Coastside June 2024

COASTSIDE

Making art on the sly… … and for the people

Population Control Coastsiders claw at feral cat problem

Advancing the arts AP Student visual artists

ON THE COVER

Heron by Marinda Martin Colored pencil on wood panel

Focusing on water birds native to North America, I wanted to capture the majesty of the Great Blue Heron - a feathered friend that often makes an appearance hunting along our coastlines! Website: https://art.marindamartin.com

Left: 'Soar' by Yasmin Caminiti

8 From the Editor

Art and pets – the Coastside’s passion for life

10 Asked + Answered

Meet the new director of the San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture

12 This + That

Check out the latest business news from around the Coastside

14 Talk About A fluid approach to wool

30 Artist Noemi Manero Barbara Masek Susan Carkeek

34 Half Moon Bay Review Last month's top stories

36 Pacifica Tribune Last month's top stories and obituaries

41 What's Up? Calendar of events

43 Pet Tips

47 Dog’s Life Meet Chunk

50 Growing Things

“Gardenomics:” Good Moves for a Lifetime of Safe and Healthy Gardening

52 Out + About A look at the people making the most of the coast

55 Flashback The Saga of Car 1409 of the Ocean Shore Railroad

56 Final Shot Moon over Romeo Pier

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COASTSIDE

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Susy Castoria, Director

Cherie Chan, Secretary

Rich Klein, CEO

Peter Loeb, Director

Lenny Mendonca, CFO and Founding Chair

Roy Salume, Director

EDITOR

Peter Tokofsky | peter@coastsidenewsgroup.com

STAFF WRITERS

Emma Spaeth | emma@coastsidenewsgroup.com

Sebastian Muñi-Bucheli | sebastian@coastsidenewsgroup.com

Eleanor Jonas | eleanor@coastsidenewsgroup.com

CONTRIBUTORS

Stephen Johnson

Maggie Mahs Mary Larsen

MEDIA CONSULTANT

Randie Marlow | randie@coastsidenewsgroup.com

DESIGN AND AD PRODUCTION

Shari Chase | shari@coastsidenewsgroup.com

CIRCULATION

Alison Farmwald | alison@coastsidenewsgroup.com

MAILING ADDRESS

P.O. Box 68, Half Moon Bay, CA 94019 (650) 726-4424

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From the Editor

Art and pets – the Coastside’s passion for life

This month, Coastside Magazine focuses on art and pets. There’s no particular relationship between these two themes, but they both reveal the passion for wellbeing that we find wherever we look along this stretch of California coast that we call home. People from Pacifica to Pescadero continually find ways to create better lives for themselves and others.

As the new director of arts and culture for San Mateo County, Aimee Shapiro, notes in her conversation with Coastside Magazine writer Emma Spaeth, although the county is not home to an art museum, it is rich with artistic activity.

Consider El Granada resident Birgitta Bower, who sat down to talk about her artistic vision with Eleanor Jonas. “Nature is impressive around here,” Bower says about finding inspiration for the landscapes she creates in felted wool. Bower finds creative sparks everywhere, whether it’s walking her dog on the beach, browsing the yarn store or heading out on a road trip.

Contributor Mary Larsen saw anonymous works of art showing up in public spaces in Pacifica and decided to find out who made them. She discovered Alex Griffiths working in hidden places, making art out of found objects. He told Larsen that he “just did it for the people.”

Speaking of finding things in out-of-the-way places, a group of Coastsiders recognized the need to care for and manage the population of feral cats lurking in the foliage at various locations. Writer Sebastian Miño-Bucheli documents how people got together to address the problem. They made a plan to feed and - when possible – catch, neuter and release or find homes for their feline neighbors.

In Pescadero, a group of local artists banded together to create a new collective, Madrone Arts, in the center of town. In one of their upcoming workshops, creative types can find seaweed washed ashore and turn it into artistic prints. While they’re working, they might even nosh on some seaweed snacks.

Writer Jonas also stopped by some Pacifica high schools to check in on the next generation of artists wrapping up their advanced placement visual art classes. The future of art on the Coastside looks good.

The work all these Coastsiders are doing is a reminder that finding beauty and kindness wherever we look is part of what makes the coast a special place.

Peter Tokofsky editor of the Half Moon Bay Review, Pacifica Tribune and Coastside Magazine.

