The Splash Pad Farmers Market Advisory Committee chaired by Jerry Barclay meets tomorrow night (Wednesday, Jan 20) at 7 PM in the Library at Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church. Jerry has scheduled a very full agenda.
Lakeshore Complete Streets Improvement Project In our December newsletter, we helped publicize a meeting to discuss the Lakeshore Complete Streets Project which is slated to begin construction in early 2011. Pat Kernighan's newslettter late last week included a detailed summary of what transpired as well as a link to the three different conceptual drawings presented by the landscape architect from Sasaki Design. An additional community meeting on this subject will likely be scheduled shortly. Grand Lake Entertainment Calendar I'm pleased to announce that the Splash Pad Entertainment Calendar is currently up to date--but at the same time, ashamed to admit that this is the first time I could say that in close to a year. Unfortunately, my skills in writing html code are stretched to the limit by this task and it takes me far too long. Any volunteers with the necessary skills out there willing to give a hand? Merchant News Quite a few of the venues that had been listed in the outdated Entertainment Calendar have closed including La Taza and the Serenader. The former has been replaced by Taste of Joy which has recorded jazz, but no live entertainment. The latter has been undergoing a major renovation including a much-needed paint job. According to the new owners, Erik and Allison Sadauskas, it should reopen sometime in February with a new moniker--the Heart & Dagger Saloon. Their aim is to create a neighborhood bar with a rock and roll theme. Another establishment scheduled to open in February is an Ethiopian restaurant called Yayu which is moving into the space on Lakeshore vacated by Vine. We received a lovely email from the owners which said in part: As a family owned restaurant, we strive to provide authentic Ethiopian cuisine in a warm, vegetarian-friendly and casual setting. Our kitchen imports most of its spices from Ethiopia to re-create Ethiopia's favorite dishes that include a range of vegetarian and meat entrees. Our goal is to introduce Ethiopian history and culture and provide quality service that is well worth every penny our costumer spends at Yayu. We look forward to serving this community. The building next to Milano Restaurant that had been sadly neglected for several years has been restored and is now the new studio for the La Tania Baile Flamenco group as well as the residence of its director, Tania Leullieux. Gelato Firenze which was closed for the month of December has re-opened and has added gourmet cupcakes created by one of Ashley's friends to her mouth-watering menu. When I was there, three flavors were available including Pumpkin Cheesecake and Dulce de Leche with Carmel Mousse frosting. The Mimosa Cafe has recently closed and, according to a source at the Soleil Tanning Salon, it will also reopen shortly under new ownership. The rapid turnover of properties that already have established kitchens or bar facilities (as is the case with the Serenader, Mimosa and Vine) is part of a pattern that has been ongoing for well over a year. To that list, you can Taste of Joy, Boot & Shoe Service and Lanesplitter Pizza. Meanwhile, the retail sector has continued to struggle mightily with the number of recently failed businesses continuing to accumulate leaving behind a fairly high number of vacancies. New Fangles has just closed as they are moving to a new location. And after 20 years on Lakeshore, Papyrus put up a "Going Out of Business" banner--a decision that was chronicled in an article in the Contra Costa Times. Farmers Market News The Grand Lake Market is in its typical mid-winter lull with fewer vendors and smaller crowds--particularly when it's cold and/or wet. But, this time of year, the greens are as lush and tasty as they'll ever get--not to mention the persimmons, citrus and asian pears. We were disappointed to learn that Phat Matt's BBQ will not be returning to the market anytime soon as the demands of their new restaurant at 3415 Telegraph are simply too great. If you stop in for lunch or dinner, take advantage of all the free, off-street parking in the lots behind the restaurant and across the street from Neldham's--even though they're marked "No Parking". Matt and Charlene assured me it's OK. Despite the gray skies and occasional rains, the market continues to attract talented musicians. Several weeks ago, Michael Saga showed up singing in French while cranking his antique barrel organ. Everybody in the Fleur de Lyon and the Fabrique Delices booths were wearing big smiles listening to music that reminded them of growing up in France. A couple of weeks later, neighborhood resident, Keenan Webster played to a very appreciative audience and this past week, Layce Baker and his Black Diamond Blues Band proved they still have what it takes to warm up a crowd--even in mid-January. More Photos I have to confess that after a few years photographing the Farmers Market, I'm getting an itchy "shutter finger" and have been branching out to other subjects and locales--trying to be a bit more creative. One recent example started out as a pigeon perched on the seating wall behind the Splash Pad fountain, but (with the addition of a smurf that's sitting in the window of Bay Mountain Martial Arts) ended up as an expression of my somewhat acerbic (some might say, totally weird) sense of humor. During December, I also visited the Lake Merritt duck pond where, with the aid of my 3 year-old grand-daughter and a big bag of bread crumbs, we lured unsuspecting water fowl to an impromptu photo shoot. Here's one of my favorites from that afternoon. Two unsolicited hints! Number 1: You don't need a camera or a 3 year-old grandchild as an excuse to visit Lake Merritt. It really is a treasure that we too often perhaps, take for granted. Number 2: If you're an Oakland booster, you may want to occasionally check out the Oakland Flickr Group which currently has photos posted by more than 1200 members. One of whom is neighborhood activist, John Klein who continues to ensure that we not take Lake Merritt for granted. Splash Pad Newsletter Subscriptions If you have friends or neighbors who may be interested in receiving this newsletter, please forward this link: www.splashpad.org/mostrecent.html and invite them to subscribe by sending an email to info@splashpad.org. |