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foster city neighborhood guide · property nerds® at compass
Treasure Isle, Foster City Homes for sale, recent sales and a Property Nerd’s guide
Foster City's Neighborhood 1, inside the curve of the lagoon: ship-named streets, Eichler homes from 1963, the Comet Drive duplexes, and City Hall, the library and Leo J. Ryan Park.
Treasure Isle by the numbers
treasure isle by the numbers · live from the mls
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Calculated in your browser from MLS data for Treasure Isle (approximate outline traced from the boundary streets). Sales are single-family homes, townhomes and condos.
homes in treasure isle · live from the mls
Homes for sale, for rent and recently sold in Treasure Isle
Every active listing, rental and closed sale in Treasure Isle from the MLS, updated automatically, with a map of the neighborhood outline.
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Listings come from MLSListings and other MLSs through IDX and show their listing brokerage; confirm details with the listing agent. The map outline is the neighborhood boundary used by our listing search (Treasure Isle (approximate outline traced from the boundary streets)); it may not match every local definition.
the story
How Treasure Isle came to be
Treasure Isle is the city's Neighborhood 1, and it sits about where the master plan put the middle of town. Developer T. Jack Foster's 1961 plan for Brewer Island, a stretch of diked marsh used for salt ponds and dairy farming, laid Foster City out as a cluster of nine residential neighborhoods around an internal lagoon, with a commercial and government center and neighborhood shopping centers, per the city's general plan. The ground is made ground: the salt ponds were drained in the early 1960s, and about 18 million tons of fill raised the land about four feet over soft bay mud that runs an estimated 45 to 80 feet deep.
Houses came fast. An Eichler history counts more than 200 Eichler homes built in Foster City from 1963 to 1968, spread through Neighborhoods One, Two and Four; Neighborhood One's sit on ship-named streets. The lagoon was dug in stages alongside the neighborhoods: after the first segment opened in Neighborhoods 2 and 3 in 1964, the lake at Leo J. Ryan Park followed. Foster City incorporated in April 1971, and the new city council took over from the Estero Municipal Improvement District, which still provides water and sewer service.
The west side became the civic center: City Hall at 610 Foster City Boulevard, the library and community center, and Leo J. Ryan Park. Its last open piece, a city-owned 15-acre parcel between Civic Center Drive and Balclutha Drive, was planned in 2011 for about 400 housing units with shops and a public square; county records now show about 200 for-sale units there on Foster Square, Eppleton and Thayer Lanes. North of East Hillsdale, the Pilgrim-Triton light-industrial blocks got a 2008 master plan for up to 730 homes; The Plaza apartments were completed in 2013, and Laguna Vista's townhomes on Pilgrim Drive opened in 2022.
streets and homes
The streets and the houses
The street plan is a set of arcs that follow the lagoon. Matsonia, Lurline, Constitution and Polynesia Drives curve around the middle, crossed by Balclutha, Bounty, Niantic, Harvester and Chrysopolis Drives, and three fingers of land, Flying Cloud, Flying Mist and Shooting Star Isles, reach into the water lined with lagoon-front lots. The ship names run down to the courts and lanes: Goldhunter, Challenge and Eliza Courts, and Pinta, Nina, Santa Maria, Caravel, Chebec and Galleon Lanes.
City land-use records show about 612 single-family lots here, with a median of about 6,150 square feet (computed from county parcel maps). Add about 170 townhouse lots, many on the private lanes off Polynesia and Balclutha Drives, and 19 duplex lots on Comet Drive, the area the general plan designates for two-family homes. Condominiums gather near the civic center: about 207 units on Admiralty Lane and about 200 at Foster Square. North of East Hillsdale, Laguna Vista and its neighbors add about 90 more for-sale units on Calypso, Starfish, Argonaut and Atlantis Lanes, and apartment complexes stand on Bounty Drive, Shell Boulevard and in Pilgrim-Triton.
The Eichlers are scattered rather than grouped, so a flat-roofed atrium model can sit between a 1960s two-story and a full rebuild. Change on R-1 lots goes through the city's architectural review, which looks at scale, bulk, privacy, sunlight and waterfront views under the city's Architectural and Solar Guidelines. The Foster City Eichler homes page on this site covers the models in more detail. Streets named Lane are generally private, so their upkeep sits with an association, not the city.
streets in treasure isle
- Matsonia Drive
- Lurline Drive
- Constitution Drive
- Polynesia Drive
- Balclutha Drive
- Bounty Drive
- Niantic Drive
- Harvester Drive
- Chrysopolis Drive
- Comet Drive
- Pilgrim Drive
- Flying Cloud Isle
- Flying Mist Isle
- Shooting Star Isle
- Ranger Circle
- Goldhunter Court
- Admiralty Lane
- Foster Square Lane
- Calypso Lane
- Starfish Lane
parks and places
Parks, shops and landmarks near Treasure Isle
- park
Leo J. Ryan Park
About 20 acres of lawn on the lagoon with a gazebo, an amphitheater, a boat launch, tennis and basketball courts and picnic areas, per the city; a boat shed behind the teen center houses a watercraft rental concession.
- park
Boat Park
A city park at 899 Bounty Drive on the lagoon with a boat launch, a dog play area and picnic tables.
- landmark
Civic center
City Hall at 610 Foster City Boulevard, plus the Foster City Library and community center at 1000 East Hillsdale Boulevard, at the corner of Shell Boulevard; the library is run by the San Mateo County Library joint powers authority.