Watercolor by Patricia Ryan Madson

Sliding

Sandblasted

Diamond

By Emma Spaeth

Meet the new director of the San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture

“A museum is not the only place to encounter art.”

Coastside magazine’s Emma Spaeth caught up with Aimee Shapiro who was recently named the Director of Arts and Culture in San Mateo County. Shapiro is a Coastsider, but was raised in New York City and comes to the County from the Anderson Collection at Stanford University, a museum of modern and contemporary American art. Shapiro said her background has mostly been in museum education and programming, but is an artist herself and stresses her dedication to making the arts something that everyone can access.

4 QUESTIONS AIMEE SHAPIRO

1

How has your upbringing in New York City affected your interests and career? I feel really lucky to have grown up in New York and around tons of museums and art spaces. In school we would go to the Met and the MOMA, that was really inspiring to me especially as someone who made art. For me it wasn’t about art history, it was about experiencing work as a maker.

2

What originally drew you to art? I always made work. When I was three years old my mom put me in an oil painting class like in someone’s basement. I just always drew, I always created as a kid because I always enjoyed it.

3

What do you hope to bring to your role as the Director of Arts and Culture? What are your priorities? I hope to bring my perspective as a maker, but also someone who is dedicated to making art accessible to all people in the county. As someone who has lived in the more rural and unincorporated areas, I have an understanding of where there could be more access to places that support the arts. I believe that we can do a lot more than what has been done so I’m trying to build sustained relationships with organizations and people who are committed, to not just doing one-off programs, but really seeing how the office can be on the ground, talking to people and finding out what they need in their communities.

4

Why do you think it’s so important to champion culture and the arts in San Mateo County? We don’t have any museums in the county so I think helping people understand that a museum is not the only place to encounter art and the arts is really important. To think about how people don’t necessarily need to go up to San Francisco or down to Santa Clara County where there are more museums, but that in people’s communities, you have places to go, you just need to know that they exist. Art should be where people live. COASTSIDE

Photo courtesy of Aimee Shapiro

New in Town

Check out the latest business news from Pacifica to Pescadero

This is Our Town

Students at Pescadero Middle School presented their revised rendition of Thornton Wilder’s “Our Town” to wrap up the school year. Their version is set in Pescadero, circa 1901.

Working with music teacher Mary Lynn Vail on the adaptation, they included Duarte’s Tavern, Norm’s Grocery and the Pescadero Community Church – all which date to before 1901 - in the revised drama. Tim Duarte, whose ancestors settled in Pescadero in the 1850s, and one of the waitresses who works at the tavern he still owns, made cameo appearances in the performance. “Miss Judy,” Judy Cabaug who has been office manager at Pescadero Elementary School for six decades, appeared as herself.

To make a classic American play from the 1930s fit the Coastside town, students inserted Spanish phrases into the dialogue and steeped themselves in local history and geography. They visited the local cemetery to confirm names and dates in the town’s history, researched etiquette of the Victorian era and learned about coastal geology.

7.3.1. Designs carries on in Pacifica

Olga Muñoz opened 7.3.1. DESIGNS at 1932 Palmetto Ave. in Pacifica during the COVID pandemic and joined fellow business owners hoping to promote and revive the area as people began to return to the street. The gallery in a former one-room schoolhouse showcases Bay Area artists working in various media, especially works made by hand.

In order to make the space a place for community, the gallery also hosts artist talks and receptions, classes, and quarterly gatherings with other business owners along Palmetto.

At 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, June 16, the gallery hosts an open mic for spoken-word poets and acoustic musicians. For more information or to sign up to perform, visit https://www.731designs.com/events.

This + That is a monthly feature focusing on new businesses and business news on the Coastside from Pacifica to Pescadero. To be considered for future listings, email editorial@coastsidenewsgroup.com.

Tim Duarte and Coco Corona make a cameo in Our Town.

7.3.1 DESIGNS

By Eleanor Jonas

Photos courtesy Birgitta Bower

A fluid approach to wool

For the past 15 years, El Granada resident Birgitta Bower, a native of Sweden, has explored the artistic medium of felting. A selection of her works depicting Coastside scenes is on view in “Wild and Wooly” at M Stark Gallery in Half Moon Bay from June 1 until July 14.

How did you get involved with felting?

I’ve always been doing something. I took a lot of courses in watercolor and oil when I was younger, but this whole thing started around 2010 when I just put my hands on some wool and eventually figured out what needle felting was.

