Around Town

Alameda's Lost Riviera

An Island Native Recalls the Truly Good Old Days of Union Beach

  
    Claire Robles flips through a small pile of black-and-white photographs. They show one, two or three young girls in swimsuits at the beach, playing in the sand and paddling in the water. The children are Robles, now 77, and her two sisters.
    We’re sitting in Robles’ living room on Clinton Avenue, near where it crosses Union Street. Several of the pictures were taken not much more than a block away. “When I was growing up, there were neighborhood beaches at the end of all these streets,” she says. “Union Beach, at the bottom of Union Street, was the largest, with a long stretch of sand.”
    Robles and her sisters lived a couple of blocks from Union Beach, which regulars referred to as “The Riviera.”
    “My mother would often take us there,” Robles recalls. “About 10 feet out, a great big rock protruded from the water, which was shallow to that point. Beyond the rock, there was supposedly a sudden drop. My mother didn’t swim. She’d say, ‘Only go as far as the rock.’ I remember imagining that if I went beyond the rock, I’d drop into nowhere.”
    Robles was born in Alameda. Her husband of 50 years, Herb, was three months old when his parents moved the family from Arizona to what was then a very different place. One gets the impression that earlier Alamedans experienced a heyday that many newer residents know nothing about.
     “There was a resort atmosphere,” Robles says. “People would come in the summer from San Francisco and all over.” Neptune Beach, near where Webster Street and Central Avenue meet, was better known than Union Beach. “Neptune Beach had a carnival atmosphere. There was a rollercoaster, a Ferris wheel and a large pool. Some [other] streets [also] had access to San Francisco Bay, but they had no beach—no sand, just rocks.” At the bottom of Grand Street was the original Encinal Yacht Club, but that was restricted to members, which made Union Beach such a treasure and a popular hangout with the locals.
    If you drive down Park Street toward Alameda Towne Centre and turn right onto Otis, says Robles, you can see what, 50 years ago, was the sea wall. “I remember watching workers dredging the area that is now the Towne Centre—what we used to call ‘the fill’—when I was waiting to give birth to my son [Kin] 49 years ago.”
She fondly recalls the days Alameda had seven movie theaters, “and when you went, you stayed a long time. There were always two films, a newsreel, cartoons, coming attractions and a serial, like Flash Gordon, on Saturdays.” And she still misses the old Alameda–
San Francisco ferries, which she calls “small versions of the Mississippi steamboats.” Robles was aboard one on its final trip. “I remember my husband coming in and saying, ‘Quick, if we hurry, we can catch it.’ I was pregnant and I have a memory of running and thinking, ‘This is crazy!’ But we made it.”
    Robles’ life today is full and rich. But she does enjoy the memories—and sharing the stories of her beloved town that was.

Alameda’s Astrology

Our Island Is Grounded in a Grand Earth Trine

    According to its astrological chart, moody, changeable New York City is a Cancer, a water sign, which may explain the fluidity of the stock market. Proud and vain, Rome is a Leo. Organized and health conscious, Los Angeles is a Virgo. Paris is a Virgo, too—just forget the smoking and think of the national persnicketiness toward food and dress.
    The application of astrology to locations—for an individual or a city—is called astrocartography, often used by astrologers when their clients are thinking of relocating to somewhere new. So what zodiac sign would you associate with the Island of Alameda—a water sign like Pisces perhaps? Sounds reasonable, but you would be wrong. When Manhattan astrology expert Constance Stellas, who had never been to or even heard of Alameda before, was asked to plot the Island Nation’s chart, she saw earth—and lots of it.
    Based on the city’s formal organization date of Dec. 27, 1884, Alameda is a Capricorn, with a moon in Taurus and Virgo in Jupiter. All three are earth signs, and that forms a “grand earth trine” that is very positive in psychic terms because of the harmonious relationship of these planets. “Alameda has a very grounded vibration because three major planets—Jupiter, the Sun and the Moon—are located in earth signs,” says Stellas.
    In addition to the Sun being in Capricorn, Alameda also has Mars and Mercury in Capricorn. Capricorn is a sign of serious responsibility and civic awareness. Think well grounded, well centered. The city is attractive to people from different cultures, or so Stellas sees in the chart. She sees financial stability. She sees a respect for history. And with so much earth in the chart, Stella says, “Alameda is well-rooted and may come out of a quake just fine. Other places in California have a lot of air.”
    Alameda’s chart shows an astral climate well suited for the arts and crafts, particularly writers and musicians. Ruled by the planet Uranus, the chart includes an element of surprise and the unexpected, which fuels creativity. Stellas sees good prospects for a hotel resort or health spa—something to do with fueling rejuvenation.
    By January 2008, the Island should be seeing significant expansion—not merely physical but also financial. “Real estate is going up, up, up,” says Stellas, who has written four books on astrology. “The Island’s economy is going to expand. The challenge will be how to do it in a harmonious way.”
    Constance Stellas can be visited on the Web at www.constancestellas.com.

