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Grand-Lakeshore Merchant News Sway, the new clothing boutique on Lakeshore opened this past week. Sway's owner, Jason Knight, and Richard Weinstein, who owns the property, teamed up to produce a striking restoration/remodel of what was most recently the Hallmark store. For those of you who haven't at least peeked inside, this photo of the interior shows the brick wall on one side which adds color and texture. In addition, I was able to take the photo without a flash as the restored clerestory windows flood the interior with natural light. Judging by the number of people who wandered in as I stood out front a couple of days ago, Sway is going to be a big hit with neighborhood shoppers. Also on Lakeshore, signs have been posted on the front window of the small storefront next to Flavors of India indicating that a shop featuring Italian Ices is in the offing. Around the corner, Four Star Pizza has closed while undergoing a thorough revamping. Sometime before the end of the month, it's scheduled to reopen as a Lane Splitter Pizza. This will be the fourth location for a popular restaurant that features New York style pizzas including veggie and vegan options. I've talked to the owner a couple of times and he's quite excited by his prospects here in the Grand Lake District--particularly after seeing the throngs of people who flock to the Farmers Market on Saturdays. Initially, Lane Splitter will offer take-out and delivery only. At 3601 Grand, Temoor Noor has purchased Senor Nero's and for the past couple of months, he's been thoroughly upgrading both the interior and exterior. It's scheduled to reopen this Friday (May 15) as "The Grand Tavern". Temoor described the cuisine as "international comfort food" and he'll also periodically crank up the barbecue on the back patio. In addition to good eats, they will be featuring a very fine, unusual assortment of spirits for those with a sophisticated palate. I'm particularly pleased to note that Temoor expects to purchase at least a portion of their produce at the Grand Lake Market and will periodically schedule "Happy Hour" events as fundraisers for East Bay charities. At 3307 Grand (next door to Jenny's Cafe), a new shop called "The Lounge" will be opening within the next two weeks. The owner also operates "The Nail Shop" across the street. Plans are for a shared space--one half of which will house a clothing boutique and the other for pedicures. Although, no one I've talked to is particularly happy about another nail shop on Grand, they've done a nice job decorating with an interior featuring crystal chandeliers and brightly-colored, fabric wall-hangings. Not surprisingly, (considering the dismal state of the economy), there's some bad news to report as well. "Heads Together", which has been on Grand for 25 years, is scheduled for closure and Di Bartolo's Restaurant has closed as well effective this past Saturday. In the latter case, however, there's a silver lining as John will continue to operate Di Bartolo's Cafe and seems relieved to be able to focus on this smaller venue. The other bonus is that the restaurant has been purchased by the folks who operate Pizzaiola. To give even more weight to suggestions that a neighborhood renaissance is in the works, there seems to be a lot of renewed interest in the vacant properties at Kwik Way on Lake Park and the bank/3 Day Blinds on Grand. Please keep your fingers crossed for welcome additions in both locations. Oakland Indie Awards this Friday The third annual Oakland Indie Awards takes place this Friday (May 15) from 5:30 to 8:30 at The Crucible. This event is sponsored by Oakland Unwrapped, an online marketplace that features the work of locally-owned independent businesses and artists. While the evenings main focus is on the awards ceremony, (Ursula Calderon at Micio Mambo was one of the nominees), there will also be entertainment and generous samples of marvelous, locally produced foods and beverages. Bike to Work Day this Thursday, May 14 Since I work out of my home, I don't actually have a commute and usually sleep in. But once a year, I make an exception and join the Bike to Work Caravan to City Hall; enjoy the festivities including a raffle and lots of free stuff; and then turn around and ride home. Although you can ride independently, all eight of Oakland's council members have formed "Pedal Pools". Desley Brooks and Jean Quan are getting an early start and expect to converge on the Grand Lake Theatre for a 7:55 a.m. departure with Pat Kernighan. For more details, please visit the Public Works Department's 2009 Bike to Work Day page. Oaklandish Salsa Festival May 31 This year, the annual, Oaklandish-sponsored "Salsa by the Lake" has been moved to Splash Pad Park due to construction around the Pergola. To avoid charges of "misrepresentation", it's also been renamed "Salsa Near the Lake. Date is May 31 from 1:00 to 6:00 p.m. Event will offer free salsa dance lessons and great music provided by a very popular San Francisco-based Salsa band, Rumbache. Local Author Publishes First Novel For someone who seems more than a bit shy, long-time Crocker Highlands resident Charlie Haas has been getting a lot of very good press of late. You may have just read his article in Oakland Magazine "I'm From There". The title (an allusion to Gertrude Stein's taken out of context comment about her home town) similarly inspired the message he and is wife (fellow writer BK Moran) chose for their Splash Pad Name in Lights--a cryptic "THERE!". In the past, Charlie has written for a host of print publications and has numerous screen-writing credits. On May 26, HarperCollins will