We moved to El Granada 10 years ago. It's been a decade now and, during this time, I've sort of been doing more and more of these wall hangings. I started playing and it was really fun making little figures and animals. There's a Swedish Christmas fair in December every year - it's a big fair with Swedish food and Swedish vendors - and I would sell stuff there with my kids.

There's so much going on and you can use felting in combination with other things. I really enjoy trying to combine it with threads or yarns or fabric.

I think there's a lot to explore, so that makes it fun. I’m in these Facebook groups with needle felting or with just textiles in general, and there's so many things to give you ideas, how you can do new things and get inspired from different things.

We just went on a road trip to Utah, the Arches, Bryce and Zion. Now I feel like I want to do those reds and greens they have in the desert and I’m wondering how to do that. So, one thing leads to another.

Bower's "palette" of wool that she dyes herself.

Birgitta Bower. Devil's Slide, 2019, , fiber, 49 x 32 inches.

COASTSIDE / Talk About

A lot of your works are landscapes and natural scenes. Could you talk about how you create those?

I’m in this plein-air outdoor painting group. Yesterday we were in Menlo Park and painted. When we're out and I'm doing watercolors, that doesn't work at all the way I want. But you know, I do that, and then I take photos or I go on hikes and take photos and then I use the photos to make something.

I’m not really good at improvising. I want to find the perfect thing that I want to do in nature. Nature is just so impressive around here. When I take a road trip, there's so much inspiration from that. I like to put people in my scenes, too, unless I really can't like in “Devil’s Slide”. I can put other stuff in there but I like to see people in the landscape. It's good for proportion and it also makes it more alive. I have dogs and people in this scene from Fort Funston that will be in the exhibition. And then I have this scene from Surfers Beach,

which is our beach where we take the dog.

Tell me about your artistic process. It's something you kind of ruminate on. You'll get an idea and then take photos. I usually don't have a totally clear idea. That's why I can't do watercolor because you have to sort of know what you’re doing. I would start something and then I have to change it. It's easy with wool. You can just go at it and just extend it this way or cut it off here—you can manipulate. I like that part, that I don't have to know what I'm doing. I could just do it and then I can change everything. I basically finish a piece, but then I will see that, no, I want to change this and that. It could be years later. I look at my pieces and I feel like no, that's all wrong. I don't know why I did that. I like that it's so fluid. If I see something that has a bad quality to it, I will change it. I don't think people do that with oil or anything else. With this me-

Birgitta Bower. Surfer's Beach, 2020-2024, wool, yarn, thread, 33 x 46 inches.

dium it’s okay if I want to add this or that.

You mentioned experimenting with different art styles. What do you see as your next step in the art world?

I only do stuff to please myself. It's just interesting to me to see how it will turn out. Right now I want to do this road trip series and have landscapes and a big sky. I like to do these panoramas because to me, the bigger you can make something, the better. I like to make things that make you feel like you’re standing in front of the landscape. It's hard to make it into an 8 by 10 inch piece. To me, it's better if I can make it as big as I can manage. The bigger and the more you can stuff into it, the better. I want to make something now that is like five feet by three feet or something.

What impact do you hope that your art has on its audiences?

A person who bought a piece from me at Christmas said she just found it calming or serene. I make things that I find beautiful, but at the same time, kind of funny or that have an interesting perspective. I just want to contain different things, not just be a pretty scene, but that have interesting details or something I find, you know, funny. And so it's just stuff that I like and then hopefully someone else likes it. Basically I just do it for myself. So it’s just icing on the cake if someone else likes it, too. COASTSIDE

The interview was edited for length and clarity.

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Birgitta Bower. Fort Funston 1, 2019, fiber and beads, 32 x 32 inches.

By Mary Larsen

Photos courtesy of Mary Larsen

Making art

on the sly…

… and for the people

Did you ever wonder who made the great blue heron sculpture that once stood at the south end of Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica? Or the giant pinwheels or cliff-hugging gliders?

Here he is: Alex Griffiths. A jack-of-all-trades who says he can do anything from auto repair to plumbing and yard work, Griffiths is best known locally for his art, even if his works are anonymous and often disappear shortly after installation.

Born in Rome to English parents, Griffiths was one of eight children. They had a traveling family circus, and Alex grew up an acrobat: “I rode a 10-foot unicycle, walked a freestanding ladder, did comedy, balancing, tricks.”

