Anthropologie, due to open this Friday, September 14th in downtown Walnut Creek, has decorators hard at work transforming the store into an artistic cornucopia. I love how they don’t block the windows out while prepping the store, anyone can just check out the progress by looking in, it’s going to look amazing! This is a great addition to the downtown Walnut Creek area.
Davidson & Lichte The Watch Shoppe has closed in downtown Walnut Creek on N. Main St, however their shop on Broadway Plaza is still open so if you have repairs, a note on the door mentions to pick it up there.
I believe Davidson & Lichte own the building itself, as well as Vanessa’s next door so it’ll be interesting to see what will open in its place.
From the city of Walnut Creek website:
September 8, 2012 Sugarloaf to Shell Ridge and back
Join Mayor Bob Simmons at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, September 8 for a walk in the Sugarloaf and Shell Ridge open space areas. Meet at 8:30 a.m. at the Orchard Trail sign at the Sugarloaf Open Space area. The walk will cover about 4 miles on some uneven terrain. There are two moderately steep sections, with about 1000′ cumulative elevation gain. Be sure to wear sturdy walking shoes, and to bring water and sunscreen. Click for walking guide.
The Walnut Creek Baking Company is opening today, exactly one week after the original Walnut Creek Baking Company closed due to their lease expiring, and the wife of the landlord is taking over.
Diablo Dish notes that the bakery will have, “the same products, some of the same staff, and the same name—at least until they can change it”, and here is what the landlord (and husband of the new bakery owner) has to say about the new bakery:
“There will be the same level of quality—and maybe even higher.”
Does this strike anybody as odd? The only thing I can think of is that the landlord, in addition to buying the equipment, also bought the rights to the former owner’s recipes and procedures. Otherwise there is a situation where one of the former head bakers, now working for the new owner, is using Denise’s recipes and baking techniques to try to replicate what Denise came up with from scratch. They did say, “maybe even higher”, but how so if they’re using the same recipes etc? Does this rub anyone the wrong way? This is something I have to see myself.
Check out the proof it’s opening today:
Apparently some employees remained loyal to the former owner:
If you drop by tomorrow please let us know your impressions, the suspense is driving me crazy.
Lafayette is considering building a roundabout on Mt. Diablo Blvd near the Gazebo and some people are not happy about this possibility. There are even protesters out with signs warning about traffic and loss of parking spots. Check out the official roundabout project page here, including the staff report here.
The Lafayette staff believe that a roundabout will allow traffic to slow down but continue to flow freely, make it safer for pedestrians to cross, and will contribute positively to streetscape design, displaying including public art.
Check out an aerial view of the roundabout:
And the proposed location of the roundabout:
I have experience crossing here because I go to Lamorinda Crossfit at the end of Blackwood Lane and we sometimes cross over to run on the Lamorinda trail on the other side near the gazebo. Frankly it hasn’t been that crowded to wait more than 30 seconds before crossing, and usually we can cross immediately. Also, when I think of roundabouts I think of busy streets on multiple sides so I can’t quite understand why a roundabout here would be all that useful considering the other intersecting streets are rarely used. The fact that the lanes will merge into one on both sides of Mt. Diablo Blvd. could certainly be annoying to people driving. On the other hand, it would be more convenient for pedestrians to cross the street, and might look pretty cool.
So for the Friday question of the day, do you think the proposed Lafayette roundabout on Mt. Diablo Blvd. is a good idea?
Reminder that the 5K and 10K running race will take place in front of Lululemon in downtown Walnut Creek at 8am. Registrations are still being accepted so why not support Walnut Creek schools and get some exercise at the same time? From their website:
It’s not too late to REGISTER! You can register and pick up your shirt and bib# at:
- Sports Basement on Thursday & Friday from 5-9pm
- RACE DAY registration is available.
Race details are here. I’ll be participating in this race (wearing a blue shirt, black shorts and red shoes) so please say hi if you see me!
photo by Flickr user The-Tim
Thanks to realtor Brian Sparr for compiling this list of home and condo sales for Beyond the Creek. Sales for Walnut Creek, Lafayette, Orinda and Moraga are included. Both PDF and Excel reports are included below:
August 2012 Sales (PDF format)
August 2012 Sales (Excel format)
Spotted in front of Bank of America on N. Main St. and Duncan St. in downtown Walnut Creek.
SITE OF FIRST COUNCIL MEETING
of
THE CITY OF WALNUT CREEK
October 22, 1914
H.F. Spencer, MAYOR
You may have noticed the real estate section lagging a bit but that’s about to change thanks to a new real estate guest writer coming on board who will provide some statistics and insights into the local Walnut Creek, Lafayette and nearby markets. His name is Brian Sparr and he is a real estate agent associated with Keller Williams Realty.
Born and raised in Montana, Brian now lives in Walnut Creek with his wife Nicole, a school teacher in Danville. They enjoy traveling and Brian competes in triathlons. He played division I baseball at Santa Clara University, majoring in Computer Science. He’s also an avid reader, and is an all-around nice guy when I met up with him at a Lafayette Starbucks recently.
Anyway, welcome to Brian and I look forward to his real estate posts about the local market. If anyone has questions for him post them here or check out his website at Sparr Properties.
Behold the new floating islands made out of recycled plastic at the Heather Farm Park pond in Walnut Creek. (The second one is just visible behind the water fountain). They acually do move around quite a bit as they are not anchored.
From the City of Walnut Creek website:
The floating islands are made of out recycled plastic (certified non-toxic) drinking bottles. The islands will create a habitat for wildlife and fish and help pull pollutants from the water, while providing a more natural look to the cement pond. The BioHaven Floating Islands have been used successfully by agencies including the Army Corps of Engineers to build habitat for endangered or threatened species.
Check out a close-up of one of the islands. I imagine over time the plants will grow to make things a bit more interesting:
Here’s a visual description of what’s going on:
