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Sponsored by the Rockridge Community Planning Council (RCPC) • 4900 Shattuck Ave., PO Box 22504, Oakland 94609
RockridgeNews
THE
www.rockridge.org
VOL 38 • NO. 8 • ISSUE NO. 389 • SEPTEMBER 4, 2021 CIRCULATION: 5,800 Residences; 200 Businesses
The Fairies performed on Saturday, August 14, in front of
Ain’t Normal Cafe.
Photo: Anna L. Marks
Street Fair Puts the
“Rock” In Rockridge
by Jody Colley, Rockridge District
Association
Ecial offers from over 30 businesses.
On August 14, the streets remained
open, sidewalk sales, pop-up vendors,
and musicians lined College Avenue
from Cole Coffee to Germany’s Best
automotive. Local bands delivered
a wide genre of sounds, including
reggae, DJ, rock, classical, soul, and
jazz. Some merchants spun records
and hosted sidewalk dance parties.
In a change from often-congested
festival-style stages, the dispersed
entertainment encouraged attendees
to flow from one end of the district
to the other. Bands performed from
every nook and cranny available, and
some even borrowed electricity from
very second Saturday through
October 9, the Rockridge District
Association (RDA) is presenting
Rock-N-Stroll along College Avenue
— a lineup of outdoor live music,
retail and dining discounts, art open-
ings, and activities for all ages.
The next event will be held on
September 11, from 10am to 7pm.
And, like the event last month, it will
include more than 20 bands and spe-
Rock-N-Stroll, see page 14
Two Seats Open
Up on RCPC Board
by Leonora Sea, RCPC Chair
The Rockridge Community
Planning Council (RCPC)
has two board seats that are cur-
rently open and available to be filled
by board appointment. Michelle
Boyd and Matt Levy have resigned
from the board as they have both
relocated outside Rockridge.
Michelle and Matt were elected
in April 2021 for terms ending in
2023. Therefore, the board will be
pleased to consider volunteers for
the two open positions.
Prospective board members
must be at least 18 years old and
live within the RCPC boundaries.
For those who are not familiar
with Rockridge boundaries, you
can view the map and boundary
description on the RCPC website at:
https://rockridge.org/boundaries.
An explanation of board members’
expected time and service commit-
ments, along with the membership
eligibility requirements, is posted at
https://rockridge.org.
If you are interested in serving on the
board, please send the following to
info@rockridge.org:
In the Early 1970s, the Community Takes Local
Development Into Their Own Hands
by Annette Floystrup
1) Your name, address, and contact
info, including proof of residence
(photo of driver’s license or DMV ID
card).
to how sound travels, the increase in
noise pollution makes it difficult for
residents as far away as the hills above
Broadway to use their outdoor spaces.
California air quality regulators
say it’s unhealthful to put homes,
schools, and day-cares within 500 feet
of a freeway. Both Claremont Middle
W
This is the third article in a series on the
history of the RCPC in Rockridge.
hen BART and Hwy 24 finally
opened in 1970, the noise, air,
and other types of pollution created
by the elevated freeway and train
tracks spread over large areas of the
neighborhood. Fifty years later, due
RCPC History, see next page
2) A letter of interest including a
brief summary of your personal and
professional experience; your interest
and purpose in serving on the board;
anything else you’d like the board to
know about you.
The deadline to inquire is
Thursday, September 30, 2021. n
THE
page 2
SEPTEMBER 2021
negatively impacted by transit
development. The Telegraph Avenue
Neighborhood Group (TANG), Fair-
view Neighborhood Association, and
Claremont-Elmwood Neighborhood
Association (Berkeley) joined RCPC
in opposing the fast-food drive-
through.
Neighbors collected the trash
thrown on the ground at a local Taco
Bell for one hour and hung it in the
windows of a popular deli, Curds
& Whey (then next door to Yasai
Market). Hundreds of neighbors
signed petitions against the Taco Bell,
and well over 400 neighbors went to
the City Council meeting to determine
Taco Bell’s fate — it was decided that
College Avenue would not become a
home to fast-food chains.
Armed with this success and backed
by the then College Avenue Merchants
Association, RCPC presented the
City with proposals for new com-
mercial and residential zoning plans
for Rockridge’s College Avenue that
eventually became the CN-1 “Pedes-
trian Oriented Retail District.” The
neighborhood-designed commercial
zoning became a model for five other
neighborhoods over the years, and
made College Avenue one of the
highest sales tax revenue generators in
Oakland (second only to car dealer-
ships) for most of the past 50 years.
A one-block zone on either side of
the commercial zone was rezoned
for apartment buildings as well as
single-family homes, and the single-
family homes had the option of
building a second house on their lots.
For example, Birch Court, a one-block
long, dead-end street, two-thirds of
which is located across the street from
the Claremont school, has 48 house-
holds, and, without the schoolyard,
would have had many more.
The history of this early grassroots
organizing is included in one of the
early textbooks of grassroots organiz-
ing, The Grassroots Primer, published
by Sierra Club Books in 1975. It is
included with case studies from all
over the United States and Canada
as an example of effective citizen
self-determination and political
action. n
RCPC History, from front page
School and Chabot Elementary as
well as many residential dwellings are
located within that 500-foot zone, and
hundreds more are impacted under
certain weather conditions that allow
particulate pollution to go much
farther — extending more than a mile
downwind from the freeway.
Prior to 1986, when leaded gas
was discontinued in California, car
exhaust typically accounted for 90
percent of airborne lead pollution. As
a result, residents in a large area of
Rockridge can’t grow leafy vegetables,
root or tuber crops (carrots, potatoes,
beets, turnips) in the now lead-con-
taminated soil, but must grow them in
raised beds filled with clean soil.
Neighbors in the early 1970s realized
the City was not developing a plan
to revitalize their neighborhood.
Rockridge neighbors subsequently
organized into six sub-neighborhood
areas, each with its own council,
coordinated by the umbrella organiza-
tion of RCPC. As neighbors met and
planned what their future should look
like, they engaged in smaller neighbor-
hood improvement projects like street
tree planting.