His family moved to the U.S. when his sister was admitted to a Shriners hospital, and for years they continued their circus act here. YouTube videos show Alex performing at Pier 39 with family members in their Sardine Family Circus.

I first happened upon Griffiths several months ago. He was toting a long object that, from a distance, appeared to be a log or tree limb. As I got closer, I realized it was a beautifully crafted wooden object that had metamorphosed into something completely different from its origins. I stopped and asked him about it. He set it on the ground, picked up the narrow

Alex Griffiths with his handmade horn and by his tent.

end, took a long breath and blew into it. A deep, booming voice sounded.

“I can’t play it very well, but I made it,” Griffiths told me. “It’s from a century plant.”

“The guy that had the biggest century plants in Pacifica,” he explained. “I did some work for his neighbor and saw the plants and knocked on his door and asked for one.”

He sawed the huge stalk in half, hollowed it out with an adze (a hand-held ax), glued it back together and sealed it with beeswax.

About a month later, I heard Griffiths before I saw him. He was at work on another project. As I walked down the San Pedro Terrace trail, I heard a loud clanging a few hundred yards away. I thought it was probably coming from some machinery at Linda Mar Shopping Center. As I got closer, I saw Alex in the brush, hammering a large, curved piece of metal. The individual hammer blows came

together and created an amazingly clear image of a skull. This piece, still a work in progress, has since changed into a man’s face. A companion piece, a female alien, is coming next.

Other projects include “massive gliders you’ve probably seen up on the cliffs, a big mosquito, the blue heron that was moving around the field, a big turtle or tortoise, the big bells that are hanging there over the deck, the massive pinwheels,” Griffiths said.

“I’ve built artwork all over the world – I started when I was a kid in Sicily. I’ve always built things.”

One of his favorite creations was a motorcycle that he said went missing just before COVID and that he would love to get back. Built on a vintage WWII bicycle frame, it featured a Greeves motor and a brass gas tank made from a fire extinguisher.

To get his ideas, Griffiths said, “I find something and

I have a vision for it and collect everything over time. Most of it’s all recycled or found in the garbage or found wherever, or people donate it to me.”

It can take years to collect the necessary parts, and sometimes things don’t go according to plan.

“I built a tractor,” he said. “I found a tractor seat and built an entire miniature-sized tractor around the seat. And then,” Alex laughs, “someone took my seat.”

A large work still in the dream stage is “an enormous record player, like an old Magnavox that you wind up, and people would walk on it to play it.”

He’s also planning a small Stonehenge replica, for which he has already collected large pieces of granite.

Griffiths has three hidden outdoor workshops where he makes everything by hand. Once his materials are ready, the assembly and installation must be done quickly “because I have to try and beat the city from taking it away. So I have only a limited amount of time. Most things I have to build in sections, hide them, and then put it together all in one night.”

He’s never made art for money: “I always just did it for the people, never got anything out of it,” he said. “People would wake up and there it would be – until it got taken down. There must be pieces all over the world of mine, but nobody knows who made them.”

Nevertheless, he would like to make a name for himself in the art world, and to make some money at it.

“I do wish for funding to build more projects. I don’t have a normal job – this is what I do,” he said. “I’ve always been an entertainer. Everyone knows me around here for riding a 10-foot unicycle.”

A friend is working on a website for him, and he has considered a GoFundMe page to finance some larger works.

For possible commission work or funding ideas (or leads on the missing motorcycle), call Alex at (650) 663-9428. COASTSIDE

Alex Griffiths in an undisclosed location with some of his creations.

By Sebastian Miño-Bucheli

by Sebastian Miño-Bucheli

Population Control

Coastsiders claw at feral cat problem

It’s 9 a.m. in downtown Half Moon Bay and foot traffic starts to pick up. Jane Ganahl is working on something in the trunk of her car. I move closer and see that she is opening cans of cat food and emptying them onto a plate that’s attached to a bucket.

Ganahl is getting ready to feed stray and feral cats on the Coastside, something she and 15 other volunteers do daily at five spots where known cats hang out. In total they feed about 30 cats a day.

“This is a problem I stumbled upon 13 years ago. I saw a bunch of cats eating chow mein takeout in the parking lot,” said Ganahl. “Onions and other ingredients are toxic to cats, but they’re so hungry they didn’t mind.”

