Extracted text · highlighting “Susan Montauk”

Visit RCPC and The Rockridge News on the Web! www.rockridge.org

e News

VOL. 1S * NO 8 * ISSUE NO. 160

Sponsored by The Rockridge Community Planning Cou

Ockridg

° SEPTEMBER 9, 2000

CIRCULATION: 5,300 RESIDENCES; 200 BUSINESSES
ncil * 5856 College Ave. #130 * Oakland, CA 94618 * 814-6060

a 2

RCPC Votes to Oppose CCAC Dorm Project

Opposition based on zoning issues

by Ronnie Spitzer, RCPC Vice Chair

A its August 3 meeting, RCPC voted to
Oppose the CCAC dormitory project
on Broadway. In making its decision, the
Board made clear that it was not opposed
to affordable housing for students. It agrees
that CCAC has a right to design and build
a facility on the site in keeping with its
reputation as a premiere school of design
and it lauds the goal of providing students
with low-cost housing and easy access to
its Oakland campus.

RCPC opposition is based primarily
On zoning matters. As it does with all
Rockridge development, RCPC examined
the combined requirements of C-31 zoning,
the “findings” of City Planning staff, the
required conditional use permits and vari-
ances, and the concerns of local residents.

RCPC General

Meeting Agenda

Thursday, September 21, 7:30 p.m.
Rockridge Branch Library
Community Room
5366 College Avenue (at Manila)

B CCAC Proposal Revisited

RCPC will lead the discussion of the
College of Arts and Craft dorm project
for Broadway/Broadway Terrace.
CCAC Vice President David Kirshman,
Dean David Meckel, Architect Mark
Horton and Project Manager John
Clawson will present the recent design
and dorm policy changes. Audience
discussion will follow. (Page |)

B What’s New, Pussycat?

North Oakland Neighbors (NON) will
bring us up to date on the options for
the 5ist/Telegraph lot. (Page 14)

—————

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As presently designed, the CCAC project,
a four-story dormitory containing 66
bedroom units for 120 students and six
resident assistants, requires a conditional
use permit for the designation “Extensive
Impact Civic Use,” minor variances for
setbacks and height, and a major condi-
tional use permit (CUP) for design features
such as the Clifton driveway for the
parking garage. Several CUPs required by
the C-31 zoning regulations governing the
site and requiring a blend of pedestrian
retail with other business and residential
uses are absent.

OS n bh He Cons SS te 7 Sn
: The >
a eye

CCAC’s proposed

student

dormitory and

parking garage

as viewed

looking toward

te Broadway Terrace
—— from Broadway

at Clifton.
Graphic supplied
by project architect.

n its initial report dated May 24, Plan-
Dine Department staff recommended
approval of the project. In RCPC’s opinion,
staff made a serious error: It failed to
acknowledge that the site is not of the
same lot as the rest of the CCAC campus,
but rather is located across the street in a
residential area. At first a seemingly trivial
distinction, the principle of contiguity —
explicitly required in the zoning codes
to qualify as an “Extensive Impact Civic
Activity,” (appropriate to institutions such
as hospitals, churches, and colleges) —

See “CCAC Plans,” page 7

From left to right, FROG
chair Steven Costa, Parks
and Recreation Director
Jim Ryugo, Bazaar Co-Chair
Jackie Hoeppner-Freitas,
organizer Susan Montauk,
Co-Chair Carol McClellan
and organizer Theresa
Nelson.

Story and more pictures,
page 6.

D FE RO G have thumbs? You bet, and all six of them are up
O S in the air over the success of the fund-raiser for
FRiends of the Rockridge Greenbelt (FROG) held at the Claremont Avenue DMV
July 30. The Flea Market Bazaar attracted 600 visitors and generated over $4,000

for the purchase of amenities for the new Rockridge park.

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9) R&dckridge News

September 9, 2009

acorner »Y Gay Ducey Children's Librarian

Two-part Harmony

by Gay Ducey _
yin was when there were lots of opportunities to Sing,

The church choir, the town glee club, even the piano
s looking for

Photo: Chris Ahistrand 4+ che corner bar seemed to collect crooner 3 |
a choral home. Radio, when it appeared, offered even more opportunities
to join in. It’s harder to find places these days.

| have always liked to sing. | joined the church choir in the fifth grade and
was belting out the Messiah by age 13, encouraged by our choir director,
Ralph Slifkin. He believed everyone could and should sing; that enthusiasm,
not talent, was a requisite. Emboldened, | sang all the time. From radio,
TV, and just listening, | absorbed scores of songs from every musical genre.
| liked all music equally. | still do... and | still sing.

My husband and | sang to the kids every night. | think our selections
were a bit doctrinaire since the children knew the words to “Which Side Are

ROCKRIDGE BRANCH LIBRARY

5366 College Avenue Br
597-5017

Hours: | |
Monday, Tuesday, Saturday: 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m,

Wednesday, Thursday: 12:30-8 p.m.
Closed: Friday and Sunday
SEE COMMUNITY CALENDAR, PAGE 12

FOR LIBRARY PROGRAM DETAILS,

RoéckridgeNews

The Rockridge News, founded in 1986 by Don
Kinkead, is published monthly in Oakland and is
sponsored by the Rockridge Community Planning
Council, a non-profit public benefit organization
founded to: preserve and enhance the unique character
of the Rockridge neighborhood; promote the health,
safety and quality of life of its residents; furnish a forum
for community involvement, and provide leadership
and representation of neighborhood interests.

You On?” but not to “Hush, Little Baby.” Both kids liked the warbling, but only
one joined in before he could form words. | was pleased because | thought we
might have another singer in the family (a trio!). | knew it when our three-year-
old son began slamming out “Don’t (UH) Stop (UH) Thinkingabouttomorrow
while in the bathroom. | think he liked the reverb.

We wanted to encourage the kids’ interests, although we tended to
see through the lens of our own wishes, enthusiasms and biases. We were
early entrants in the merry race of ice skating lessons, French lessons,
soccer coaching, and even a little chess. We found several singing classes
for Seth, but he was resolutely opposed. No reason that we could pry
out of him, just “No.” Yet he sang from early morning on. One day when |
heard him improvising to a song on the radio, | told him about barbershop
quartet singing. “I think | like that,” he said.
po and | found the Berkeley meeting of SPEBSQA. We three arrived at

the Elks Club in downtown Berkeley one fall evening so Seth (and Pat)
could sing. They walked in but | was stopped by a very courtly man with
a clipboard who said, “I’m afraid we practice without an audience. | could
direct you to the Sweet Adelines, our distaff arm.”

lt was such a pleasant evening that | walked and window shopped for
awhile. When | returned, the Elks Club door was locked, so | circled the
building. | stopped when | heard the sweet sound of male voices coming
from an open basement window. They were singing “Chattanooga Choo
Choo,” with a gentle swing. The baritones carried the melody, but my
husband’s second bass was the strong anchor that allowed the tenor to
take the liberties that only tenors take. This one created a new line of
notes that danced higher and higher, moored by the deep voice below.
When the song ended, my son's last note still climbed in the cooling air,
and the men below me clapped and chuckled. “These young ones,” one
of them said fondly. “They always know how to cut the mustard.” | think
he meant the two of them.