Through the Ages

    Made in China. Made in Japan. Made in Alameda? The list of Alameda-made goods reads like a Who’s Who of American innovation. Rosenblum Wines and Hangar One Vodka are just two of the popular products made on the Island today. But Alameda’s mark as a manufacturing hub goes back more than a century.
    Rewind to the 1890s when gritty young men worked long hours in the shipyards, including Hay & Wright, that dotted the waterfront. “They were building wooden sailing vessels,” says Alameda author and historian Woody Minor. “Probably The Star of this and The Star of that …”
since those were the popular ship names at the time.
    Alaska Packers had a fleet of wooden ships at the north end of Grand at the Fortman Marina. “The men would go up to Alaska and bring back the salmon,” says Minor, who says Alameda was the company’s distribution center.
    Things had really ramped up by World War I. Big shipyards like Bethlehem and Moore & Scott Ironworks had more than 12,000 workers each and were building dozens of steel freighters a year. The island population swelled, attracting companies like Rosefield Packing, which began making Skippy Peanut Butter at its plant at Atlantic and Webster in 1933.
    In Alameda today, the focus is on smaller-scale production. Rosenblum was born from a passion for winemaking in the home of its founders, Kent and Kathy Rosenblum. Hangar One was the brainchild of two artisan distillers, Ansley Coale and Jörg Rupf. Juniper Ridge Herbal Essences were created in an Alameda kitchen. Ditto for the locally made Mi Beauty Products.
    But with all this creative energy, it’s not surprising that larger companies are again calling Alameda home: Peet’s Coffee & Tea recently moved its roasting plant to Bay Farm Island, and in the coming year Clif Bar is slated to move its plant from west Berkeley to Alameda Landing.
    Made in Alameda. It’s not just a label. It’s a state of mind.             

TAKE FIVE

With Noel Cisneros

1. AMARIN THAI RESTAURANT
    When my husband and I manage to go out on a date night, our favorite spot is Amarin Thai. It’s the perfect spot for us. The atmosphere is cozy and mellow, and we love how quiet it is in there. Of course, the real treat is the cuisine. We love most everything on their menu, especially the grilled food. It would be hard to say what my favorite dish is, but the grilled shrimp appetizer is definitely a contender.

2. IN FRONT OF MY FISH TANK
    I notice I’ve been spending a fair amount of time gazing into my fish tanks lately. The more stressful the news day, the longer I seem to linger, dazed, in front of the tank. I’d gaze at the stars, but I can’t see them for the city lights. My mollies and guppies breed, they grow beautiful tails, they swim, they die (wah—Gary the beta), they eat. I chill. I’d go scuba diving in the Caribbean, but I’m broke. Rocky the goldfish will outlast us all.

3. THE POOL AT HARBOR BAY CLUB
    My kids and I love it here. My husband accuses me of having children so I’d have someone to play with in a pool. My kids have really enjoyed being on the swim team and I love swimming laps. I also like it when the timing is just right and I score an empty pool—all to myself. It’s like finding a parking spot in the financial district of San Francisco without circling the block.

4. MY BIBLE STUDY GROUP
    Once a week on Thursday mornings at 8:30, I meet with a lovely group of moms for Bible Study. We all have super busy lives and are always rushing around, but I think it’s important to make time for our spirit. We gather and pray for our kids and just have some mom time. There’s no political agenda in the group; it’s just a wonderful time to acknowledge that we are all covered by God’s love.

5. A TREE BY THE ESTUARY
    About three years ago our 18-year-old dog died. We buried mementos of Doopsie by a beautiful eucalyptus that overlooks the estuary near the model-airplane field. She was a Labrador/Cocker mix who loved to swim. I got her when I went to graduate school in Missouri. She traveled all around the country with me as I built my journalism career. I’d known her longer than my husband. Every time I ride my bike by that peaceful spot, I think of her and feel happy.