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By Ken Katz, on August 27th, 2009
Stephen Duffy’s Grand/Lakeshore Collective Music Series debuted August 8 and is scheduled to continue every Saturday afternoon through October.
In his most recent message to the Grand Lake Yahoo Group, Stephen extended thanks to the following:
The buzz is strong, lot’s of people stepped up. Cheryl and Carlos got the tent thing going, Rachel donated, Amy for the flyers,Maggie has another tent to donate. Once again Hailey Magsig did the rounds making sure everyone was happy. Ken was around spreading good will and supporting the bands. So a huge thanks to everyone who helped out. We always need more people to keep the energy going and I can’t be there for a couple of weeks in September. Anyway I’m sure I’m forgetting some folks so apologies to you.
Schedule this Saturday, August 29 beginning at 1:00 pm includes
Alma Desnuda outside Arizmendi, boatclub outside Vine, That Man Fantastic Trio outside Fords Fine Furniture and Rafael Ramirez spicy Latin trio outside Connies Cantina.
Thanks to Mezze Restaurant and Bar, Arizmendi, Miss Saigon, Fords Fine Furniture, and Connie’s for providing power and food for the bands.
Because of the nature of the event, times are approximate and changes are not unexpected. Please check this site for last-minute updates.
Finally, for an interesting take on the Grand/Lake music series, we’d highly recommend reading a blog posted by Kerbsiders’ Sean Lightholder on his Bay Area Open Mike Calendar.
By Eric Hughes, on August 8th, 2009
On Saturday, August 22nd, 2009, there will be an organized clean up of Grand Avenue common areas. Join us between 10AM and 4PM for any amount of time you can spare (we’ll start at 10 and end at 4) in front of the Grand/Lake Theater. Depending on the number of people who show up, we’ll be sprucing up the following areas:
the triangle across the street from the theater: picking up trash, weeding, cutting back bushes, spreading out that huge pile of mulch that has been patiently waiting for us;
- the public parking lot between Grand and Walker: trimming back (short!) trees, tilling;
- weeding the median strip on Lake Park;
- weeding the exit ramp from 580 to Grand;
- documenting tagging and graffiti anywhere between Lake Park and Piedmont so that we can follow up with clean-up requests.
Tools will be provided, but if you have your favorites, please bring them along. Gloves and vests will also be provided. We’ll try our best to get some donations of doughnuts, water, and fruit, but no promises there. Folks under 18 are invited, but will need to work on the parking lot and graffiti documentation project.
This cleanup is co-sponsored by Grand Lake Neighbors (grandlakeneighbors.org), the Grand Avenue Breakfast Club, and the Grand Avenue Business Association.
Questions? Contact Eric Hughes at eric@foggygulch.com
By David Flack, on August 5th, 2009
The next Grand Lake Neighbors meeting is this Thursday, August 6, 7:00pm at Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church, 3534 Lakeshore Ave. Come in the front door of the church, veer to the left and come down the hall. Here’s the agenda.
| 7:00 – 7:10 |
Introductions |
| 7:10 – 7:30 |
Lakefest – impressions of the event and the Grand Lake Neighbors booth |
| 7:30 – 7:50 |
National Night Out – capitalizing on the success of the block parties |
| 7:50 – 8:10 |
Grand Lake Neighbors – who we are, how we are different from other groups, what we hope to accomplish |
| 8:10 – 8:20 |
Welcome back Office Kim (he’s been off for a couple of months) |
| 8:20 – 8:25 |
Grand Avenue Work Day – Aug 22 |
| 8:25 – 8:30 |
Other business |
We hope to see you there.
By Ken Katz, on August 4th, 2009
For the last several years, Nick Everleigh (the Chairman of the Grand
Avenue Business Association) has done a marvelous job organizing a
National Night Out celebration on Grand Avenue. Unfortunately, Nick
has moved out of state and no one currently associated with GABA has
assumed the leadership mantle.
No one, however, loves a vacuum and Fred Borcherdt is no exception.
Fred introduced himself to me yesterday afternoon at the Grand Lake
Neighbors booth at Lakefest and handed me a flyer. Fred is a partner
in “Pure 510″–the t-shirt outlet that opened a couple of months ago at
3224 Grand Avenue which is next to General Computers.
Fred has scheduled a celebration at Splash Pad Park from 6 to 9 pm
tomorrow. He has the necessary permits and says he has three bands
lined up and some 15 Grand Avenue merchants are participating in one
capacity or another. If you don’t have your own NNO block party
scheduled, you should be ashamed of yourself but to make partial
amends, please consider joining me in the park.