—__—

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Rockridge News Production

Cy Gulassa ...sescrersecressernes Editor-in-Chief

Alice Wilson-Fried............. Writer

Ortrun Niesar......c.cccseeree The Rockridge Muse

Barry Kaufman... Food

Michael SIMON .....-.:.:ceeeeee Health

Theresa Nelson ......ccceseececcsseens Neighborhood Merchant
Chris Ahlstrand.........cssse Photography

Lydia Ganns.......ssecsssesceesseees Photography
Madeline Alcorta..........c. Advertising

Susan Montauk..............2 Business Manager
Don Kinkead........cccccceceeeenes Graphics & Layout
RCPC Board of Directors, 1999-2000
Susan Montauk..............00 Chair

Ronnie Spitzer... Vice-Chair

Frank Giunta... cesses Secretary

Meredith Kaplan ............... Treasurer

Patty Brunn, Marilyn Citron, Cy Gulassa,
Theresa Nelson, Dan Pitcock, Chad Thompson

NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIPTIONS

Yearly subscriptions to The Rockridge News

can be obtained by sending a check for $18, payable
to Rockridge News Subscriptions to: Rockridge News
Subscriptions at the address below.

CONTACTING THE Rocxrinoce News

m Are there community issues you'd like to see
covered in The Rockridge News?
m Do you have questions about newsletter
distribution?
@ Would you like to volunteer to be a Rockridge
News block captain?
Contact us at one of the following addresses or
telephone numbers:
www.rockridge.org
The Rockridge News, 5856 College Avenue,
PMB 130, Oakland, CA 94618
RCPC Voicemail: 814-6060

News-Letter ADVERTISING/DEADLINES
Articles published in The Rockridge News may be
reprinted only with the permission of the editor.

Publication date of the next issue is
@ October 7, 2000;
™@ October deadline is September 21.

To advertise, call Madeline Alcorta a
547-2896. (RCPC reserves the right to refuse

any display or classified ad that it deems
inappropriate.)

September 9, 2000

Rédckridge News

Leadership Changes for RCPC
RCPC Board Elects Susan Montauk to be Chair

Chad Thompson Steps
Down as RCPC Chair

fter a year in office, RCPC Chair

Chad Thompson is stepping down
due to growing family and professional
commitments. He plans to stay on as a
board member and continue to serve on
the RCPC zoning committee.

During his tenure as chair of both
RCPC and the Zoning Committee, Chad
was instrumental in getting Cigarettes
Cheaper to move out of Rockridge,
appealed Dryer’s out-of-scale expansion
permit renewal, lobbied against a
Rockridge Starbuck’s and oversaw the
addition of several new developments,
including the new building on the old
Maison d'Etre site. Most recently, Chad
represented RCPC in meetings with neigh-
bors and college officials over the CCAC
dormitory proposal.

atte

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() August 3, RCPC’s Board of Direc-
tors selected Susan Montauk to be

Chair of the Rockridge Community Plan-
ning Council (RCPC). Montauk
replaces Chad Thompson, who
resigned recently due to ee?
family and business pres-
sures.

A member of the
RCPC board since 1994,
Susan has served as sec-
retary and vice chair, and
is currently the business
officer for The Rockridge
News. The newsletter, now
in its 14" year, is supported
entirely by an ad program that
she introduced.

skilled activist with strong commit-
ment to RCPC and the community,
Susan organized three highly successful
Rockridge Kitchen Tours which attracted
thousands of visitors and helped put RCPC
on sound financial footing. She is also a
founder of TemeRock, a joint Temescal
and Rockridge gardening organization
dedicated to cleaning up and beautify-
ing 51“ Street and surrounding areas.
Most recently, she 1s a charter member
of FRiends of the Greenbelt (FROG), a
Rockridge-Temescal group whose goal is
to support the new Rockridge Greenbelt

park (see story, page 7).
As Chair of RCPC, her priorities include

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Dinner Daily * 4:30 - 10pm

plans to work closely with developers
to assure that projects conform to the
Rockridge Area Plan and the C-31
zoning designation for College
Avenue. She also wants to build
a closer relationship with
the Rockridge Merchants
Association (RAMPA)
which has been support-
ive of RCPC events like
the Halloween parade.
“My ongoing challenge
will be to make RCPC
even more representative
of the community. We need
greater participation in elec-
tions and more volunteers on
our committees,” she said.

A native of New York, Susan visited
friends in Rockridge over a decade ago,
‘fell in love with the neighborhood, bought
property and moved in.” She worked as
a French and Spanish teacher for private
schools and for two years administered
after-school programs for OUSD.

Lake Merritt
In Jeopardy

Proposed residential tower
blights historic skyline

Se

by Kevin Flynn

akland is the only city in the world

with a natural saltwater lake in its
city center. In addition, Lake Merritt is
the oldest officially declared wildfowl
sanctuary in the United States. The lake
has long been considered the “Jewel” of
the City. It is now in danger from our
elected City officials.

As part of Mayor Jerry Brown’s 10K
Plan (the effort to bring 10,000 new
residents to downtown Oakland), the city
plans to sell the Fire Alarm Building,
located between Lake Merritt and the
Alameda County Courthouse on Oak
Street.

The City is currently negotiating with
Lalanne Volckman and E.M. Johnson

See “Save Lake Merritt,” page 7

4,

Rdckridge News

September 9, 2000

Fund Raising for the Greenbelt Park

FROG Jumps Off to a Good Start

by Jacqueline Hoeppner-Freitas,
Event Chair, DNA Chair

n Sunday, July 30, FROG (FRiends
©}: the Greenbelt) jump-started its
fund-raising efforts for the new Rockridge
Temescal Greenbelt Park with a highly
successful Flea Market Bazaar in the
Claremont DMV parking lot. The event
attracted more than 600 people and netted
over $4,000 to benefit construction of the
park. Once completed, the park will run
along Temescal Creek for four blocks,
connecting Hardy and Redondo Parks.

Joining forces to make the day fun and
profitable were neighbors, merchants, the
Rockridge Community Planning Council,
the DMV Neighbors Association, Friends
of Temescal Creek, City of Oakland
Parks and Recreation Department, and the

Soup , Salad
Sandwiches
Sweet Desserts

College

and
Alcatraz
Open 7am till 10pm everyday

Department of Motor Vehicles.