Meanwhile, the City of Oakland saw
the Rockridge flatlands as expendable.
In 1971, speculators bought land
adjacent to BART and then asked the
City to up-zone the area for major
development. Most of the single-family
homes around the BART station were
to be torn down and replaced by high-
rise apartments and office buildings.
The retail and pedestrian atmosphere
of College Avenue was to be replaced
by office lobbies, fast food, and drive-
through restaurants. The speculators
bought lots on Birch Court and Oak
Grove, proposing to build 10-story
apartment buildings.
The final straw came in early 1974
when the new owners of Dreyer’s pro-
posed to build a drive-through Taco
Bell on the corner of Harwood and
College, where the Golden Squirrel
building is now. People were outraged
and saw the proposal as the epitome
of suburban culture enroaching into
a neighborhood that was already
The Rockridge News was founded March 1986 by
Don Kinkead, and is published monthly (except
August). It is sponsored by the Rockridge
Community Planning Council (RCPC), a nonprofit
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.
Rockridge News Production
Anna L. Marks ........................ Editor & Layout Artist
Jo Ellis........................Assistant Editor & Ad Manager
Susan Montauk................................Business Manager
Judith Doner Berne................................... Staff Writer
RCPC Board of Directors, 2021-22
Leonora Sea..........................................................Chair
Robin McDonnell..................................... Vice-Chair
Casey Farmer................................................ Secretary
Ashley Pandya.............................. Assistant Secretary
Ken Rich........................................................Treasurer
Stuart Flashman, Annette Floystrup, David Garcia,
Kirk Peterson, Ken Rich
Contact the board: chair@rockridge.org
For information: info@rockridge.org
Contacting The Rockridge News
Are there community issues you’d like to see
covered in The Rockridge News? Have questions
about newsletter distribution? Want to volunteer to
be a Rockridge News block captain? Want to write a
letter to the Editor? We’d love to hear from you.
All articles and letters submitted for consideration
should be emailed to: editor@rockridge.org, and
must be limited to 600 words. Please be sure to
include the author’s name, email address, and city
or neighborhood of residence. All submissions are
subject to editing for clarity and brevity.
Newsletter Subscriptions
To subscribe to The Rockridge News, send your
check for $20, payable to RCPC with “Rockridge
News” noted on the memo line.
Mail payment to:
RCPC, 4900 Shattuck Avenue,
PO Box 22504, Oakland, CA, 94609
Display Advertising
Deadline for the Oct. 2021 issue is: Sept. 16
Advertising rates are $28/column inch. Six-month
pre-pay rate available. For display ads, call Jo Ellis
at 510-653-3210 (after noon), or email joellis1@
hotmail.com. Email Susan Montauk at smontauk@
gmail.com for information regarding classified ads.
The Rockridge News reserves the right to refuse any
articles, display ads, or classified ads.
Views expressed in published articles do not
necessarily reflect those of The Rockridge
News, its editor, or the board of directors of the
Rockridge Community Planning Council.
THE
page 3
SEPTEMBER 2021
RCPC Says Thanks
to Departing Board
Members
by the redeveloped store and property.
He has also kept the neighborhood
abreast of the College Avenue repav-
ing project, and the fate of Slow
Streets. Thank you both for your hard
work and dedication to the RCPC. n
LETTERS TO THE
EDITOR
Some Housing is Better
Than None
by Leonora Sea, RCPC Chair
F
Rockridge Community Planning
Council —
Land Use Committee Meeting
EDITOR: I was happy to see Jon
Gabel’s response to my article in the
June issue of The Rockridge News,
“Housing in Rockridge: Affordable
Only or Market Rate Too?” because
I had intended the article to spur
discussion. However, Mr. Gabel mis-
understood my argument.
First let’s make sure not to confuse
“trickle-down economics,” which is
a largely discredited theory that says
cutting taxes on wealthy individuals
and corporations will make the
economy grow, with “supply and
demand,” (still a universally accepted
economic principle) which says that
when you make more of something
that is in demand its price will go
down.
But that wasn’t the point I was
making. I was saying that building
more apartments in Rockridge, at
current rents, would allow a much
wider variety of folks to live in our
beautiful neighborhood. Mr. Gabel
didn’t address the simple math I
offered on that. He did argue that
the Logan, at 51st and Telegraph,
isn’t a good comp for Rockridge
rents. I’m not so sure: it’s walking
distance to Rockridge BART, will
have a Whole Foods on the ground
floor and it’s next to all those trendy
Temescal restaurants and bars.
Of course we should always prefer
affordable housing, but as I point out
in my article, affordable housing is
so costly to develop that holding out
for only that will just result in little
housing at all getting built in Rock-
ridge. That would be a poor result
from an equity and environmental
perspective. n
arewell to two RCPC Board mem-
bers. Michelle Boyd and Matt Levy
are both relocating out of Rockridge
and will be very much missed. As
Communications Chair, Michelle has
greatly improved how RCPC delivers
our message to our neighbors. Matt,
the RCPC Transportation Chair, has
worked tirelessly to hold Safeway to its
agreement with the community to pay
for traffic mitigation made necessary
The next Land Use Committee meeting
will be held on Wednesday, September
22, at 7:30pm, via Zoom.
To attend the meeting, email landuse@
rockridge.org, or call (510) 652-5373.
The meeting is open to the public,
check www.Rockridge.org the week
prior for event details. n
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The opinions represented in the Letters to the Editor
do not necessarily reflect the views of the Rockridge
News, the Rockridge Community Planning Council,
or the RCPC Board of Directors.
THE
page 4
SEPTEMBER 2021
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, con’t
community information and input
throughout the process. It is import-
ant that the process examine a range
of options that represent varying
community interests and a thorough
analytical comparison of these
choices, including rigorous economic
feasibility analysis so that the commu-
nity can make well-informed choices.