Ganahl runs Coastside Feral Care, a nonprofit organization that’s about nine years old. The group’s mission is to reduce the population of stray and feral cats. Ganahl said that she hopes to reach that goal by trapping, neutering and releasing cats, an approach known as TNR. Before releasing the cats after surgery, she determines whether they are adoptable.

The organization initially received a grant from the city of Half Moon Bay to take care of the feral cat problem. Ganahl said that since its founding the organization has trapped about 250 cats and more than half of them were adopted.

“It’s a shame it’s overgrown here. The food plate needs a flat spot,” said Ganahl as she lowered the plate of food for the cats, Lafcadio and Silver, that seem to blend in with the high growth in an undisclosed location. In those hard to reach areas, Ganahl uses a hook and rope to lower fresh food.

In the last 6 months alone, the group has caught and neutered almost 20 cats. Some were adopted while

Photos

Jane Ganahl with one of her feline friends.

others needed to be released back into the wild.

At another spot outside downtown Half Moon Bay, Benjamin Franklin, a gray twoyear-old, watched Ganahl from the bushes. His clipped ear indicates that he was already TNR. The procedure doesn’t traumatize cats like it does to dogs.

“Benjamin is an interesting story. We were told there were three cats in a bushy area. We only found two and thought he was long gone,” said Ganahl. “A couple weeks later we saw a big guy that matched the other two cats that were here.”

While the organization works to reduce the number of cat colonies - two stray cats is enough to create a new colony - volunteers occasionally spot coyotes and other predators in the thick vegetation that pick off cats they know.

Ganahl pauses and takes a second to breathe. “You harden yourself to the reality,” she says.

To change the mood, she mentions how she recently found someone to adopt a cat that was recuperating from surgery. “He was rubbing himself on the crate, wanting someone to rub him,” Ganahl says. “He went from living in the great wild to a little girl’s bedroom.”

Ganahl prepped Benjamin’s food and left it behind the bushes. He came out of hiding to eat, then started to roll-over in an empty parking-lot. As a car drove into the lot, Benjamin dashed off.

Ganahl picked up trash near the plate and returned to her car. Her morning routine was done for today.

Krystina Crowley, a resident of the Coastside and board member with Coastside Feral Care, got involved as a volunteer with the group about a year ago.

Crowley thinks one reason there are so many feral cats is that potential pet owners need more access to low-cost spay and neutering services.

Benjamin Franklin parks himself on the pavement while Jane Ganahl prepares plates of food that she carefully lowers into the bushes.

“In every Bay Area city I’ve lived in, there’s always been feral cats,” said Crowley. "Part of the problem is that people don't always have access to low-cost spay and neuter.

If that's a problem, then: "The reason is not everyone has access to low-cost spay and neuter." In addition to managing the group’s social media, Crowley participates in feeding cats.

Other sources of feral cats, Ganahl said, are pets getting lost and surviving in the wild, and

cat owners who abandon their pets, which is both cruel and illegal.

Ganahl and Crowley said that San Mateo County lacks an accessible county-wide program to help with the feral cat problem. San Francisco and Los Angeles counties, for example, have low-cost or free spay and neutering services.

“It’s hard for Coastsiders to go to low-cost spay and neuter options over the hill because of the driving and the long wait times at a facility,”

said Crowley.

Ganahl does hope that if Coastsiders see a homeless cat, they will be compassionate and feed it, but will also aim to get it spayed or neutered. Feeding them without that goal will cause them to multiply, said Ganahl.

Coastside Feral Care is raising funds for spaying and neutering costs and to develop a pantry for Coastside cat owners who can’t afford cat food. Ganahl hopes this will help reduce the feral cat population in the area. COASTSIDE

Jane Ganahl after a morning making her rounds.

By Eleanor Jonas

ADVANCING THE ARTS

AP Student visual artists

If you mention advanced placement, or AP, high school courses and exams, most people probably think about biology, chemistry and calculus, or history, English and foreign languages. But the program also offers a series of courses in the arts, including drawing, two-dimensional and threedimensional art and design and music theory.

Writer Eleanor Jonas checked in with some AP art students in Pacifica to get a glimpse of up-andcoming visual artists.

Marcy Austin, a graduating senior at Oceana High, said takes clothes she finds in thrift stores or at Ross, bleaches them and then creates art using acrylic markers and spray paint.

