It was another great mid-winter day last Wednesday when our Piedmont Recreation Department’s Walking on Wednesdays group met at the Exedra for our weekly walk, but there was a special reason to be there on this lovely morning.
The Piedmont Beautification Foundation is celebrating 60 years of supporting projects that have made Piedmont even more beautiful. We were going to go see sets of them this week and the following two weeks and recognize PBF’s contributions to Piedmont. The different projects that PBF has been a part of is impressive and can be seen at https://piedmontbeautificationfoundation.org. There was a large group of 54 walkers and five K-9 best friends were on hand.
Current PBF President Patty D and past Park Commission Chair Patty S were there, and so was City of Piedmont’s new Video Communications Specialist/TV KCOM Station Manager Jeff S. The City of Piedmont wants to publicize PBF’s great work, so Jeff’s video team was going to tape the walk at the project sites.
Patty briefly told us about PBF. It has been working since 1964, in partnership with the City of Piedmont, to create beautiful public spaces in Piedmont that build a strong sense of pride and community. The inspiration for PBF came from the Piedmont Garden Club, which continues to nominate the PBF officers. They are joined by the Piedmont mayor, vice-mayor, and the chair of the Park Commission to provide advice on projects.
Matt G had created three route maps to take us to different PBF projects this day and the next two Wednesdays. At each location, a PBF volunteer would be there to tell us about the project. The first destination was the Jerome Triangle where Jerome and Fairview Avenues meet just below Oakland Avenue.
We headed out, going down Magnolia Avenue past the high school and the new pool site where some construction was being done. We went right on Jerome and in a very long line made our way to the triangle. The film crew was waiting for us and so was City of Piedmont Supervisor of Maintenance Nick M. He told us about the creation of the triangle and about the redwoods in it. The hazardous condition at the intersection of Jerome and Fairview was identified by nearby resident Ralph M. As a tribute to Ralph’s efforts, the triangle and landscaping were dedicated to him.
Nick told us how the project to create the triangle started 37 years ago in 1988 and was completed in 1990. Eight 10-to-12-foot-tall redwoods in 24” boxes were planted and have grown into the large trees in the triangle today. Azaleas and rhododendrons were also planted, but the redwoods have a way of sucking moisture and nutrients from the soil that minimizes other trees and plants. Nick also said that redwoods’ shallow roots grow together tightly and make the ground around them hard. Redwoods should be in groves of at least three trees. They support each other and this reduces the risk of their being blown over in windstorms.
With the triangle and redwoods in the background we took a group photo. Then it was off to our second PBF destination, the Linda/Kingston Triangle. We went down Oakland Avenue. It took two stoplight cycles for our large group to cross Grand Avenue. We turned up Howard Avenue, down Lake Avenue past Beach School, and up Linda Avenue to the triangle at Kingston Avenue. Jeff Shaw’s video crew had cheated, drove, and was there to meet us.
At the triangle Patty told us how this community-suggested intersection improvement was created. Neighbors were concerned about children’s safety at this corner and pushed for the project. It took from 2014 to 2017 to complete, and PBF dedicated funds in 2016 for it. The north edge of the triangle is in Oakland and the project was coordinated with the City of Oakland. City of Piedmont Parks & Project Manager Nancy K did the landscaping, and a bio-swale was incorporated to collect and percolate ground water. A handsome stone wall surrounds the triangle with two stone benches built into it and two bronze signs. One has the triangle’s name and history while the other proclaims, “Mom’s A Mensch. She Deserves A Bench. The Siskind Family.” Patty’s family members were rightly proud of her Park Commission work on this wonderful project.
The long walk to the triangle and the city’s border had taken longer than was anticipated in Matt Gerhart’s route, so we made our way back to the Exedra by a shorter route up Linda, Grand, Wildwood, and Magnolia Avenues. We enjoyed seeing these two PBF projects, appreciated Patty D, Patty S, Jeff S, Nick M, and Matt G's participation, and were looking forward to seeing more PBF’s generous contributions to Piedmont the next two weeks.
P.S. Meghan Bennett couldn’t be with us for this walk, but she sent the attached 1910 photo of Linda and Kingston Avenues, where the Linda Kingston Triangle is today.
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