Under sunny skies, parents were busy
at the flea market selling and buying
bargains, while children jumped off excess
energy in the Jumping Castle sponsored
by Childrens’ Hospital, explored the Fire
Safety House provided by the Oakland Fire
Department, interacted with the Oakland
Police Department's talking police car, and
ate ice cream donated by Dreyer’s.

hile listening to the tunes of the

Baguette Quartette and The King
Bees, everyone enjoyed pasta and chicken
—prepared by Albino Gabrielli and
donated by the Colombo Club — and a
Paula Silver Caesar Salad with ingredients
donated by Market Hall Produce and
the Pasta Shop. To top off the feast,
many indulged in gourmet dessert cannoli

prepared, served and donated by Robert
Brower.

A raffle of donated items and gift

WHY PAY 6% TO SELL YOUR HOME

WHEN WE CHARGE

FORK THE SAME FULL SERVICE?

REALTY
" ADVOCATES

certificates from Rockridge and Temescal]
merchants was a great success. The raffle
culminated in Jeanne Clausen’s winning
4 cool red scooter donated by Hank and
Frank Bicycles. FROG Chair Steve Costa
arranged a display of the park design anc
provided information about additiona
donation opportunities. Many people saic¢

See “FROG Hops,” page 6

Photos:
Susan Montauk

Chris Ahlstrand
Cy Gulassa

\ WWwrealtyadvocates.com (510) 428-07

"J

September 9, 2000 Réckridge News 5,

Many Thanks to Greenbelt Donors:
Albertson's Lillian’s Children’s Store
Biscotti Theresa Nelson
Berigan’s Records Temescal Square
Casper’s Hot Dogs Parkway Theater

Cotton & Company Reed Brothers Security
Dofia Thomas Rockridge Beauty Supply
G&G Hardware Rockridge Kids

Global Entertainment Sagrada Sacred Arts
Great Frame Up Sprotman’s Barber Shop
Great Harvest Bread Co. Temescal Café

Hank & Frank Bicycles East Bay Depot

Original Kaspers Hot Oakland Children’s

Dogs Hospital

eighbors and friends attending the FROG Flea Market
Bazaar enjoyed themselves on a sunny afternoon in the
Claremont Avenue DMV parking lot, helping raise funds for
the Rockridge Temescal Greenbelt Park.

@ Ginny Lackner gives a good sales pitch, but her sign says it all.

(2) Maybe not the Sopranos, but definitely the stalwarts of the Colombo
Club cruising the food stalls. From left, Marcello Pilap, Lorenzo Marchi,
John Penna, and Mike Gasparro.

©

Fanuel Alem fervently hopes the design will

never wash off.
| MNES TED ai
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J

5

FROG fund raising crowds had a choice of
activities at the event: eat; shop; talk; walk.

@)

Maybe he didn’t say it, but surely Ryan Williams
is thinking, “Not such a big bite, Dad!”

Philosophers could debate whether firefighter
Bao To’s head is too big or his hat too small,
but his exhibit on kid’s fire safety was just the
right size.

@ Mavis McClellan, flower child for a day.

©)

IN ROCKRIDGE

Purdon our mess thts month
while we set “up

ILpi & Co.

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Hours: 11-6 ¢ Tues & THur 11-7
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6.

Rdckridge News

September 9, 2009

Local Restaurants
Support the
Greenbelt Park

Dine with a 10% discount

‘rom September through December,
2000, 15 local Rockridge and Temes-

cal restaurants are offering a 10% discount
when diners present a Friends of the
Greenbelt (FROG) Restaurant Discount
Card. Proceeds from card sales go directly
toward funding of our new Greenbelt Park
that will run from Hardy Park to Redondo
along the old Temescal creek path.

Cards may be purchased for $20. Inside
is a directory of restaurants and the months
they are participating. Present your FROG
card upon receipt of the check and you
will receive 10% off your total before
taxes. Eat out as often as you like. Get
your card right away to take advantage
of the full four months. What better way
to support your community and enjoy

the flavor of the neighborhood as well?
Bon Appetit!

PARTICIPATING RESTAURANTS

Asmara Eritrean & Ethiopian Cuisine.
Claremont Diner, Creme de la Creme, Giglio’s.
King Shang, Las Palmas, Nan Yang, Oliveto's
Cafe, Pasta Pomodoro, Red Tractor, Rockridge
Steak Bistro, Rustica Conga Lounge, Sabuy
Sabuy, Spasso, and Tachibana.

Cards can be purchased at Spasso, 602!
College Avenue or at Red Tractor, 5634
College Avenue or by mail. Call 420-1375
for information

Send $20 check to: FROG Restaurant
Discount Card, 5690 Ocean View Drive.
Oakland, CA 94618.

| Lube, Oil and Oil L Smog Inspection (!

Filter Change — |
Expires 10/7/00 |

|

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Leap on the FROG Bandwagon With
A FRiends Of the Greenbelt T-Shirt

FRiends Of the Greenbelt T-shirts make a
fashion statement. Your purchase helps fund
equipment purchases and amenities for the
new Greenbelt (from Hardy Park to
Redondo). Wear the FROG and everyone
will know that you support the Rockridge-

Temescal park!

eet hate : é
a 4 ‘+

Total @$I5_ ss + Total @$10

Ca rt 420-1375 for information.

Malt CHECK To: FROG T-SHIRT, 5690 Ocean View, Oakland, CA 94618.

a T-sHint ORDER FoRM —-

Name Phone a
Address City Ap.
_] 1 would like to order the following adult moss green FROG ae C oreace

Indicate quantity in each size: S Lt XL XXL (Total : $ oO, )
} | would like to order the following kid's leaf green FROG T-shirts a each:

Indicate quantity in each size: 2T LJ 4T (Total _J X $10 = $ )

= Grand Total = $

FROG Hops

from page 6

they attended the event specifically to
support the Greenbelt Park. “I thought
the best part of the day was seeing how
many people were interested in helping
restore [Temescal] Creek,” said Bruce

Douglas, President of Friends of Temescal
Creek.

ROG will continue its fund-raising by

selling FROG T-shirts (see coupon
above), thanks to Eileen Fitz-Faulkner
and designer Stacy Mar. It will also sell
FROG Restaurant Discount Cards (see
left column), and publicize donation
opportunities. Look for more information
in future issues of The Rockridge News

|

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Expires 10/7/00

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@ Sheaff’s Garage * 5930 College Avenue
Oakland (510) 658-3070
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* Walking Distance to BART
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+ State Lamp and Brake Inspections

+ Smog Inspections

+ Heating and Air Conditioning Service

+ Lubrication Services

+ Electronic Ignition and Driveability

+ Steering and Suspension Service

+ Timing Belts # Brake Services Clutch Services

about how to secure your claim to fame
by “buying” a park bench or contributing
to a children’s play structure.

FROG’s goal is to raise $75,000 to aug-
ment $400,000 in funds already approved
by the Oakland City Council. Your dona-
tion, made out to RCPC/Park Fund and
sent to 5856 College Avenue #130, Oak-
land, California 94618, will help make
our Greenbelt Park an enjoyable destina-
tion for all residents of Rockridge and
Temescal.

