Roses, Recharging Stations, and a Walk Before Mother’s Day

The Wednesday before Mother’s Day meant it was time for our Piedmont Recreation Department Walking on Wednesdays group’s annual visit to the Morcom Rose Garden up Jean Street on the other side of Grand Avenue. A good turnout of 38 walkers and six K-9 companions gathered at the Exedra on a lovely morning.

As we headed down Magnolia Avenue, we passed Nanci's Musiktime near the Exedra, where young children were making music on the grass above the park’s tot lot. Also sponsored by the Piedmont Recreation Department, the program serves children ages 0–5 with singing, dancing, puppetry, and instrument play led by instructor Nanci S. The classes meet at the same time and place as Walking on Wednesdays.

Continuing down Magnolia to Wildwood Avenue, we passed homes with roses, California golden and yellow poppies, Mexican sage, birds-of-paradise, and even a few dandelions in bloom. Near Grand Avenue, we encountered another Wednesday walking group — children age five and under from Wildwood Children's School heading to the Dearing Park Wildwood Triangle for playtime beneath the redwoods. The children were all connected by a rope, prompting the suggestion that something similar might better keep us together too.

We stopped at Grand Avenue for an update on the Shell Recharging Station project, which has been under development for nearly three years. The new station will replace the Piedmont Shell gas station that operated for 95 years before closing in November 2023, when the property was sold to Shell. The site was fenced and partially demolished in anticipation of a spring 2024 opening, but neighborhood concerns about noise and operations delayed the project.

After the City and Shell appeared to have resolved those issues, new state laws limiting local control over EV charging station permits upended the city-approved plan, leaving the project in limbo and under the oversight of the state and the Alameda County Department of Environmental Health (ACEHD).

ACEHD found elevated levels of volatile organic compounds and petroleum hydrocarbons in the site’s soil, groundwater, and soil vapor. As a result, Shell was required to conduct on-site and off-site environmental assessments under a Voluntary Remedial Action Agreement, including a detailed subsurface investigation and cleanup planning.

In March, soil, soil vapor, and groundwater samples were collected at the site and two neighboring residential properties to determine whether contaminants had migrated beyond the site and to ensure protection of utility workers and nearby residents. Once the investigation is complete, Shell and ACEHD will develop a Remedial Action Plan to address contamination and protect public health and the environment. Shell says the timing and feasibility of redevelopment will depend on the extent of remediation required, regulatory approvals, weather, and access to neighboring properties. Therefore, Shell does not yet have a construction timeline for the charging station.

We crossed Grand Avenue and went up Jean Street to the Morcom Rose Garden entrance with its sign and surrounding Sally Holmes roses in full bloom, where a group photo was taken. The garden’s history was also shared.

The Rose Garden occupies a natural bowl on a 7.5-acre site purchased by the City of Oakland in 1911 and originally named Linda Vista Park. Oakland residents had petitioned for the park and pledged $8,000 toward its purchase. Because the best entrance was through Piedmont, the Piedmont City Council acquired lots at Olive and Oakland Avenues in 1911 to create a “handsome entrance.”

In 1913, the park was briefly considered for conversion into a zoo. Golden Gate Park offered elk and buffalo, and F. M. “Borax” Smith offered llamas from his East Oakland estate, but park directors declined the idea.

The park’s conversion into a rose garden was proposed by the Oakland Businessmen’s Garden Club in 1930 with City support. Originally called the Municipal Rose Garden, work began in 1931 or 1932, the first rose was planted on January 27, 1933, and the garden officially opened on May 28, 1933. Work was likely completed in 1935 with Depression-era funding.

In 1954, the park was renamed to honor former Oakland Mayor Fred Morcom, who served from 1931 to 1933. The garden was refurbished in the 1950s and 1990s, with many historic roses regrafted onto new rootstock.

The garden is an Italian-inspired design and includes more than 2,400 rose bushes in three sections, winding walkways, a reflecting pool facing a 14-step cascade descending the western hillside. There is also an octagonal wedding terrace above with additional rose beds.

The essential design has changed little in nearly 90 years. However, after Oakland reduced maintenance staffing in the early 2000s, volunteers known as the “Dedicated Deadheaders” began helping maintain the garden and one was weeding there Wednesday morning.

Also in the early 2000s, “The Mother’s Walk” was added above the reflecting pool, leading to a Florentine oval garden at the park’s north end. Brass plaques set into the walkway honor women recognized each year during an annual Mother’s Day ceremony. It was noted that the 1950s names were often in the form of Mrs. Husband’s Name, but this later changed to just the woman’s name.

Although a “No Dogs Allowed” sign remains at the entrance, park staff previously told us that leashed dogs are okay, so our K-9 best friends entered the garden too. We split up to explore different sections of the garden while three members of the Oakland Fire Department trained by carrying firehoses up the garden’s long, steep stairways. Deciding we were already getting enough exercise, we decided to skip the stair race. Instead, we leisurely enjoyed the flowers and eventually retraced our steps back to the Exedra at our own pace.