“I put personal stuff or political stuff,” she said. “I put the anarchy symbol on the back of the jacket.”

Photos are courtesy of the artists

“ I LEARNED SO MANY GOOD TOOLS FROM MY ART CLASS. MARCY AUSTIN

Mia Carley

Mia Carley is a senior at Terra Nova High School who will be an art major at the University of California, Santa Cruz, next year.

“I feel like I definitely improved in school. It’s difficult, but definitely worth it. The class changed my perspective on how I view the world.”

“There’s a drawing of younger me blowing out a cake with 18 candles and current me looking at my younger self. I drew myself in different shades of green, which represents growth. In the ending scene of Adventure Time, there are bees flying around, glued bees to symbolize the end of my portfolio.”“I did a collage piece. I am half Japanese and mom made bento boxes, and I would get made fun of in school. I cut out a collage of main characters of Adventure Time in the bento box. Sometimes in bento boxes people make the food look like characters. I used cupcake cups and newspaper. Even though it didn’t have super deep meaning, I’m really proud of that collage. Had to cut really specifically. COASTSIDE

Artwork by Mia Carley

BEFORE TAKING THIS CLASS I WOULD DRAW CHARACTERS FROM SHOWS BUT NOTHING ON A PERSONAL LEVEL.

MIA CARLEY

www.noemimanero.com noe_manero@yahoo.com @noemaneroart

Barbara Masek

Barbara Masek Montara Beach

Susan Carkeek

Size: 36" x 36". Media: eggshells, acrylic medium, polymer limestone, plastic, wood, metal, rubber, cotton, paper,dried leaves, bones, acrylic on canvas.

Headline News

Editor’s note: The following pages offer a synopsis of some of the major stories from the Coastside News Group’s two publications, the Half Moon Bay Review and the Pacifica Tribune. To read the full stories, scan the QR codes below and visit our websites. To get these features delivered straight to your inbox, subscribe to our daily newsletters at hmbreview.com and pacificatribune.com.

— Peter Tokofsky

Coastside Gives sets new record

By Peter Tokofsky

Cabrillo Unified names a new superintendent

By Peter Tokofsky

After Superintendent Sean McPhetridge announced in February that he would forego the final year of his contract and step down, the Cabrillo Unified School District began a search for his replacement. Amber Lee-Alva who stepped down from the role at Auburn Union School District in Placer County was selected and, barring any unexpected developments, will step in at the start of a summer of discontent with contract negotiations at an impasse, teachers prepared to strike and a district considering two bond measures for the November election.

The Coastside’s annual day of giving set a new record by raising more than $1.6M supporting nonprofit organizations from Montara to Pescadero. Groups ranging from little league baseball teams to social service organizations providing essential services to those in need participated in the event which combines fundraising with fun.

Review file photo by Anna Hoch-Kenney

Cabrillo Unified teachers have protested for higher salaries at several recent board meetings. At the Jan. 18 meeting, Rafael Dubol, a high school teacher with 27 years of experience, waves his sign proudly from the back of a frustrated crowd.

THE LATEST NEWS www.hmbreview.com or scan QR code.

Progress at Stone Pine Road

By Sebastian Miño-Bucheli

While attention centered on the Kelly Avenue project, the city and county continued to make progress developing an affordable housing project at 880 Stone Pine Rd. An additional $6 million from San Mateo County adds to previous grants from the state to move the neighborhood of 47 manufactured homes one step closer to reality.

Planning Commission approves farmworker housing

By Peter Tokofsky

All eyes were on the May 14 meeting of the Half Moon Bay Planning Commission after Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a statement that he would not tolerate any more delays in approval of a 40-unit apartment building for senior farmworkers on Kelly Avenue. After heated debate in three consecutive commission meetings, as well as on social media and reader comments at the Review, the panel gave the project a green light. COASTSIDE

courtesy Van Meter Williams

An architectural rendering of Mercy Housing and ALAS's proposal for a 40-unit building to house senior farmworker.

Rendering

Pollack

Image courtesy City of Half Moon Bay Site plan for affordable housing development for Coastside farmworkers on the city of Half Moon Bay's corporate yard at 880 Stone Pine Rd. Funding from the state and San Mateo County is helping move the project forward.