Particular thanks for helping to coor-
dinate the flea market/bazaar go to Carol
McClellan and Susan Montauk. FROG
also thanks all neighbors, organizations
and merchants who joined forces to
improve our Greenbelt Park!

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September 9, 2000

Rdckridge News

7.

CCAC Plans

from page ]

has serious Implications for the broader
community. If this definition were to be
applied to other corner lots under the same
ownership separated by an intervening
street, what 1s to
stop a developer
from continuing
a project down
an arterial such
as College or
Claremont? Of
immediate con-
cern, for example,
CCAC has_ pur-
chased property
next to the pro-

posed dorm site.
What are CCAC’s

future plans? Will

this site also be declared eligible for high
density development? The answer has
profound implications for Rockridge. RCPC
believes a more appropriate classification
for the dormitory project is “residential
rooming house” under zoning designation

The Audio Chamber

Home Theatre / Stereo
Solid State / Tube Equip.

DVD / CD / Turntables
Small / Big Speakers

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de

Take 30% off The Chez Pantsse of Rockridge
the entire bill
through
October 6, 2000

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urith 2 for 7
Entree offer)

Lunch
11-2pm

510 + #20 + 8822
Call for resevvattons
Dinner
4-9: 30pm
Located at 5362 Colleg

R-60, which has more restrictive density
and parking requirements.

For this reason — and others pertaining
to design, density and parking — RCPC
opposes the project and has drafted a letter
to the Planning Commission outlining its
position. If, as anticipated, the Planning

NE

RCPC commends CCAC for having held
meetings with RCPC and neighbors in

an effort to accommodate concerns. It

is hoped that the appeal process and

the RCPC general meeting on September
21, 7:30 p.m. in the Rockridge Library
will help articulate problems and lead to

amicable resolution.
a

Commission approves the project, RCPC
or the neighbors would appeal. RCPC
commends CCAC for having held past
meetings with RCPC and neighbors and
hopes the exchange will continue. It 1s
hoped that the appeal process and public
meetings will help clarify issues and lead
to amicable resolution.

he September 21 RCPC General Meet-

ing in the Rockridge Library will be
devoted exclusively to a public hearing
of the issues. Representatives of CCAC,
RCPC, concerned neighbors and the
Oakland Planning Commission will be
there. Please plan to attend. The meeting
begins promptly at 7:30 pm.

Ba Orem?

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October 6, 2000
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e Avenne

(Next door to the Rockridge Library parking lot)

Save Lake Merritt

from page 3

Alliance who plan to build a 190-unit resi-
dential tower on the site, whose 26-stories
would soar higher than the Alameda
County Courthouse. The project would
also include a Native American Museum
and some senior housing. The Fire Alarm
Building would be demolished for this
project.

he Fire Alarm Building, designed

by famous Oakland architect Walter
Mathews, served as the City’s emergency
response center from 1911 until 1983.
The building as it stands today ts so
unobtrusive that it seems a visual extension
of Lakeside Park. In excellent condition,
it would easily serve as a museum or an
adjunct to the Library. Preservationist
organizations like the Oakland Heritage
Alliance (OHA) oppose the project because
in addition to losing the Fire Alarm Build-
ing, it would damage an architecturally
significant and historic area of well-
designed public buildings — the Alameda
County Courthouse, the Library, the
Camron-Stanford House, and the Oakland

Museum.

In addition to preservationists, other
groups oppose the project as well. A
group has formed: Coalition of Advocates
for Lake Merritt (CALM) made up of a
broad cross-section of individuals and
organizations. CALM includes the Lake
Merritt Rowing Club, the Camron-Stanford
House, Citizens for Oakland’s Open Space
(COOS) and individuals such as John
Sutter, former City Councilmember, and
Assemblyperson Audie Bock.

ALM, which views the site as park-

land, opposes private development on
the city-owned site as an inappropriate use
of public land. They support the protection
and preservation of Lake Merritt and its
surrounding parklands and open space.

Although Lake Merritt is not in Rock-
ridge’s backyard, it belongs to all of
us. If you believe that the piecemeal
selling of public resources to private
development is wrong, then I urge you
to contact Oakland City Councilmember
Jane Brunner, our neighbor and representa-
tive for the Rockridge area. Her phone
number is 238-7001.

ee ——e OT ELE EE EEE BES EER EE UNEASE ALORS CLE RS ES as OS CP OS aE BS CE 0 een Br Se 2 28 PO. Sr. OE J ae iM TS Be bth ed? (Ie OT

Rockridge News

September 9, 2000

oy

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‘The Burger Wars

early 35 years ago, when my wife and

I became engaged, we celebrated by
having hamburgers at our local Brooklyn
White Castle. More recently, after our
daughter’s wedding, we craved hamburger
at the Smokehouse on Telegraph Avenue.
Alice Waters, thank you for giving us
California cuisine, but, bottom-line, it’s the
hamburger that fills my culinary soul.

If not for Alice Water’s culinary revolu-
tion, California’s gastronomic contribution
to American cuisine would be the ham-
burger. No single food item defined the
post-World War II California life-style as
the hamburger and it is still thought by
many to be the quintessential California
food item. Consider this Rockridge fact:
eight restaurants on College Avenue feature
hamburgers on the menu; for four of these

restaurants, hamburgers are the signature
dish.

Americans on average eat 3 hamburg-
ers a week. McDonald’s alone has sold
12 hamburgers for every person in the
WORLD. Hamburgers account for nearly
60% of all the sandwiches eaten. So the
next time you eat a hamburger, remember
it’s not just a ‘“‘burger,” it’s an economy.
Based on these facts, consider how much
the hamburger contributes to the Rockridge
College Avenue economy.

he origin of the hamburger is clouded

in history. What we do know is that
sometime in the mid-nineteenth century,
German immigrants, from the seaport city
of Hamburg, brought a dish to America
called “hamburger steak.” By 1890, a
cooked beef patty version appeared on a
menu in New York’s famous Delmonico
Restaurant. The hamburger bun was
introduced at the 1904 St. Louis World
Fair. Mass distribution of the hamburger
started with White Castle in 1921. The
tiny hamburger on a bun sold for 5 cents.
The 1930s saw the advent of the drive-in.
Drive-in’s changed the landscape of burg-

OOo ee

ers forever by allowing diners to remain
in their cars and thereby creating the
concept of drive-up service that remains
the mainstay of the fast food industry. By
the mid-1950s McDonald’s golden arches
became as famous a symbol of America
as the bald eagle.

et’s begin our College Avenue ham-

burger tour with Rocky’s. Rocky’s is
the commensurate California “hole in the
wall” hamburger joint. Priced at $4.50,
Rocky’s offers 10 varieties of a 1/3 pound
100% pure ground chuck hamburger with
the standard fixings of lettuce, tomato,
onion an pickle. Seating at Rocky’s is all
al fresco. Bear bones and basic, Rocky’s is
always good for down to earth burger.

