Creek to Bay Day

Saturday was the 16th annual Oakland Creek to Bay Day to cleanup waterways and shoreline in Oakland. It was part of the International Coastal Cleanup effort around the world.

There were projects all over Oakland, including several not far from home. But I selected a project somewhere I'd never been in Oakland, W.D. Wood Park near Reservoir Hill, between Fruitvale and I-580 (not far from the Altenheim.) Sausal Creek runs along the east side of the park, but as is the case for too many creeks in Oakland, it runs underground in a culvert. The park itself was created when leakage from the nearby reservoir contributed to unstable soil, and an entire neighborhood sank in the 1950s. The Corps of Engineers stabilized the hillside with piles driven deep into the ground, but it was too late for dozens of houses. Unable to safely rebuild, the area was turned into a park in 1976.

A couple of dozen volunteers turned out to help clean up the park. I don't know how many trips Phil made back up the hill with his pickup filled to overflowing, but we filled the dumpster more than half way with 3 hours of work. It would have been completely full, but I enlisted the aid of some of our younger volunteers to help me flatten down and redistribute the load. Besides removing broom and other invasive species, and picking up some trash, we also planted a few native plants in areas that had already been cleared.

In our local brush with fame, KRON Channel 4 showed up to get some footage and interviewed Lisa, one of the coordinators of the cleanup. And city council member, Ignacio De La Fuente showed up to work, too. While he and his staffer showed up late, I think it was because he'd been to another cleanup site in his district earlier. And to his credit, he was working hard when I saw him down the hill. IDLF has worked to get funds for the park to get a play area and other improvements.

Although it was a fairly short day, we got a lot done. Thanks to Lisa and Jill who organized the cleanup, and all the volunteers who worked hard. But cleaning up Wood Park isn't a once-a-year thing; a group of neighbors is out there every 3rd Saturday to work. And very likely there's a neighborhood group that does similar things at a park near you. So get out there and make Oakland better!


More photos:

Creek to Bay Day

More coverage:
Oakland North

Park(ing) Day

Piedmont Ave. parklet

Friday was Park(ing) Day, a world-wide event where parking spaces were temporarily turned into mini "parklets" for people to enjoy. First, a huge shout out to Ruth Miller (of Walk Oakland Bike Oakland and Oakland Local), who was a major part of Park(ing) Day happening here in Oakland. And thank you to everyone who made the different parklets around Oakland happen.

I started by visiting the parklet in front of Shimizu Sushi on Piedmont Avenue. It was done with the support of Danny, the head chef and owner, but it was a couple of area residents (thanks, Jennifer!) who made this parklet happen for the 2nd year in a row. The parklet was comfy, with patio furniture over a layer of bark chips.

Then I rolled down to Grand Ave. to check out the parklet at Farley's East. This was the second year for this parklet as well. It filled two parking spaces, with one half given over to comfy chairs and plants, and the other to mats for yoga and a couple of exercise machines. Not surprisingly, I saw BART board member and former East Bay Bike Coalition executive director Robert Raburn there -- what better place to see someone who's dedicated their career to biking and transit?

East Bay Meditation Center parklet

A short walk away on Broadway was another parklet in front of the East Bay Meditation Center. This was the first year for the parklet, and while it had the support of the EBMC, community members made it happen. Thanks, Christy and Nichole!

A short distance away on Telegraph across from the Fox Theater was a parklet in front of the Marquee Lofts. I saw @dto510 and @vsmoothe there, who picked things up after the resident who started the parklet couldn't do it. Thanks especially to VSmoothe who brought furniture and decorations from home for the parklet.

Over on 17th, PGA Design had a very creative parklet, designed to look like a campsite. From hiking socks drying in a tree, to 'stumps' to sit on, to s'mores cooked over the campfire, they kept the theme running. (PGA Design did the landscape architecture at the Tassafaronga apartments, where the Habitat East Bay Kinsell Commons development is.)

Back over to Broadway, Oaklandish and Hank and Frank Bicycles had a parklet featuring free bike tuneups, and food from El Taco Bike. Around the corner from them on 14th was a parklet by TransForm which had a table for games and was making smoothies in a bike-powered blender.

Actual Cafe parklet

Then it was a longer haul over to Actual Cafe. I'm admittedly biased (because I helped build it), but this was the most beautiful of the parklets. Part of that is because it's designed to be (hopefully) permanent, so it had more finish work put into it.