be releasing his very first novel, "The Enthusiast". Book-readings are scheduled locally for Thursday, June 4, 7:00 p.m at "A Great Good Place for Books" and on June 8 at 7:00 p.m. at Barnes & Noble in Jack London Square. Cleveland Cascade Meeting, May 21 Jim Ratliff has just emailed an announcement to the Grand Lake Yahoo Group updating the status of the Cleveland Cascade improvement project. Send me an email at info@splashpad.org and I can forward his message. Other option is to attend an informational meeting hosted by Councilmember Nancy Nadel which is to take place Thursday, May 21 from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. at the foot of the Cascade. Oakland Budget Woes Impact Grand Lake Neighborhood Mayor Dellums proposal to lay off 140 police officers dominated recent press coverage of Oakland's budget woes, but this was mostly a gambit to garner federal dollars. The real impact is going to be felt in our own Grand Lake Neighborhood in the following ways: City gardeners are always the last hired and the first fired. Thinking at City Hall always seems to be that gardeners aren't true "professionals" which unfortunately has sometimes negatively impacted hiring practices and expectations. One direct consequence of this attitude is their inclination to "let volunteers do it". My prediction is that lawns at Splash Pad Park will go uncut and trash will be removed far less regularly. Meanwhile, the landscape around City Hall will remain (as always) immaculately maintained. Least they could do, if the decision is made to gut the park maintenance staff, is to spread the pain equally. The other service traditionally hardest hit when the budget hits the fan is libraries. If current plans are implemented, hours and staffing will be reduced by about half at six of Oakland's fourteen branch libraries. Lakeview will likely end up open only three days per week. If you'd like to get involved in efforts to prevent these reductions, an initial planning meeting will be held on Saturday, the 23rd at Lakeview beginning at 2:00 p.m. Ironically, this partial closure will loom over Lakeview at its 60th Anniversary Celebration which is scheduled for this Saturday beginning at 11 a.m. Another casualty of the budget shortfall will be the permanent closure of the Grand Lake Neighborhood Center on June 15 due to its loss of city funding. This was a noble experiment launched by then council member, John Russo. Through the years, it benefited from the efforts and financial support of a great number of individuals--most notably, Bruce de Benedictis and Arvi Dorsey. Nancy Strange and Pamela Drake both ably staffed the center. If you look at the center's monthly calendar, you'll see a wide variety of organizations listed--the majority of which have yet to find free or affordable options. Maggie Kostoff is attempting to put together a coalition of groups willing and able to support a different, less expensive space. If you're interested in joining this cooperative effort or have suggestions for available spaces, contact Maggie at maggie_kostoff@hotmail.com. Lakefest 2009--August 1st and 2nd This will be the second incarnation of the new Lakeshore street festival produced by Helen Wyman from Oakland Events. The first weekend in August promises to be just as colorful as the Lakefest poster. Farmers Market News I've written previously in this newsletter about how I've become far more aware of the seasons as a result of shopping for produce almost exclusively at the Grand Lake Farmers Market. What I didn't explain is that I only recognize the onset of three seasons: Asparagus, Corn and Stone Fruits (particularly cherries). The latter hit the market a couple of weeks ago with Bing cherries soon to follow. Speaking of cherries, Eddie Chavez from EGB Farms confided that the recent, late rains had washed away about 40% of this year's cherry crop. For those of us who are outside looking in, rain seems like a good thing--particularly during a period of prolonged drought. In reality, timing is everything. The heavy rains at the Farmers Market on Saturday, May 6, also did their best to wash out performances by members of the Brewer Middle School Jazz and Concert Bands. But those of us who stuck around for a listen were treated to some great music from a talented group of kids. From what I was able to gather, Brewer now has an incredibly dedicated and energetic Music Director who is doing wonders with this program. One parent with whom I spoke was thrilled to report that her son ( a Jazz Saxophonist) is one of six Brewer students who have been approved for scholarships that will guarantee them admission to a host of big-name universities including CAL if they maintain academic excellence. Despite the rain, I got carried away taking photos of the kids (and their parents) with the new Nikon I got as a birthday present to replace the well-traveled one that kept malfunctioning. The result is 46 images that can be viewed as a slideshow on Flickr at this link. To possibly whet your appetite for more, here's two samples. With the first, please note the reflection of the Palm trees in the bell of the tuba--very cool, I think, but totally unintentional. Photo 1 and Photo 2. Farmers Market Entertainment Calendar I've pretty much given up hope of ever finding the time to keep the website calendar up to date as it was originally formatted with photos and a table. I'm using instead the same format as below which is much easier. Information regarding other neighborhood music venues will continue to be posted there, but I've not yet confirmed which of those listings are still accurate.
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