A family favorite since 1973, our
neighborhood namesake — the Rockridge
Café — is always a good choice for a near
perfect flavorful, juicy grilled hamburger.
The Rockridge Café serves eight varieties
of a 6-ounce hamburger for $4.50. The
12-ounce jumbo burger goes for $6.95. I
love the family crowd at the Rockridge
Café and of course you cannot beat their
fresh fruit pies. What could more all-
American: Burger, fries and warm apple
pie with vanilla ice cream?

Next we come to the Mecca of Bay Area
hamburger restaurants — Barney’s. Count
‘em: Barneys offers 27 beef hamburgers,
22 chicken/turkey burgers, 9 garden/tofu
burgers, and 4 portabello mushroom
burgers. Check out the Milano Burger
made with roasted eggplant, zucchini
with a tomato pesto sauce which is also
available as a chicken or garden burger.
Barney’s consistently wins “Best of the

Bay” from the Bay Guardian and East
Bay Express.

A the Claremont/College intersec-
tion we find the Claremont Diner.

Designed as a classic train-car diner, the
Claremont Diner features ten 6 and 8 o7

hamburgers and 4 garden/turkey burgers
served with a variety of fixings. One of
the great design features of the Claremont
Diner is the classic 50s retro decor and
soda fountain, complete with an electric
train circling the interior.

Reaching into Greater Rockridge, we
find the oldest burger restaurant on College
Avenue: The Buttercup, established in
1956. The Buttercup menu features six
different open flame cooked 1/3-pound
hamburgers. A neighborhood tradition,
the Buttercup is always a good choice
when you have that yearning for a tasty
old-fashioned hamburger.

hether eating at a restaurant or

at home, the ideal grilled burger
should be moist, juicy, with a texture that's
tender and not dense. A perfect burger
is flavorful, with a deeply caramelized
reddish brown crust and moist on the
inside. The bun, condiments and fixings
are equally important.

What matters most in making the
perfect hamburger is the cut of meat and
fat. Chuck is the best cut of choice for
flavor and juiciness. You want to get
the meat coarsely ground. Finely ground
meet will become soft and mushy. The
ideal ratio of fat to lean is 20 percent fat,
80 percent lean. Beef with less fat will
become dry when cooked.

ently toss a portion of meat back and

forth between your hands to form a
loose ball. Don’t overly handle the meat.
Lightly flatten into a patty % inch thick
and about 4/2 inches in diameter. Season
with kosher salt, pepper and onion powder.
Oil a clean hot grill rack. Grill patties,
uncovered, without pressing down on
them until well seared on the first side,
about 2/2 minutes. Flip burgers, continue

grilling about 2 minutes for rare, or 3
minutes for medium.

Topping your burger is as important
as grilling it. Have a hamburger fixings
bar and let your guests assemble their
own perfect burger. Always slice your
vegetables — tomatoes, avocado, onions,
pickles, and lettuce — very thin. Offer
different types of ketchups, mustards, and
cheeses. And, of course, the bun should
be soft, but firm and toasted.

Barry Kaufman is a graduate of the
California Culinary Academy

AR Oo KS

September 9, 2000

Rdckridge News

9.

Open Letter to Councilmember Jane Brunner

Thank You for Your Stand Against
Chabot Golf Course Transfer

Dear CounciLMEMBER BRUNNER:?
BO thank you for your stand against
the proposed takeover of the Chabot
Golf Course by the KSL group. As further
input on this issue, I offer the following?

|. The proposal is based on the premise
that “if you build it, they will come.” Does
this sound a bit like the Raider’s deal? If
golfers don’t come, it won’t be because of

a boycott. It will be because the players
can't afford it.

2. Players now using the course tend
to be a blue-collar group. Some people
think golfers are rich. Many are, but check
the parking lot at the Chabot course; you
won't see many expensive cars.

3. Meetings have been held for citizen
input. Support for the proposal has been
overwhelmingly negative. Yet, citizen input
seems to have been for naught. Robert
Bobb stands against the opposition in his
recommendation for the proposal.

4. An “Independent study” of the
course was done by Dick Thorman. Mr.
Thorman was hired and paid by the city
for his analysis. It turns out he was also
involved in the Galbraith and Tony Lema
golf courses in the area.

5. From 1991 to 1999, the Chabot
course lost $78,845 per year. During those
years, the City made almost no improve-
ments and deterioration became evident to
the players. During the El Nifio winters,

the course was nearly unplayable.

6. Should the City subsidize the
course? Probably not, but the KSL proposal
calls for the City to ante up $2.5 million
for the rebuilding. Suppose that money
were used to correct three major course
problems: new cart paths, a new sprinkler
system and an improved drainage system.
Would absent players return to the course?
Greens fees could then be raised to the
levels of surrounding courses.

7. Robert Bobb and Raymond Chester
have stated that the high greens fees
would support other city programs. “Sure,
golfers are rich. Let’s sock it to them to
pay for other programs.” We all favor city
recreational programs, but let’s all pay

for it, not just the golfers. Make Chabot
pay for itself, but don’t make it a revenue
source for the city.

8. The KSL proposal promises 35% of
the Tee-times will be held for the public.
How 1s this to be monitored? During what
hours will the Tee-times be available?

9. I play at Chabot about three times
a month. At $18 per round, this amounts
to $645 per year. Under the KSL proposal
of $45, it will cost me $1,620 per year,
an increase of 136%. As a councilperson,
do you see this as fair? Being retired, I
could make little use of the “first-class
facility,” so this resource would be lost to
me. I guess the people at the Claremont
Hotel can afford it.

10.Does the Chabot course really need
two managers: Chester and Rawls?

Thank you for taking these thoughts
into consideration.

— Marv Tripp, Golden Gate Avenue

Teen Artists Sought for Teen Read Week Exhibit

eenagers between the ages of 14 and 19 are invited to submit their artwork
T iccoatin a favorite book or cover art for their favorite book. The title
selected should be appropriate reading for kids 14 and older. Entries may be a
drawing, painting, collage, cartoon or calligraphy of any size of color. Entries are
limited to one per person. Teen artists should include one or two sentences citing
the name of the book and how their artwork relates to that book.

Artwork meeting these specifications will be displayed at the Rockridge Branch
of the Oakland Public Library during Teen Read Week, October 15-21. Bring artwork
to the Rockridge Branch Library, 5366 College Avenue, between September 5 and
October & Artwork must be accompanied by an entry form available at the library.
For more information, call Donna Mandel at the library, 59'7-5077

© Robert Pape, D.C.
Carol Barnes, D.C.
« Melanie Linebaugh, LAc

Call for appointment
510.428.0450

College Avenue Chiropractic,
Acupuncture @ Massage

oe gentle © relaxing ©

holistic ~ treatment

3179 College Ave, Suite 5 (Near Alcatraz)

6025 College Ave * Oakland, CA S4ol5-1327
(510) 595-0837

ee i Ee OR | a ee, | Oe og

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10.