Infeasible “wish list” choices are to
be avoided. Options should include
variations in affordable housing
requirements, different density ranges
to maximize housing opportunities
and economic feasibility, and site
coverage and height requirements to
maximize open space.
Adoption of a specific plan is also a
means of enhancing the value of and
expediting use of the site. With full
development and environmental enti-
tlements, costly and time-consuming
delays can be avoided, making the
site more attractive to prospective
developers and investors.
What’s Best For Rockridge?
Ridge Phase 2: A Need
for Action
EDITOR: External political influence
on board elections for our small
neighborhood 501c(3) organization by
outside politicians such as Schaaf, Skin-
ner and Wicks is not appropriate or
welcomed as stated by Jon Gabel in his
Letter to the Editor (Rockridge News,
July 2021). These politicians staunchly
support removal of R1 zoning for
Rockridge (and for the entire state) to
destroy the integrity of cohesive neigh-
borhoods such as Rockridge.
As has been shown by RCPC’s Land
Use Committee studies, “affordable
housing” in this neighborhood is not
financially feasible. Further, “affordable
housing” is a meaningless code phrase
used by housing activists and real
estate interests to support building ever
more market rate apartment buildings
that will quickly obliterate single family
dwellings if R1 zoning is banished.
Wasn’t destruction of the Rockridge
neighborhood by routing Highway
24 directly through its heart horrific
enough? Now that the neighborhood
has successfully reinvented itself after
long years of extremely hard work, the
City is bent on destroying it once more.
Our elitist government officials think
they know what “is best” for us. They
summarily and deliberately ignore the
wishes of most of their constituents. n
J.W. Yager
Margarido Drive
EDITOR: Addressing the issues posed
by the dormant Ridge Phase 2 site is
long overdue. Decisions on the future
use of this significant community
land resource should not be left
to either an out-of-touch property
owner or outdated Safeway master
lease terms. Leaving the site dormant
deprives Oakland of much needed tax
resources, opportunities for address-
ing housing and other community
needs and leaves a visual blight on the
Pleasant Valley/Broadway intersection.
Rather than awaiting action by the
property owner, the City of Oakland,
using the specific plan provisions of
California’s Planning and Zoning
Law (Gov. Code sec. 65450 et seq.)
should take the initiative and prepare
a Specific Plan for the site. The plan
would set permitted and required uses,
density, open space, design (e.g., build-
ing height and bulk) and pedestrian
and vehicular circulation conditions
along with policies such as minimum/
maximum parking, affordable housing
requirements, household type and unit
size preferences (e.g., families, seniors)
and financing obligations.
The specific planning process
should include participation of a
diverse community advisory com-
mittee and opportunities for wider
Environmental Review
A required EIR should be under-
taken as an integral part of the
planning process. Each option under
consideration should be subjected to a
through and consistent environment
and economic feasibility analyses and
comparisons of impacts and advan-
tages prior to selection and refinement
of a preferred plan.
This process contrasts with an all-
too-common EIR practice in which
the preferred plan is prematurely
selected and token “straw man”
options are then only discussed in the
final phase of the planning and EIR
process. Unfortunately, this approach
deprives the community of needed
information to make informed com-
ments and recommendations prior
to selection of a preferred plan which
can lead to controversy and chal-
lenges to the final EIR. n
Tom Cooke
Buena Vista Ave
The opinions represented in the Letters to the Editor
do not necessarily reflect the views of the Rockridge
News, the Rockridge Community Planning Council,
or the RCPC Board of Directors.
THE
page 5
SEPTEMBER 2021
Rockridge Takes Part
in National Night Out
— by Angela Moore, Neighborhood
Services Division, OPD
LETTERS TO
THE EDITOR, con’t
Rockridge Not the Answer
to Affordable Housing Needs
On August 4th, the City of Oak-
land had about 256 registered
National Night Out events, including
block parties and cookouts through-
out the city. The Neighborhood
Services Division and the Oakland
Police Department would like to
thank the residents of Rockridge
who participated in this annual com-
munity-building event that builds
police/community partnerships and
neighborhood camaraderie — both of
which make our neighborhood safer
and a more caring place to live.
National Night Out is geared to
enhance the relationship between
EDITOR: Stu Flashman’s very well-
considered series of articles about the
economics of affordable housing make
an uncomfortable fact very clear:
“affordable housing in Rockridge” is a
contradiction in terms.
Housing in Rockridge is not
affordable, and no amount of good
intentions will make it pencil out.
If Oakland can find dollars to
subsidize affordable housing, those
dollars will go much further building
housing in neighborhoods where
an acre doesn’t cost $15m. Our con-
science may feel better helping one
family live here in Rockridge, but
let’s instead take care of two or three
families by putting those resources
where they go further.
Yes, this could sound like NIMBY-
ism or worse. By all means, raise the
taxes on our back yards to support
affordable housing in Oakland. But
our good intentions should not lead
us to misallocate Oakland housing
resources where they would have the
least positive impact: Rockridge. n
Hosted by Kris Singleton, Rockridge
neighbors gathered together on
Locksley Avenue.
Photo: Angela Moore
neighbors and law enforcement, while
bringing back a true sense of commu-
nity. It provides a great opportunity
to bring police and neighbors together
under positive circumstances. Again,
thank you all for making National
Night Out A Success. n
DAY OF REMEMBRANCE:
FIRESTORM 30
HOUSING IS KEY
A day of remembrance
marking the
30th anniversary of
the Oakland/Berkeley
Firestorm.
October 2, 2021, 10am,
Rockridge BART Station,
Firestorm Community
Mural. n
Renters who are having trouble
paying rent or utilities, or landlords
with tenants who are behind on
payments, can apply for federal
relief at HousingIsKey.com:
including 100 percent back rent
and future rent.
You can also call the Rent Relief
Call Center at (833) 430-2122. n
Peter Shepard
63rd Street
THE
page 6
SEPTEMBER 2021
Creek to Bay Day CleanUp at Frog Park and
Rockridge Temescal Greenbelt
by Will Sheldon
are hopeful that we will be able to get
it running again soon, and we need
your help. Tasks include weeding,
pruning, trash pickup, raking, and
sweeping. Families and groups are
welcome. Students needing service
hours for school can receive a signed
letter verifying their participation.