I was hoping to hook up with Ruth Miller after that at Cole Coffee for a bike tour of all the Oakland parklets along with Oakland North, but after a long day, I was happy to make it there at all.

But wait, there's more! [--More-- (66%) for you Unix nerds] Some of the parklets were on Saturday instead, to take advantage of weekend foot traffic. (And in fine Oakland style, the Actual Cafe parklet was there not only Park(ing) Day on Friday, but Saturday and Sunday, too.) So Saturday I headed out again to check out the parklets on Lakeshore and Grand Ave.

Lakeshore parklet

First up on Saturday was a parklet in front of Noah's Bagels on Lakeshore. Put together by area merchants and volunteers, it featured live music, games, and a couple of nice seating areas. Unlike the parklets in Downtown which suffered from shading from nearby buildings, they had to bring in some umbrellas for shade. I had a great time relaxing there -- I just needed a cold beer to round things out.

Just down the street in front of Arizmendi Bakery were not one but two parklets. Local merchants and residents are hoping to make the spot in front of Arizemendi into a permanent parklet. It would mean the loss of one parking space, but would add some much needed sidewalk seating to the area. I saw city council member Pat Kernighan visiting the parklets there. Around the way was yet another parklet, with some yummy treats from new Grand Ave. bakery Boniere Bakery (formerly in Alameda), books to read, and comfy seats. I met some Oakland history fans (and their awesome dog), and chatted with Oakland North editor Cynthia Gorney and neighborhood supporter Ken Katz.

I talked with a bunch of people, both about Park(ing) Day and Oakland in general, but I still made it over to Actual Cafe to check how day 2 was going there. I chatted with some of the neighboring businesses that we built the permanent planter/benches for, and relaxed with a beer. I confirmed my earlier "best of" opinion of the Actual Cafe parklet and talked with some of the area residents who helped build it. I'm looking forward to spending more time in the parklet -- I hope the city gives the go-ahead to make it permanent.


More coverage:
Oakland North

Lots more pictures:

greetings, new readers!

Greetings to new readers, whether I met you at PARK(ing) Day or some other Oakland event; I just met you somewhere in my wanderings across Oakland; you're a new reader from my recent posts on Oakland Local; or you just found the blog via Google or another search engine: hello and thanks for reading Our Oakland!

Special shout-outs to some folks I met recently: Jennifer, Christy, Pat, Nicole, Jill, Lisa, Phil, the really cool Aliza, Maryanne, Justin, Said, Gracie, Cynthia, Sam, Jim, Ken, Franklin, Pamela, Ignacio, Richard, Abbey, Sarah, and all those whose names I've already forgotten (I'm terrible with names, alas). And my thanks if you were out doing something to make Oakland better.

If you're looking for a post on PARK(ing) Day or Creek to Bay Day, I'll those up as soon as possible. I'm too busy this weekend out having fun and meeting more of you wonderful folks!

Some things I specifically mentioned to various people:

• Oakland neighborhoods map
• history walking tours
• taking the train from Oakland
• love Oakland? make it better
• Oakland signs

signs: 1/4lb Burger Xpress

1/4 lb. Giant Burger Xpress

Part of the 1/4 lb. Giant Burger chain, but with a different name and type of sign. And barely in Oakland -- Emeryville is just to the south and west. Trees and billboards make it tough to get a good shot of this with the sun on it. Any North Oaklanders know if they still light it at night?

Creek to Bay Day cleanup this Saturday

Oakland has lots of waterways, from Temescal Creek in the north to San Leandro Creek that empties into the estuary near the airport. The creeks and lakes grace parks across Oakland. Unfortunately, they're local low spots so garbage tends to collect in them as water flows in.

So on Saturday, September 17, people all across Oakland will work to clean them up during the 16th annual Oakland Creek to Bay Day. It's part of a larger event, International Coastal Cleanup Day, during which thousands of volunteers all over the globe will clean up their local waterways. Besides trash pickup, some locations will be removing invasive plants and other activities.

• The first 1,000 volunteers will receive a reusable aluminum water bottle.
• All volunteers will receive seed packets and other treats from event supporters.
• Dress appropriately; wear long pants and sturdy closed-toe shoes.
• No pre-registration required (unless you're bringing a group of 10 or more).

I blogged recently about volunteering to make Oakland better. This is a great opportunity to get your feet wet (as it were) with volunteering. It's 3 hours, with no special training or long-term commitment required. So get out there and help make Oakland better!

See the website for more details and a list of locations.


View Creek to Bay Day 2011 in a larger map