Rdckridge News

September 9, 2000

[ooking

“| left my man Sawyer
orders to call me at
nine o'clock. What has

become of Sawyer?’”
— Edward Bellamy,
Looking Backward:

2000-1887 (1888)

n September

10, 2000, a

physician in
Boston, digging in
the yard behind his
house, discovered a
large underground
vault. Upon gaining
entrance to the cham-
ber, he was astonished
to find a sleeping man,
clad in an old-fash-
ioned dressing gown.
Using his medical knowledge, he managed
to awaken the man from what seemed to
be a mesmeric trance.

The unearthed gentleman, one Julian
West, woke up at first much piqued, sup-
posing that his manservant had gone off
and left him sleeping past the appointed
time. But soon, looking out upon a Boston
skyline transformed beyond all recogni-
tion, he could not deny the truth: he had
slept 113 years.

(Julian West’s own house and manser-
vant, it appeared, had been destroyed by
fire in the early hours of May 31, 1887,
soon after he retired to his underground
sleeping chamber in search of a night’s rest.
Since no one else knew that the chamber
existed, everyone must have supposed that
he too had perished in the fire.)

S° begins Edward Bellamy’s utopian
novel, Looking Backward: 2000-1887
(1888), one of the most famous and popular
books of its time. The book no longer has
the immense profile it once enjoyed; but
it is still highly readable, and memorable
for its relaxed perambulations through a
sunlit future. Throughout, the inhabitants
of the year 2000 refer to the 19th century
— to them, a dark period almost as faint
in memory as the Middle Ages — in
tones of sympathetic detachment. At the
close of the book, Julian West, as the
first-person narrator, bursts forth like an
angry prophet, excoriating 19th century
civilization, with its unbridled capital-
ism, its economic booms and busts, and

Weackward: 2000-18

Unknown Children with Apples, c.1900, SF Bay Area. Photograph p

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its genteel classes moving in comfort
and unconcern past the desperate and
downtrodden.

RR” Bellamy, commercialism was at the
root of the society’s evils. He imagined
a not-far-off future in which commerce,
money, war, and even lawyers, legislation,
and politicians, would all be eliminated.
All resources would be nationalized, all
waste would disappear, and all livelihoods
would be carried out through service in an
“industrial army.” Society would be vastly
more productive. Everyone would be able
to achieve his or her potential.

Against this surprising background,
Looking Backward lays out some shrewd
prognostications about the future direction

pes.)

rinted directly from the original glass plate negative by John Bosk

BA Saraya To ed

20% increase in the median price of a Rockridge home!

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of society, and especially the conditions of
ordinary life. The modern reader feels a
twinge of recognition when reading
of the increase of leisure time, the vast
reduction of household labor, the ease of
shopping, and the virtual disappearance
of servants. Universal access to education,
the late commencement of careers, early
retirement, and increased opportunities for
cultivating individual tastes and interests,
all feel like familiar ground. And one is
struck, in a book written 112 years ago, to
find the characters tuning in to symphony
concerts from the comfort of the living
room or the bedroom.

See “Looking Backward,” page 15

If you are buying or selling in
Rockridge look to your —
Complete Real Estate Resource-
Saraya Motley (510)280-2162

¢ In the second quarter of 2000, the median price has
risen from $510,000 to $610,000.

Peo

| * Over-bidding has increased to an average of
22% over the list price in the second quarter.

* The average number of days a property is available on the market is 13 days.

Red Oak Real

2983 College Avenue + Berkeley, CA 94705 *

ee

September 9, 2000

<é6ckridge News

11.

The Power of
Language

ecently, CCAC graduate Megan

Shapiro was sent on a unique
assignment: The city of Bremen, Germany,
is Constructing a museum dedicated
entirely to sound and language. Her job
would be to try to record some phrases
spoken in forty three languages here
in the Bay Area. In Bremen you would
then, by touching the Bay Area ona huge
globe, be able to listen to the multilingual
sound of our environment here.

| suggested that she take her tape
recorder and just walk down College
Avenue with it. She did, and the job
turned out to be a “piece of cake.” Forty-
three languages! Wow! How ironic that

Claremont

| ‘|

: GREAT GIFT IDEAS :
. >
; Photographs
Etchings :

Lithographs

from $30- $500

Visit our New Gallery

2907 Claremont Ave (at Ashby)

near the Claremont Hotel.

Open by appointment. Call:

(510) 848-9300

by Ortrun Niesar 7

museum visitors in Bremen will hear
all this so much more clearly than we.
Most of us feel quite comfortable in the
surround-sound of English which seems
to gradually drown out all other nuances
of language. It seems to be getting harder
and harder to pay attention.

Language Matters

Language is probably the most
important tool we humans possess to
shape and reveal the construct of our
minds, to communicate. Languages matter.
They hold our unique heritage, our most
sacred thoughts, our identity. To know
the language of your fathers is to know
yourself. To learn a language other than
your own is to celebrate the rich diversity
of human life.To obliterate a language is
to expunge the soul of a people.

[) ictators have always known this, but
it is not so easy to do. In Latvia, for
example, despite eight centuries of foreign
domination and decades of deliberate
Russofication, the Latvian language, a
unique Indo-European language, was never
forgotten. When it was not possible to
speak it aloud , it was whispered. When
it was not taught in the schools and
books were burned, scholars and writers
preserved it. Its message of freedom and
hope was passed on undetected in poems

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and songs, sleeping there, waiting. When
we visited Latvia in 199], just at the end
of the Soviet era, the universal language
was Russian,so | had no opportunity to
practice even the little Latvian | know
When we returned this summer, we
found that in less than ten years as
an independent democracy, the entire
population of 2,500,000 people had
reverted to Latvian.

A! the national Songfest that took
place there in July, 30,000 singers
raised their voices in Latvian in jubilant
praise of freedom and love for their
homeland. Jews,Armenians, and so many
others who have been dispossessed in this
past century know this feeling well

Indigenous Festivals

From now through October 7, Pro
Arts host a of weekly
indigenous festivals in the context of
an exhibition of contemporary art that
reaches for its inspiration back into

will series

the spiritual and cultural language of
Oakland's diverse ancestry. Featured
artists will be Kim Anno, Glenn Rogers,
Rabbett Strickland, Juana Alicia, Woody
Johnson, Kumar Lama, Ed NoiseCat,
George Valris.

G& On September 23, Master Kumar
Lama from Nepal will conduct a Thangka
Painting Workshop (advance registration
required).

& A spectacular Powwow celebrating
native American culture featuring singing
and drumming by All Nations will take
place on September 30.

@ A Music Offering to Ifa, the
traditional wisdom of the Yoruba, featuring

the group Trust, is scheduled for October
7. Call 763-4361 for more on this.

oakland, california 946
picture

(510) 655- soso ff
framing

6038 college af BOSKO'S

on college avenue since 1945

12.

Rdckridge News

September 9, 2000

Riciassifieds

Your Message Here

Your 36-word message: $18 (phone number
counts as one word). Mail to: RN Classifieds,
5856 College Avenue, #130, Oakland, CA
94618. October deadline is September 2!.