Tools and gloves will also be pro-
vided, or bring your own and make
sure they’re well-marked as yours.
A sign-in table will be located at
Big Frog near the play structure.
Coffee and snacks will be available
for volunteers. For more info, contact
Friends of Frog Park (info@frogpark.
org); or look up FROG Park and
Temescal Creek online at https://www.
oaklandca.gov/topics/creek-to-bay. n
Join Friends of the Rockridge
Temescal Greenbelt (FROG) and
neighbors to spruce up our Temescal
Creek and FROG Park at the annual
“Creek to Bay Day” cleanup on Sat-
urday, September 25, from 9am to
12pm. All are encouraged to attend
and be part of International Coastal
Cleanup Day — a truly worldwide
effort to make our planet’s waterways
cleaner and healthier.
Temescal Creek, between the pond
at Big Frog and Clarke Street, is a
pump-controlled water feature, and
the water returns to the creek through
the Little Frog grate on Clarke. When
we clean up trash and debris, not only
does our park look better, but it also
keeps litter out of the creek, bay, and
ocean.
While we have been unable to run
this creek for a couple of years due
to needed cleanup and repairs, we
NEIGHBORHOOD ALERT
At the corner of Ivanhoe and Miles,
34 trees are scheduled for removal to
make room for a development. Neighbors
are encouraged to send comments to
Brittany Lenoir (blenoir@oaklandca.gov),
and Cecilia Garcia (cgarcia@oaklandca.
gov), who’s in charge of tree removals.
Local Street
Trees Need Our
Help, and Gray
Water Will Do
Just Fine
by Amos Alan Lans
T
Amos Lans and Tom Spiritbringer watering
a crepe myrtle tree on Boyd Avenue with
kitchen sink gray water.
he prolonged drought has
deprived our street trees
of the water they need to
feed their branches, resulting in the
dropped branches, a form of self-
amputation. In addition to providing
shade, street trees improve local air
quality, making it easier for residents
to breathe during air emergencies.
Recent studies from the extended
2018-2020 wildfire seasons show that
the Air Quality Index (AQI) was 25
to 50 points lower (healthier) within
25 yards of mature street trees. Trees
breathe out oxygen and filter partic-
ulates from the smoky haze, making
unhealthy air less hazardous for all of
us to breathe.
Here’s some good news. A group of
residents on Boyd Avenue’s 5300 block
have been watering our street trees.
Meg Levine, Amos Alan Lans, and
other Boyd Avenue neighbors can be
seen many evenings, carrying out pails
of used kitchen sink water, shower, and
other household gray water to thirsty
oaks, liquid amber/American sweet-
gum, birch, crepe myrtle, ornamental
fruit, and other street trees. Other
neighbors have installed gray water
pipes that transport washing machine
water to trees in their yards.
Handy guides for watering nearby
trees are available at www.ebmud.com/
watersmart and https://www.ebmud.
com/customers/pipeline/2016/05/your-
trees-need-tlc/. They make suggestions
for how, when, and how much to water
your trees, and how to look for signs
of stress. Another cool tip for caring
for street trees is to install a Treegator.
Treegator Slow Release Watering Bags
deliver water deep below the soil sur-
face, encouraging strong root growth.
For information, go to https://www.
treegator.com. n
THE
page 7
SEPTEMBER 2021
Rockridge to Biafra —
The Piano Connection
by Nadine Rosenthal
During the gloominess of Covid,
Ayala Avenue resident Shelley
Coleman chatted with neighbors who
lived alone and asked them how they
were coping with the pandemic. Their
heart-felt need for engagement was
palpable. A light bulb went off.
“We need to have some fun. Let’s
put pianos on the street,” she said, and
launched the idea to search for pianos
to bring the community together
through music. People on Nextdoor
were advertising very old pianos they
wanted to give away, and before she
knew it, some 14 pianos were moved
to her backyard and driveway.
A city permit and insurance were
obtained to close off the 5900 Block
of Ayala for July 18th and some of
the pianos were placed down the
center of the street. A diversity of
people came with their sheet music,
families, and friends to join in on
the fun. Some came out from their
homes when they heard the music;
others stopped and listened when
they happened to be walking by.
Pianists from New Orleans sang
and played cabaret tunes, a teenager
knocked out ragtime, a concert pia-
nist performed Chopin, and at the end
of the day a group of people played
and sang songs from the Broadway
musical Rent.
It was an afternoon of spontaneity,
joy, and enjoying the company of
others. There was enough space for
people to gather comfortably, with
Event organizer Shelley Coleman,
and Bay Area resident Obie Godwin
Obinna Okorie, collaborated to bring
pianos to Biafra.
Photos: Evelyn Hoch
Yunyi Ji, 26, M.M.San Francisco
Conservatory, playing Chopin.
chairs to sit on, and lots of hand
sanitizer. Approximately 300 people
passed through including Coun-
cilmember Dan Kalb and his wife,
Valarie, who came and schmoozed
with Dan’s District 1 constituents.
“It was such a wonderful and cre-
ative event. As a new neighbor, I’m
finding out more each day that Rock-
ridge is a pretty friendly place to live,”
said Hallie Smith.
“I’d been looking forward to this
event since I heard about it,” said
Yunyi Ji, 26, M.M. San Francisco
Conservatory. “Playing music for the
community is exactly what I love
doing.”
“It was a creative adventure for me,”
said Shelley. “I was so happy after
such a difficult year, just being out
and about, chatting with neighbors,
being immersed in the joy of it all.”
Some wondered about the destiny
of the pianos. Shelley worked with
her piano mover, Matteo Porcedda
(www.firsthandpianomovers.com),
who introduced her to Obie Godwin
Obinna Okorie, a Bay Area resident
originally from Biafra, Nigeria. Obi
wanted to ship the pianos to the
School of the Blind, Imo State, Nigeria,
for students to acquire piano skills.