By David Flack, on August 3rd, 2009
Here’s a list of National Night Out celebrations in our area. All start Tuesday, August 4th at 7:00pm unless otherwise noted. A wonderful opportunity to meet your neighbors.
900 block of Alma Place
300 block of Atla Vista Avenue
1200 block of Bates Road
800 block of Creed Road
800 block of Erie Street
3200 block of Grand Avenue – 6:00pm
500 block of Lake Park Avenue
600 block of Mandana Blvd.
000 block of Mandana Circle
500 block of Mira Vista Avenue – 5:30pm
400 block of Santa Clara Avenue
600 block of Santa Ray Avenue – 6:00pm
700 block of Santa Ray Avenue
200 block of Santa Rosa Avenue – 6:30pm
900 block of Scott Street
1200 block of Trestle Glen Road
1000 block of Underhills Road – 6:30pm
900 block of Vermont Street – 6:00pm
900 block of York Street
By David Flack, on July 29th, 2009
Welcome to the new Grand Lake Neighbors website. Grand Lake Neighbors is a group of volunteers working together to preserve and improve the Grand Lake district of Oakland. Our mission is threefold:
- Communication – sharing information and keeping each other informed about issues in our area
- Solving problems – tapping into the incredible talent in our neighborhood to address specific problems
- Effecting change – being an agent for improving our quality of life
Our primary focus will be sharing information. We hope to foster an information network that provides broader communication among the many individuals and groups that are now working independently.
We are just getting started. Technically, the site went live on July 13, but the first substantial content appeared on July 29th. We welcome your input, ideas, and, since this is a volunteer effort, your help. Please leave a comment. Do you like what we are doing? What neighborhood issues are important to you? What kind of information could we provide that would be helpful to you?
Take a look at the About Us and History pages for more information on who we are and where we came from. And check out all the useful links to community resources on the right.
By Ken Katz, on July 23rd, 2009
You may very well be wondering what the hawk is doing featured so prominently on the GrandLakeNeighbors.org home page.
If, twenty-five years ago, I had told my older son’s 4th grade teacher that four Cooper’s Hawks had returned for a second summer to the Morcom Rose Garden, she’d probably insist that there are no hawks in Oakland. That assumption is based on her response when Adam told her he’d seen a dead possum on Lakeshore Avenue.
That, of course, would be the very same teacher who told my wife at a parent-teacher conference that Adam reminded her of her ex-husband.
On that score, she may have been right on target, but in terms of the fauna that inhabit the Grand Lake district, she wasn’t even close. Yes, there are hawks in the Morcom Rose Garden and more than a few turkeys, as well. For proof positive regarding the latter, check out the photo Anca Mosoiu took of two turkeys at this year’s Earth Day celebration. I’m the one on the right.
As for opossums, they’re still here, but vastly outnumbered by the raccoons. These masked marauders are mostly taken for granted until they find their way into a kitchen via a pet door and wreak absolute havoc. On the other hand, you’d probably have preferred the raccoon invasion to the time a skunk sprayed the family dog.
On that occasion, you most likely relied on a tomato juice bath, but our former next-door neighbor swore that Masengill’s Lemon-Scented douche works like a charm.
While visits from a raccoon or a skunk can obviously be traumatic, you’d think that a fawn would be welcomed with open arms. That certainly wasn’t the case some six months ago when Bambi incarnate came jogging past our house heading for Lakeshore. Anyone living in Montclair will think this is hilarious, but absolute pandemonium ensued as we figured this helpless creature was about to get creamed by a car speeding up Lakeshore — of which there is no shortage.
Phone calls were made to the OPD non-emergency line, our local beat officer, animal control and just about anyone else unfortunate enough to pick up the phone and listen to irate citizens demanding an immediate response. After fifteen or so minutes, Bambi got tired of all the attention. Either that or she was getting as impatient as the rest of us waiting for an official response and bolted for the hills.
That’s pretty much it for my Grand Lake wild animal stories which I’ve penned mostly for their entertainment value. On the other hand, since GrandLakeNeighbors.org is intended as an information source that will help formulate an action plan, I feel obligated to present the following recommendations:
1. Go see the Cooper’s Hawks — not to mention the Rose Garden which continues to look more and more fabulous thanks to the efforts of Tora Rocha and her gardening crew as well as the dozens of volunteers who pitch in to help on the first Wednesday and second Saturday of every month.
2. If you have a dog, stock up on lemon-scented douche.
3. Please share your own (mostly true) encounters with Grand Lake wildlife.
4. Relax and go with the flow.
Share your own stories using the ‘Leave a comment’ link below.
Peace,
Ken
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