Jazz and Classical Piano
Lessons

Rockridge jazz pianist with Berkeley Music
B.A. offers lessons in theory, eartraining, blues,

jazz, technique, beginning and intermediate

classical. Experienced, patient teacher of all
ages! Janet 653-6783.

Tai Ji Quan

In Rockridge at Danspace. New. Beginning
morning classes starting in September, 7:15
to 8:15 a.m. and 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. Vitalize
your life! Low-impact, grounding, meditative

movement. Instructor has 20 years experience.
Karen 601-1619.

Office Manager

Position Available

The College Avenue Presbyterian Church,
595! College Avenue, is looking for an Office
Manager with bookkeeping and computer
experience. $1,499/month. Stimulating and
meaningful work in a supportive atmosphere.
Call 658-3665 for more information.

Welcoming You Home To
Rockridge

The GRUBB Co.
510.339.0400

grubbco.com

le erie

v) Check Your...

COMMUNITY CALENDAR

5856 College Avenue, #130, OAKLAND 94618 or call 814-6060.

BANANAS Workshop
5232 Claremont Avenue, 658-7101 Monday, September

] 25, 7-9 p.m: Workshop — “Where Do Babies Come

I From-Talking About Sex with Children;” Wednesdays, Sep-
J tember 13-October 25, 7-9 p.m: “Learn Positive Parenting
4 Techniques: A Great Eight Week Class.”

Lawyers in the Library
Free advice 6-8 p.m., Ist Thursday each month. Signup
starts at 5:00.

College Avenue Adult Activities

Center. College Avenue Presbyterian Church, 5955
Lollege Ave. All activities Wednesdays, 11-noon. Lunch
B follows, $1.75. Slide (SS) and video (V) shows in
§ Lighthouse Room.
poe? 13: (SS) “Vietnam,” Cathy Connelly

Sep 20: (V) “Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Labrador-Part
|" Dan Cooper

BSep 27: (V) “Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Labrador-Part
gir Dan Cooper

po 4: (SS) “Western United States,” Charlie Fitch

Fire Ecology Hikes At Merritt

college Environmental Center

I Toke hikes and do hands-on work in the hills and along

J the creeks. An exciting new partnership centered at Mer-
ritt College’s Environmental Center will be hosting outdoor

activities this Fall. Call Bruce Douglas at Friends of Temes-
d cal Creek for information, 655-0341.

i
i
|
{
Submit Items To RCPC COMMUNITY CALENDAR, }
i
|
i
1

Temescal Creek Clean-up ;
VOLUNTEER ON SATURDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 16! Keep
our Temescal Creek & Greenbelt Clean Creek to Bay Day isl
Saturday, September 16, 9:00 a.m. to noon. Come volun- §
teer to clean and clear Temescal Creek and the greenbelt
between Redondo Park and Clifton Street. Meet behind
the Claremont DMV. Volunteers will receive a T-shirt and j
a coupon for a Brita water bottle. Oakland Public Works j
Adopt-a-Creek program will provide tools and gloves, but j
bring a wheelbarrow if you can to help stack (not bag)
green waste. Councilmember Jane Brunner will provide
morning refreshments. Neighbors will put on o potluck j
immediately following the cleanup. All are welcome to the
potluck; bring a favorite dish to share. Utensils, drinks andy
dessert will be donated by the DMV Neighbors Association. i

Toastmasters

Earty risers: Conquer your fear of public speaking i
and develop leadership skills in a supportive, relaxed fj
and friendly environment. Join Toastmasters. 7:00 a.m. j
every Thursday. Please call 251-3066 or email:
spk2@flash.net

IRockridge Library

I 5366 College Avenue, 597-5017

J Story Times, September, 2000:

" Toppier Story Times: Saturday mornings, 10:30 a.m.,
9/2 and 9/30;

I Pre-Scuoot Story Times: Tuesdays: 10:30 & 11:00 o.m.,

1 9/19;

y PAJAMA Story Times: Wednesdays: at 7:00 p.m.,

, 9/13 and 9/27.
The Library will be closed on Saturday, September 9.

Boox Discussion Group:

I Wednesdays, 7-9 p.m: Sept. 13, The Great Gatsby by

| Fitzgerald; Oct. 4, The Trial by Kafka; Oct. 18, Seize the

i Day by Bellow; Nov. 1, Hedda Gabler by Ibsen & St. Joan
by Shaw. Call 597-5017.

Mon-Fri 9:30 - 6:00
Sat 9:30 - 5:00
CHIMES

- PHARMACY

Serving Rockridge Since 1909
_ 3210 College
= Near Alcatraz

652-1990

Jane Brunner North Oakland
Community Meeting

Saturday, October 7, 10:00 a.m.-12 noon at Peralta Ele-
mentary School, 460 63rd Street. Topic to be announced.

NCPC Meetings

Neighborhood Crime Prevention Council meets 2nd
Thursday of each month at 7:30 p.m. at the
Methodist Church, Manila/College. Public invited.

Halloween Parade Planning

Please volunteer to help with this year’s Rockridge
Halloween Parade by attending a planning meeting 7:00
p.m., September 11, upstairs in the Rockridge Library.
Help make the parade a very special treat for the kids.
For more info, Call Barbara Stewart at 601-1237.

ATTENTION
HOMEOWNERS
I will show you how to

get top dollar for your
home and sell it now.

Selling Homes in the
East Bay since 1980.
Speak five Indian languages.

FATIMA ALI
510/845-0211
Buyali@aol.com

Prudential

California Realty

September 9, 2000

Réckridge News

13.

Letter to

The Editor
The Rockridge News
5856 College Ave., #130
Oakland,CA 94618

1’'™ Proup CCAC is in
My NEIGHBORHOOD

To THE Epvitor:
I" angered by the innuendo regarding
the character of the C.C.A.C student
body. C.C.A.C 1s world renowned for
attracting the best and the brightest.
Internationally, its alumni list reads like a
“Who's Who” of modern art
Perhaps the real reason why some are
opposed is the fact that a large number
of students using the dorm will be
minorities.

C.C.A.C 1s a wonderful representative
of Oakland and I’m proud it’s in my
neighborhood.

Sincerely,
May Owen
Terrace Street Neighbor

Lillian’s Children’s Store Owner
To Make Emergency Trip to Africa

Family devastated by illness

by Mary True

| en Wamalwa of Lillian’s on College

Avenue is returning to Kenya for
several weeks to care for family members
suffering from AIDS.

Lillian, a beloved member of the
Rockridge community, has worked on
College Avenue for 17 years since coming
to the United States from Kenya. She first
worked at O’ Toole’s children’s resale shop
and then, with the help of local friends,
took over the shop in 1995, renaming it
Lillian’s Children’s Store.