The morning after the event, Obi
moved the pianos to a container at
the Port of Oakland to be shipped to
Biafra. He will soon be visiting them
to see how they weathered their oce-
anic voyage from Rockridge to Biafra.
Nadine has been a Rockridge resident
for 34 years. She can be reached at
nadine@nadinerosenthal.com. n
THE
page 8
SEPTEMBER 2021
What’s the Buzz on
College Avenue?
by Anna L. Marks
Arecent report from real estate
firm John Cumbelich & Associ-
ates compared retail occupancy
rates for the districts of Montclair
Village, Grand Lake, and Rockridge.
It noted that occupancy rates of these
similarly-sized business districts
have “outperformed Walnut Creek,”
and that Rockridge occupancies are
“near an all-time high.” It’s great to
hear that our our neighborhood is
rebounding well from the pandemic,
and there is much else to report.
Caroline Kim of Sunday Bakeshop
with a tray of freshly baked chocolate
hojicha croissants.
Photo: Anna L. Marks
Sunday Bakeshop (5931 College
Ave) is a French-inspired Asian
American bakery run by chef and
co-founder Elaine Lau, a graduate of
the Culinary Institute of America.
Pressed Juice (6300 College Ave)
offers farm-to-bottle, cold-pressed
juice, wellness shots, and plant-based
soft-serve Freeze. Stop by and try
their watermelon pomegranate juice.
Planterday (6004 College Ave)
opened on July 14th, and is run by
Bay Area natives Yumi and Matt
Day, who began selling plants from
a pop-up trailer before opening the
brick and mortar shop. As official
sponsors of Crisis Support Services of
Alameda County, Planterday donates
a portion of all monthly proceeds to
support volunteer efforts for suicide
and crisis prevention. This is in honor
of Matt’s father who took his own life
when Matt was young.
Welcome to the Avenue
Several new shops have hung out
their shingles along College Avenue,
and they are all welcome additions to
the neighborhood.
Boba Guys (5925 College Ave) has
opened at the old Dreyer’s Ice Cream
shop location, serving up specialty
drinks and artisan bubble teas.
Maison d’Etre owners Patty Brunn
and Fred Wornack, pictured in front
of their store circa 2002.
Anniversaries
Businesses have come and gone over
the years, but many have survived
the test of time. Some are mentioned
below, and The Rockridge News con-
gratulates all of them.
George & Walt’s (grandfather
and son) bought the lot and built
the building at 5445 College Avenue
in 1945. The bar/restaurant is now
operated by Walt’s granddaughter,
Barbara, and is owned by her mother,
The Buzz, see next page
YOUR LOCAL BIKE-POWERED
REFILL SHOP
[ B U L K ] [ Z E R O - W A S T E ]
ReUpRefills.org
6025 COLLEGE AVE. OAKLAND
THE
page 9
SEPTEMBER 2021
College Avenue where he offers an
array of Italian fare — specializing
in house-made pasta and Italian
wine. “My Nonna’s cooking, and my
Italian-American family here in Rock-
ridge and Oakland were influential.
When I started visiting my cousins in
Italy, I really got inspired.”
Joyce Gardener opened FIT Cloth-
ing 19 years ago at 5707 College Ave.
She is grateful to have survived the
recession in ’08 and still be here after
Covid. “We still have the same loyal
customers who have supported us
over the many years. Our mission
has always been to be a gathering
place to find great clothes, share
information, and support women.
Now, coming out of this pandemic,
we need to dress our customers and
get them out of their sweats!” n
opened her shop 19 years ago at 5303
College Avenue.
77Salon (5358 College Ave) is a
certified sustainable salon. As a
member of Green Circle Salons, 95
percent of its waste is recovered and
repurposed. Make an appointment
and help them celebrate their 13th
anniversary in the neighborhood.
When Patty Brunn and her hus-
band Fred Womack met as florists,
they realized they shared a love of
buying and selling reclaimed junk
and found objects. Their passion is
evident in their store Maison d’Etre
at 5640 College Avenue, which
opened 26 years ago and “celebrates
life at home.” “We live in the neigh-
borhood and love being a part of it.”
Enoteca Molinari owner Joe
Madison celebrates 10 years at 5474
The Buzz, from previous page
Gail. In honor of their 75 years in
business, they refurbished the orig-
inal neon sign that was installed on
their storefront in 1946. They are
planning a party in December.
Zachary’s Chicago Pizza, at 5801
College Ave, opened in 1983 and has
been a Rockridge staple for 38 years.
In 2003, owners Zach Zachowski and
Barbara Gabel retired and sold the
company to its employees, who now
own 100 percent of the restaurant.
Andrea Serrahn, fashion designer
and founder of the clothing boutique
Serrahna, began her love affair with
textiles while growing up in Wis-
consin where she learned to design
and sew her own clothes. After a trip
to India, she was hooked on hand-
printed and hand-stitched design. She
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THE
page 10
SEPTEMBER 2021
A Modern-Day Damsel
Reinterprets Folktales
by Judith Doner Berne
Bobbie Kinkead didn’t read many of
the popular children’s books as
she grew up in the 1950s in what she
describes as a “macho-male society”
fostered, in part, by the nine military
bases located within her hometown
of Colorado Springs.
“Where I lived there were no Nancy
Drews or Bobbsey Twins,” she said.
What she focused on and identified
with, particularly during her middle
school years, were folk and fairy tales
that featured the damsel in distress.
“I identified with the damsel. She’s
very innocent, she’s always weak. She’s
always saved by the males.”
Those folktales were supplemented
by the stories she made up as a child,
fishing the nearby creek and wander-
ing the Colorado woods; as a young
adult, hiking the frozen tundra of
Alaska; and as a wife, mother of two,
and grandmother of three, living for
51 years in Rockridge.
