateries and services and banks." Before September, none of these errands could be done inside the Ellis neighborhood.

Why the Pool Took So Much Longer

According to Tracy Press, Ellis Village Center sits on the north side of the aquatic center site. The pool site is at Summit Drive and Corral Hollow Road, at the entrance to the Ellis subdivision. The shopping center needed a landlord, tenants, and a lease-up. The pool needed land and money that a 2013 deal had promised, and both ended up in court. Tracy Press says the project "has been in the works in one way or another for the past 20 years."

The short version of what happened:

1. 2013. A development agreement required Surland to contribute $10 million and 16 acres toward an aquatic center in exchange for residential growth allotments. Surland paid $2 million. The remaining $8 million and the land became the subject of the later dispute.
2. November 2016. The city put Measure V, a 20-year half-cent sales tax, on the ballot.
3. 2018. The city named the aquatic center a major amenity to be paid for with Measure V revenue. That same year, an amendment to the development agreement put Surland in charge of designing and building the center.
4. After 2018. A lawsuit challenged the amendment. The courts struck it down because it allowed more residential growth allotments than Ellis needed, and control of the project went back to the city.
5. February 2024. The city sued Surland over the remaining payment and the land. Surland filed a counterclaim over the city's acceptance of an irrevocable offer to dedicate the 16-acre site.
6. August 18, 2026. The council voted 5-0 to authorize a stipulated judgment resolving both cases. It was filed the next day.

The city's settlement announcement lays out the terms. Surland will quitclaim the aquatic center property to the city through escrow once certain conditions are met, and will pay the city $8 million toward the center. In return, Surland receives fee credits and reimbursements for eligible public infrastructure, based on the actual value of those improvements. Both sides release their claims against each other. Tracy Press put the reimbursements at about $5.1 million, covering storm drainage, recycled water, traffic, and water improvements. The city's release said the judgment required court approval. We did not find a court order confirming that approval.

At the Sprouts opening, Tracy Press summed up what the settlement means: the city "now controls the timeline for the center."

The Pool Got Smaller Before It Got Unstuck

The design changed while the lawsuits were still running. Earlier plans included an indoor recreation pool inside a natatorium building. At one council review, Group 4 Architecture estimated capital costs at $67.8 million for the outdoor competition pool and the indoor recreation pool. Councilmember Steve Abercrombie pointed out that dropping the natatorium and moving the recreation pool outdoors would lower the cost, and he made that motion.

The city's Aquatic Center page now describes an outdoor competition pool, an outdoor recreation pool, locker and changing facilities, and support amenities. A lazy river, slides, a toddler pool and play structure, and a community room are listed as possible enhancements. The project budget is $65 million. Most of it, $55 million, comes from Measure V sales tax revenue and a small amount of developer impact fees.

So the pool that comes out of the settlement is a simpler, all-outdoor design. The lazy river and slides are still possible, but they depend on the next budget decision.

Since the Settlement, Budget Votes Set the Schedule

Two documents filed since August show the current schedule. On September 25, the city issued a request for proposals for construction management. The RFP says the current plan is to start construction in Summer 2027 and open the facility in Summer 2029. It adds that phasing and the final schedule depend on council direction, funding, bids, and final scheduling.

On October 6, the council approved an amendment to Group 4's design contract. It adds $1,305,810 and brings the contract ceiling to $6,971,071 for construction documents, bidding, construction administration, and closeout. The staff report says the amendment does not approve building every enhancement. Staff will come back with updated costs and a funding analysis, and the council will set the final scope and budget before the project goes out to bid.

City timelines in Tracy can move. In February, the city pushed the expected opening of the Tracy Recreation Activity Center and El Pescadero Park to Spring 2027. Read Summer 2029 as the city's current target, with the conditions the city itself attached to it, not as a fixed date.

What Comes Next on Ellis Town Drive

Here is the order of events as the documents lay it out:

• Through December 2026. The remaining Ellis Village Center tenants are expected to open, according to Surland.
• Pending. Court approval of the stipulated judgment, then the land transfer through escrow.
• Before bidding. A council vote on final scope and budget, which decides whether the lazy river, slides, toddler area, or community room make it into the first build.
• Summer 2027. Planned construction start.
• Summer 2029. Planned opening.

Of these, the scope and budget vote is the one residents can most directly follow. It will appear on a regular Tracy City Council agenda, and it will decide which enhancements are in the first build.

At Refined Real Estate, we're following both projects as they move along Ellis Town Drive, from the remaining storefront openings to the council's budget vote on the pool. If you own a home in Ellis and want to know how the new center and the planned pool fit into your home's current value, request your free home valuation and we'll go through it with you.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.