This is her first trip back to her home-
land. Her sister (mother of two young
children) was recently diagnosed with
AIDS and her brother and his wife were
also diagnosed this past year. Lillian is
the main surviving female in her family,
and family support is critical to getting

/

Cee

Frank SILVER CONSTRUCTION

: ~~

wes a Swry a* ELLER AIT Ted menos ene ~ abe

=.

=

Seismic/Remodeling Specialist
Rockridge Resident
547-6111

Cal. Lic. #522497

Rockridge Beauty | \ eal out
Supplies &: Salon Le

5510 College Avenue 7 days * M-F 10-7 ¢ Sat 10-6 * Sun 12-5 420-1760

medical help and care in Africa.

AS part
of my work,
| have spent
time In
Africa, and I
can't convey
how difficult
and expen-
sive it 1S to
get medical
care. Right
now a pill
to cure a

secondary
infection costs $12 and the minimum

dosage is 10 pills. This 1s equivalent to sev-
eral month’s income for most Kenyans.

Lillian Wamalwaw

[ am writing to let friends of Lillian
know that she will be gone for five weeks
starting September 15, but the shop will
remain open.

Also, I am sure she will appreciate
notes, calls, and any assistance possible
at this difficult ttme. Her phone number
is 428-1009, and her address is Lillian’s
Children’s Store, 5638 College Ave, Oak-
land, CA 94618.

ROBERTS ELECTRIC

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Service, Repair, Drain
& Sewer Cleaning

SEAN COLLINS : 654-5793

14.

Rdckridge News

September 9, 2000

Public Forum to Consider Pussycat
Site as Temescal Gateway

by Thad Shaffer

hat would you like to see happen at

the vacant lot — the former Pussycat
Theatre site — at 5lst and Telegraph?
Temescal Neighbors Together (TNT) 1s
sponsoring two September meetings in
lemescal where you can express your
visions and concerns for this important
site, and also get updated on the current
Status of the property.

The first meeting will be on Tuesday
evening, September 12th, 7 p.m., at the
Temescal Café, 4920 Telegraph Avenue.
The second will be on Saturday morning,
September 16th, 10 a.m., at the Primitive
Baptist Church, corner of Rich and 42nd
Streets.

Both meetings will include a discussion
of the Community Position Paper, which
is being prepared for presentation to the
owners of the site. Also on the agenda
will be a brief presentation by O’Dog,
a group lobbying the city for more dog
parks in Oakland, including one proposed
for Mosswood Park.

With the additional community input,
the Position Paper will be finalized and
presented to the public on Thursday, Sep-

tember 28th, 7:30 pm, at Faith Presbyterian
Church, 49th and Webster. Please mark
these meeting dates on your calendar, and
join your neighbors for a lively discussion.
For information, call 547-4104.

Development Principles

Ager called the North Oakland Neigh-
borhoods has been formed to assure
proper development of the old Pussycat
Theater site at 51" and Telegraph. Their
goal is to create a project that serves as a
“signature gateway to the Temescal District.”
Values the group feels should guide site
development include:

* Extensive community participation

* Mixed-use development reflecting neigh-
borhood diversity, and encouraging
people to gather;

Join the Children’s Hospital parking lot
and former theater parking lot;

* Incorporate Temescal Creek now running
under the site;

* Reflect architectural quality and enhance
the neighborhood;

* Encourage pedestrian and bicycle use
and “meet the street” rather than have a

parking lot adjacent to the street;

For more information, call 601-6465.

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Charlie thank RCPC for this wonderful
gift, shown here on the Mendocino
Headlands. It will always remind them
of their 14 happy years in Rockridge.

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September 9, 2000

Rédckridge News

15.

Looking Backward

from page 10

ellamy’s utopia can also be rather
B quaint. During the past hundred years,
the knowledge explosion, the rate of
technological progress, and the multiplica-
tion of specialties and career paths, have
far outstripped anything imagined by
Bellamy and his contemporaries. But the
backwardness of the technological vision is
fitting: after all, much of the technologi-
cal development of the past century is a
byproduct of the same commercialized
society that Bellamy wanted to abolish.

Interestingly, all this hindsight does
not make the book seem less relevant. It
still challenges the reader’s imagination
and belief, but in a different way. Like
Julian West himself, the book can be said
to have a second career.

Bellamy’s vision was daring in its
assumptions, both about the possibility of
social improvements, and about the speed
with such improvements could materialize.
When the book was published, a reviewer
in the Boston Transcript commented that,
more likely, 75 centuries would be needed
in order for society to evolve to the state
envisioned by Bellamy.

No in the true year 2000, a reader
is apt to fee] that what much of what
once seemed like improbable fiction in
Bellamy is not so far beyond reach. From
the present vantage point, the level of
societal wealth envisioned by Bellamy 1s
hardly unbelievable; if anything, it seems

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LTT EE a a a
...an endlessly productive society...whose products
were seldom touched by human minds or hands, and do
not answer to human needs or values.

almost familiar. We may be far from
achieving social justice, or extinguishing
social conflict, and even farther from
abolishing money; but much of the picture
drawn by Bellamy no longer strikes the
mind as simply utopian.
M°“ challenging to today’s reader is
the idea of a society which has such
vast levels of output and consumption, and
which, at the same time, is as tranquil and
spiritually well-centered as the late 20th
century America in Looking Backward.
One chortles at Bellamy’s Americans of
the year 2000, emancipated from tiresome
labor and surrounded by a cornucopia of
choice goods, all the while measuring and
curtailing their appetites, un-distracted by
superfluity or artificial wants. Here, Bel-
lamy does offend our sense of probability.
To us, a high level of material progress
seems to go hand-in-hand with relentless
economic and social churning, which
can hardly be controlled, and which, left
unchecked, deforms both the natural and
human environments. If Bellamy’s idea
of progress embodied the hope for human
control over human destiny, or even a
modicum of human restraint, then the
lapse of four or five generations has been
enough to unbundle that idea.

he current state of affairs was better
evoked by Hannah Arendt when she
wrote, in The Human Condition (1958),
of an evermore productive society, its

need for human labor shrinking away,
approaching a state of painless and effort-
less consumption. Such a society, she
said, would be free to “consume” the
whole world and to reproduce daily all
things it wished to consume. How many
things would appear and disappear daily
and hourly in the life process of such
a society... [The rhythm of machines
would magnify and intensify the natural
rhythm of life enormously, but it would
not change, only make more deadly,
life’s chief character with respect to the
world... such a society, dazzled by the
abundance of its growing fertility and
caught in the smooth functioning of a
never-ending process, would no longer
be able to recognize its own futility —
the futility of a life which [quoting Adam
Smith] “does not fix or realize itself in any
permanent subject which endures after

[its] labour is past.”
Ms than anything in Bellamy, it
is Arendt’s vision that one easily
recognizes in the actual year 2000: a
society caught up in a machine, and tied
to the spinning wheels of production and
consumption — an endlessly productive
society, but one whose products were
seldom touched by human minds or hands,
and do not answer to human needs or
values.

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Rodckridge News

September 9, 2000

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