Indeed, the grounds around the
home she shares with her husband
Don echo on a mini scale (or as close
as you might get in Lower Rockridge)
the woods and waters in which
she grew up. Lush foliage, aided by
Kinkead’s very green thumb, per-
meates the dry bed where Temescal
Creek once flowed uninhibited.
Her early fascination with folklore
Author Bobbie Kinkead weaves a tale of female empowerment
and overcoming stereotypes.
Photo: Judy Berne
allowed an education. “Women only
get married; their duties are to the
family,” her mom was told. So, at
age 14 she was farmed out to work
for another family where she would
“learn women’s skills.”
Not so for Kinkead. After earning
a traditional bachelor’s degree in
elementary education with a minor
and storytelling has permeated
her life, culminating in a new book,
Damsels Overcome, subtitled, Feminist
Empowerment, which she is self-
publishing.
Fifteen years in the making, this
labor of love is a collection of 20 folk-
tales, fables, legends, fairy tales, and
myths from different countries, origi-
nally told by male story tellers during
the 6th to the 18th centuries. “It might
be in the male narrative,” she said,
“but it’s really about the female.” Her
favorite: Little Red Riding Hood.
It is also part memoir. She shares
her interpretations of each story
filtered through her experiences as a
modern-day “damsel” and influenced
by the fact that her mother wasn’t
in fine arts from the University of
Colorado, she created her own course
of study. In her mind, she attained
was what akin to a “second bache-
lor’s” when she learned to compose,
write, and illustrate an original story
through the Society of Children’s
Book Writers and Illustrators. She
attained a so-called “masters” in
the art of storytelling at Dominican
University in San Rafael. And she
acquired a self-styled “doctorate” in
how to trace a story’s origin at the
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco.
“The protests and laws fought for
by grandmothers and my peers saved
us,” Kinkead writes. “Let go of the
‘he’ in she; the ‘male’ in female; the
‘man’ in woman.” In their place, she
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ƉƵƌƉŽƐĞƐŽŶůLJĂŶĚŝƐĐŽŵƉŝůĞĚĨƌŽŵƐŽƵƌĐĞƐĚĞĞŵĞĚƌĞůŝĂďůĞďƵƚŚĂƐŶŽƚďĞĞŶǀĞƌŝĨŝĞĚ͘ŚĂŶŐĞƐŝŶƉƌŝĐĞ͕ĐŽŶĚŝƚŝŽŶ͕ƐĂůĞŽƌǁŝƚŚĚƌĂǁĂůŵĂLJďĞŵĂĚĞǁŝƚŚŽƵƚŶŽƚŝĐĞ͘EŽƐƚĂƚĞŵĞŶƚŝƐŵĂĚĞĂƐƚŽĂĐĐƵƌĂĐLJŽĨ
Eyes on Rockridge, see next page
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THE
page 11
SEPTEMBER 2021
Eyes on Rockridge, from previous page
they’re looking at you and you can see
they are with the character. It’s much
harder to write because you don’t
know where your reader is.”
Carolina Juarez, Kinkead’s
longtime next-door neighbor, was
part-way through Damsels Overcome
when contacted by The News. “I’ve
always been impressed with Bobbie’s
storytelling talents. She also has been
a delightful neighbor, a wonderful
artist, and a fabulous gardener.” Now
Juarez is further impressed by “the
academic part of it and her digging
into the male and femaleness of all
these stories.”
“Bobbie’s like a sister to me,” Jea-
nette Murrell said. The Rockridge
moms bonded when they each ran day
care centers out of their homes. Later,
the two became master gardeners and
had a part-time landscape business.
“I feel I grew up with her,” Murrell
told me. “I intend to read the book.”
You can order copies of Damsels
Overcome through Rockridge’s local
bookstores, East Bay Book Sellers and
Pegasus Books, Oakland. To comment
or to suggest topics for future columns,
please email judyberne@att.net. n
suggests we use: maiden, matron, gal,
lady, feminist, girl, crone (a wise older
woman). And, of course, damsel. (As
you see, I wasn’t able to follow her
advice in writing this column.)
“Damsels who had the ability to
overcome imposed helplessness,
weakness and inferiority were the
survivors: courageous, talented and
intelligent,” she writes. “Wise damsels
did what they needed to exist within
the male social norms of their time.
As I discovered, males are also vic-
tims of these norms.”
The book’s color-splashed cover
depicts a collage of damsels from folk-
lore to present day, as well as animals
central to the book’s varied tales. A
simple drawing of an adult damsel fly
with its elongated abdomen, delicate
body, and two pairs of wings marks
each chapter.
As you may have guessed, it’s an
unusual book — one that Kinkead
said wouldn’t appeal to traditional
publishers. In some ways, it’s her
thesis, complete with each tale’s his-
torical background and an extensive
bibliography. Although many years in
the making, she was able to finish it
during Covid, when “I got to be quiet.”
Kinkead’s cozy home office is
cordoned off from the living room by
bookshelves and a patterned curtain.
Surrounding her desk and beneath its
red-painted ceiling are shelves dotted
with tiny clothespin characters she
has created, boxes of story-telling
props and puppets, and books, note-
books and files on her damsel stories.
She works most days from 10am
to 5pm, with a break for lunch. “I
spend a lot of time thinking while
I rock in any rocking chair with a
peaceful back and forth rhythm, even
a swing.” Two basket chair swings
overlook the garden.
For years, Kinkead recounted
folktales to youngsters who attended
her morning pre-school, to audiences
through the Storytelling Association
of California and at the Asian Art
Museum, and of course to her own
children and grandchildren. “Telling
the story and writing it are two dif-
ferent skills. When you’re on stage,
Shop
Rockridge
THE
page 12
SEPTEMBER 2021
Escaping a Wildfire:
A New Technology To
Get You Out Safely
by Skip Fogarty
wildfire scenarios. So he took his ideas
to two seasoned Silicon Valley entrepre-
neurs. Together, they embarked upon
developing a new wildfire communi-
cation and notification platform now
known as Zonehaven (https://www.
zonehaven.com/).