- shopping
Metro Center and Marlin Cove
Metro Center, the city's planned downtown, is across East Hillsdale Boulevard; the Marlin Cove center on Foster City Boulevard is about 0.6 mile straight-line from the middle of the neighborhood.
- landmark
The lagoon
About 212 acres and about six feet deep on average, it doubles as the city's storm-drain detention basin; the city raises it to summer level in mid-March and lowers it in mid-November.
schools and commute
School districts and getting around
School districts
Treasure Isle is in the San Mateo-Foster City School District for elementary and middle grades and the San Mateo Union High School District for high school (Census district maps put every home here in both). Brewer Island Elementary sits inside the neighborhood at 1151 Polynesia Drive, and Bowditch Middle School is across the lagoon in Carmel Village. Foster City has no high school; the city's general plan says the majority of its students attend San Mateo or Hillsdale High in San Mateo. Attendance areas change, so check the exact address with each district's school locator.
Foster City guide: school districts · San Mateo Union High guide
Getting around
- Caltrain: Hillsdale station (50 E. 28th Ave., San Mateo) is about 2.3 miles straight-line from the middle of the neighborhood; San Mateo station is about 3.3 miles.
- SamTrans route 251 loops through town on Foster City, Beach Park and Edgewater Boulevards, stops at the civic center and library, and runs to Bridgepointe, Hillsdale Caltrain and Hillsdale Mall about once an hour (timetable effective August 4, 2024). SamTrans also lists an FCX express to San Francisco.
- Freeways: SR-92 runs past the Pilgrim-Triton blocks with ramps at Chess Drive and Metro Center Boulevard and crosses the bay on the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge; US-101 is reached via East Hillsdale Boulevard.
- On foot and bike: the levee trail, part of the Bay Trail, is about 0.8 mile straight-line from the middle of the neighborhood; Foster City, Shell and East Hillsdale Boulevards are on the city's mapped bike network.
nerd notes
Buying or selling in Treasure Isle: what we check
Buying here
- Flood: FEMA's flood data show a map revision for Foster City (case 24-09-0381P) effective September 11, 2026, with these blocks in Zone X, an area with reduced flood risk due to the levee. The city says flood insurance stays optional for federally backed mortgages, but get a quote and confirm the zone for the parcel. The Measure P levee bond has been on property tax bills since fall 2020.
- Ground: nearly every parcel here is inside a state-mapped liquefaction zone (San Mateo quadrangle, 2018), which is what fill over bay mud looks like on a hazard map. Read the natural hazard disclosure and ask the inspector about settlement, slab cracks and uneven flatwork.
- Lagoon lots: city code chapter 9.52 makes owners maintain the lagoon side of their property. Check the bulkhead, any dock and permits on file; powerboats are not allowed on the lagoon.
- Eichlers and remodels: check radiant floor heating, roof and insulation, and whether past additions went through the city's architectural review before you plan your own.
- Condos and HOAs: Admiralty Lane, Foster Square and Pilgrim-Triton units come with HOA documents; read the budget, reserve study, assessments and rental rules, and check current dues. The city planned Foster Square as age-qualified housing under a Senior Housing Overlay zone, so read its recorded occupancy rules first.
Selling here
- Spell out the lot: lagoon frontage on the isles, the Eichler model if there is one, lot size from county records, and the walk to the library and Leo J. Ryan Park.
- Have the flood zone with FEMA's case number, the liquefaction disclosure and the Measure P levy ready so buyers and lenders can check them early.
- Pull the city's permit and architectural review history for additions, second stories, decks and docks before listing.
- Condo and townhome sellers: order HOA documents early (budget, reserve study, CC&Rs, minutes), since buyers usually review them during their contingency period.
nerd noteCommissions are always negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what's included.
faq
Treasure Isle questions, answered
Is Treasure Isle an official Foster City name?
No. The city numbers its neighborhoods, and this is Neighborhood 1 on the city's neighborhood map. Treasure Isle and Admiralty are names used in listing records; Pilgrim-Triton is the city's name for the blocks north of East Hillsdale Boulevard.
Is Treasure Isle in a flood zone?
FEMA's flood data now show these blocks in Zone X, an area with reduced flood risk due to the levee, under a map revision effective September 11, 2026. The city finished its levee improvements in February 2024, funded by the Measure P bond voters passed in 2018. Confirm the zone for any address on FEMA's map before you buy.
Which schools serve Treasure Isle?
The San Mateo-Foster City School District and the San Mateo Union High School District. Brewer Island Elementary is in the neighborhood. Check the address with the districts, since attendance areas change.
Where are the Eichler homes?
Mixed in along the ship-named streets rather than in one block. An Eichler history counts more than 200 Eichlers citywide, built from 1963 to 1968 in Neighborhoods One, Two and Four.
Can you take a boat out on the lagoon?
Yes, from the launches at Boat Park and Leo J. Ryan Park. Powerboats are prohibited; the city's lagoon page puts the water at about 212 acres and about six feet deep.
What is Pilgrim-Triton?
The former light-industrial area between East Hillsdale Boulevard, Foster City Boulevard and SR-92. A 2008 master plan allowed up to 730 homes plus offices and shops, and it now mixes apartments, townhomes, restaurants and offices.
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