Now, after two years of work and
funding from the Federal Emergency
Management Administration (FEMA),
Zonehaven is up and running in most
Bay Area counties and widely across
the state. In our city, thanks are due to
the Oakland Fire Department for their
collaboration. The Oakland Firesafe
Council and volunteers with Oakland
Community Preparedness & Response
(OCP&R) program also assisted with
implementation.
“We helped populate the Zonehaven
system with localized data,” reports
OCP&R manager Doug Mosher. “We
entered and verified data for 112 dis-
crete Oakland zones, including major
streets, emergency siren locations, and
critical evacuation sites like schools,
hospitals, childcare and assisted living
facilities.”
Utilizing improved communication
and predictive tools, the system better
coordinates fire agencies and first
responders. Zonehaven also offers a
sophisticated public alert system based
on strictly defined “zones” within
neighborhoods. Satellite imagery, real-
time traffic patterns, topographical
maps, current weather conditions, and
recent rain patterns are all fed into
Zonehaven’s algorithm to give residents
a hyper-localized, timely-as-possible
warning of approaching fire danger.
Next month marks the 30th anniver-
sary of the Oakland Hills Firestorm,
when many of the 25 people who
were lost were trapped while trying
to evacuate. In such a scenario,
Zonehaven could have saved lives.
But you don’t need to go back decades
to understand the wrath of Califor-
nia wildfires. The North Bay fire
consumed a quarter-million acres,
including large swaths of the wine
country and Santa Rosa. Large parts
of the West are on fire as you read
this. In fact, eight of the 10 largest
wildfires in California history have
occurred in the last decade.
So, it’s imperative to prepare. Plan
ahead about what you need to pack
if you have to leave home. Then plug
into official notifications during the
event. Zonehaven can notify you
when it’s time to go and suggests the
safest escape route using real-time
traffic data. On their website, you’ll
see a color-coded evacuation status
indicator for each zone — None,
Alert, Leave Now. You can choose
several notification options including
home phone, cell phone, text or email
— or all of them. AC Alerts is our
county’s primary emergency notifica-
tion system.
“In an emergency, OPD and OFD
public information officers can also
spread the word via social media
apps,” Mosher says. “Residents may
also hear evacuation orders via
loudspeakers or from door-to-door
notifications by police and fire per-
sonnel.” Local TV and radio stations
like KQED (FM) and KCBS (AM) are
also good sources.
For info, see OCP&R Guide #02,
Notifications & Warnings at https://
www.oaklandcpandr.org/guides/. n
Watching the advance of the 2017
North Bay Fire, Alameda
Fire Division Chief Dave Winnacker
pulled his truck over on a hilltop
overlook. While providing mutual aid
to Sonoma County, he saw an angry
wave of orange flames chewing its
way up the slope — swallowing homes
along the way. Instantly he knew the
conflagration could not be stopped.
He switched gears to plotting an evac-
uation strategy.
Tracking the complexity of the fire’s
behavior in multiple locations at once,
Winnacker realized that technology
should be better applied for use in
In Rockridge since 1997
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THE
page 13
SEPTEMBER 2021
resources for lists of what to pack,
but one of the best is from CAL
FIRE. https://www.readyforwildfire.
org/prepare-for-wildfire/get-set/
emergency-supply-kit/ and another
great resource is https://www.
oaklandcpandr.org/guides/ which
contains a downloadable evacuation
checklist, among many other useful
guides. Guides are available in a
number of languages.
Planning Ahead is Key
uation guide is available from Redfora,
an emergency preparedness company,
as a downloadable PDF. Redfora also
has a section with excellent articles
on preparing for a variety of disasters
(https://redfora.com/blogs/wild-
fire-pre-evacuation-checklist-guide).
If you do not have access to a car,
make arrangements to find a nearby
evacuation buddy who can take you
with them. NO gig service will be
operating in the evacuation zone.
Evacuating on a bicycle is very doable,
but will limit what you can take with
you unless you have a bicycle cart.
3) Have a Go-Bag ready and easily
accessible. There are many online
— by Annette Floystrup
There are things we all can do to
prepare for the next firestorm,
because it is a question of when, not
if, it will occur. First and foremost,
get out of denial. During the Oakland
firestorm, which lasted for more than
three days, there were people who
lost everything after watching the fire
approaching them — some for hours
and some for more than a day. They
could not and/or would not believe
that the fire would reach them. Never
underestimate the speed and potential
range of an urban wildfire.
1) Have a plan. Make specific plans
for very young children and any
mobility impaired family members,
and don’t forget your pets. Acquaint
yourself with the new Zonehaven app
and know your zone-code and evacu-
ation zone — this will be critical (see
article on previous page).
2) Prepare to evacuate ahead of
time. A great, downloadable pre-evac-
Planning Ahead, see next page
Community Comeback:
Picnic at Lake Temescal
by Sarah Kidder
C
DAY OF REMEMBRANCE:
FIRESTORM 30
omeback from what, you ask?
Next month marks the 30th
anniversary of the October 1991
Oakland/Berkeley firestorm — an
event that subsequently brought
many people together as they rose
out of the ashes to rebuild homes
and reconstruct lives.
On Sunday, Oct. 17th from 11am
to 3pm, the North Hills Com-
munity Association (NHCA) is
hosting a gathering that will bring
friends and neighbors together
once again for a day of fun and
tribute at a Community Comeback
Picnic. Enjoy a beautiful day at the
lake with loved ones, neighbors,
and new friends as this will go a
long way to rebuilding the sense of
community so needed right now.
The event is open to all and
free to attend. There will be food
trucks, music and a tribute to those
who perished in the 1991 fires. Fire
safety preparedness groups will
also be on hand with information.
Interested in what happened in
’91? NHCA’s collection of stories,
relics, and resources is ready for
you. Learn more, or signup for
picnic sponsorship/to volunteer
at northhillscommunity.org. Find
them on Facebook, Twitter, and
Instagram: @nhillscommunity.
Sign up to have your story included
in the online archive at www.
northhillscommunity.org. n
A day of remembrance marking the
30th Anniversary of the Oakland/
Berkeley firestorm.
October 2, 2021, 10am,
at the Rockridge BART Station
Firestorm Community Mural. n
Risk and Protection from Wildfire: A Zoom Event
— by Lucy Armentrout
Wacted as a fire safety educator at
various Bay Area agencies.
Attendees may submit specific
questions related to fire safety, fire-
fighting, and fire protection strategies
before the presentation, or put them
into the chat box during the presenta-
tion. The event will be recorded and a
link will be available to all those who
sign up. Attendance requires comple-
tion of a google form with your email
address, which can be found at www.
bit.ly/FireSafetyEvent.
ildland fires are increasingly
moving into suburban and
urban environments, so it’s always
a good time to collect information
on how to protect your loved ones,
your home and your neighborhood
from fire. Captain Mitch Matlow, a
firefighter and fire safety educator
will present details and strategies
on home fire safety, via Zoom,
on Monday, September 13th, at
7:30pm. The event is free and all are
invited to attend.
Captain Matlow has over 25 years
of firefighting experience and has
fought major fires including the
Oakland hills. In addition to his
regular work with one of the largest
local metropolitan Fire Depart-
ments, Captain Matlow works as a
Public Information Officer for state
and local fire departments and has
Note: There’s a possibility that
Captain Matlow will be called at the
last minute. (He’s already been called
away once this summer for fire ser-
vice duties.) If this happens, the event
will be rescheduled and enrollees
will be sent the new date and time.
For details, email Lucy@FineEastBay-
Homes.com. n
THE
page 14
SEPTEMBER 2021
Rock-N-Stroll, from front page
on current building costs and codes.
Check the status of your rebuilding
capabilities on your lot, and how long
you will have paid housing expenses.
It is very important that you upload
copies of all insurance related docu-
ments to the cloud.
California’s wildfires are causing
the entire insurance industry to
re-evaluate the viability of insuring
homes in areas known to be at high
risk like ours. In the aftermath of the
’91 Firestorm, many victims found out
that they were woefully underinsured.
Most found that, regardless of
coverage, they had to battle their
insurance companies for proper com-
pensation. Be sure to verify that your
insurance company is not planning
to drop you based on your location.
This did happen to many people after
the ’91 Firestorm. n
Planning Ahead, from previous page
4) Include planning for mental
health. Doing so before, during and
after a disaster can be overlooked,
but it is critical. Many firestorm
survivors acquire PTSD related to
the event. This can include auditory,
visual and olfactory triggers, which
can last for years.
To this day, the smell of wood
smoke, once evocative of camping
trips and cozy fireplace evenings,
puts me on alert, though the effect
is mild and temporary now. Both
www.oaklandcpandr.org and www.
listoscalifornia.org have mental health
guides available in over 20 languages.
5) Make sure your home insurance
is in order. Have a regular review
with your insurance agent. Be sure
that your replacement costs are based
Hope from Hella Juiced (pictured
above) at one of the many pop-up
booths along College Avenue.
Top photo: Anna L. Marks / Bottom photo: Chris Jackson
neighboring businesses when needed
— creating a pop-up concert vibe.
According to Gretchen McMann,
owner of Happy Trails Home, “The
event was super successful for me.
It was welcomed with open arms,
especially since Covid has had such
a dramatically devastating impact on
our small Oakland businesses.”
Stephanie Dominguez Walton,
Rockridge District Association Presi-
dent and performer at Rock-N-Stroll,
said, “The day had a great Oakland
vibe. It was wonderful to see people
relaxed, enjoying themselves, and
dancing with each other. I can’t wait
to connect with my community like
that again.”
For more information about Rock-
N-Stroll events, visit https://www.
rockridgedistrict.com/rocknstroll. n
THE
page 15
SEPTEMBER 2021
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Safer Rockridge Patrol Hours Update:
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Safer Rockridge has new patrol hours,
Monday through Friday from 4pm to 11pm,
as a direct result of the uptick in car break
ins in the area. For more information,
see https://saferrockridge.org/
Handyman for Hire
Multifaceted and well experienced.
Hauling and towing available. No job
too small. Reasonably priced. Lee Self.
707/223-1298-call and text.
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COME VISIT US AT
THE CORNER OF
LIFE & CHANGE
THE
5132 Lawton Ave. | Rockridge
$1,975,000 | 5132Lawton.com
www.ClaudiaMillsRealEstateTeam.com
Claudia Mills
510.350.6419
c.mills@ggsir.com
Lic.#01881682
Each Franchise Is Independently Owned And Operated.
KEVIN BROWN
Broker
654-8707 or 593-4780
PROVIDING
Professional,
Full Service
Real Estate Brokerage
To Rockridge Clients
For Over 26 Years.
SPECIALIZING IN
O Residential Sales
O Income Property
O Commercial
O Property Management
Better Homes
Realty
5353 College Avenue
Oakland
COMING SOON
ROCKRIDGE
5300 Block of Lawton
• 2 Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms
• PLUS 1 Bedroom, 1 Bathroom
Backyard Cottage
• This home is a little funky, but very
livable. Flip your own home with your
ideas & passion
• Close to College & Telegraph
• Chabot Elementary School
SOLD TEMESCAL
SOLD OVER
$1.2 MIL
4811 Telegraph - Temescal Place
• 3 Bedrooms, 2+ Bathrooms
• Townhouse Style Condo
w/Loft & Fireplace
• Rooftop Decks w/Views
• 2 Secure Parking Spaces
• Primary Bedroom w/Ensuite Bathroom
• Almost 2,000 sqft
Stay Safe and Well.
L A W T O N
Ron Kriss, Broker
Lawton Associates
(c) 510-612-2547
RonKriss@JPS.net
A S S O C I A T E S
R E A L E S T A T E
B R O K E R A G E
“#1 in Rockridge
Real Estate”
160+ Successful Sales
in Rockridge
DRE# 01417458
www.LawtonAssoc.com