Pacifica Tribune Pacifica

your community newspaper since 1938

Pacifica resident swims to Farallones

By Sebastian Miño-Bucheli

Two Pacifica events worried over rising costs

By Sebastian Miño-Bucheli

With rising costs for police, sanitation and cleanup, two beloved Pacifica events, Fog Fest and the World Dog Surfing Championship, need to find new sources of funding. Organizers of both are planning various fundraising activities.

Pacifica resident Amy Appelhans Gubser became the first person ever to swim outbound from the coast to the Farallon Islands. The remarkable feat combined endurance, calculation of currents and a watchful eye for sharks.

Photo by Sarah Roberts

Photo by Anna Hoch-Kenney | Tribune

Aerial scenes of Pacifica's Fog Fest on September 23, 2023.

Pacifica introduces virtual assistant feature

By Emma Spaeth

Pacifica residents, meet Rose. Next time you visit the city website, Rose will be there to answer your questions. She was developed by Polimorphic, a provider of artificial intelligence tools for local governments, to interpret questions that don’t rely on expected keywords or phrases.

https://www.cityofpacifica.org/i-want-to/ask-rose-pacifica-s-ai

Pacifica receives award of excellence

By Jenna Hards

Pacifica’s peers recognized the city with an award of excellence for its “Vision 2025 and Beyond” strategic plan. While happy with the recognition, the assistant city manager said there is still much work to be done. COASTSIDE THE

TO PLACE AN OBITUARY in the Coastside magazine, please go to www.pacificatribune.com/place_an_ad/obituaries/ www.hmbreview.com/place_an_ad/obituaries/ or scan QR code.

COASTSIDE / Obituaries

Don Godshall

Don Godshall passed away at the age of 74 after a fierce 10-month battle with pancreatic cancer. It was a beautiful, warm day and he passed peacefully with the sun on his face surrounded by spring flowers, the sounds of songbirds and the deep love of his family. He leaves behind two brothers, Arden Godshall and Rodney Godshall; his wife of 26 years, Sharon Czarnecki; his son, Tyler Godshall; his daughter and son-in-law, Lauren and Lewis Rossman; his grandchildren, Ella and Greyson Rossman; and his brother-inlaw, Bill Czarnecki.

Don grew up in rural Pennsylvania outside Philadelphia and later found his way to California. He was a Coastside resident for nearly 40 years.

Don was successful in all of his diverse careers, but he was probably best known for his fourth career (2003-2019) as the owner of Jersey Joe’s Authentic Hoagies in San Carlos and later, Jersey Joe’s Coastside in Half Moon Bay. There he earned the respect, long-term loyalty and even friendship of his customers and employees alike.

Don considered retirement as his fifth career. He set about it with the same kind of purpose as his previous careers and here, he thrived. He found a perfect piece of property in Colorado where he designed and built a cabin. He was an accomplished woodworker and he did many of the finish carpentry details himself. He spent much of the last four years in Colorado, returning to Half Moon Bay for the winters and his family’s milestones.

Don was passionate about cooking and enjoying good food, wine and bourbon, but tempered those with his interest in fitness and health. He was a master’s swimmer for many years and competed in open water swim races in various California lakes, in the San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. Twice, he swam races around the Santa Cruz pier and competed in the Maui Channel Swim between Lanai and Maui. He swam races from Alcatraz to San Francisco six times and twice raced under the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco to Sausalito.

Don was creative, funny, hardworking and a wonderful husband, father and Pop Pop. He was an avid outdoorsman and respected the wilderness. Music also played an important role throughout his life. He enjoyed sharing his love of nature, Colorado, music and great meals with his family and friends. He will be deeply missed.

Anthony Pardi

1954-2024

Anthony and his twin brother, Frank, were born on February 8, 1954, to Rudolph and Maria Elisa Pardi. He grew up in Pacifica, California, and attended Westview Elementary School and Oceana High School. Anthony began a long and successful career as a chef at various restaurants and eventually rose to the position of Executive Chef. During his many years in the business, he met and cooked for so many people from various walks of life such as politicians and celebrities.

Anthony met the love of his life, Cris Mediana, in Hong Kong. They were married a year later on November 29, 2004.

Anthony passed away on April 7, 2024 with his wife by his side. He was loved by his family and friends and will truly be missed. He is preceded in death by his father, Rudolph Pardi; his mother, Maria Elisa Pardi, his stepbrothers, Kenneth Murphy and Robert Murphy; his brother, Albert Pardi; his father-in-law, Rodolfo Mediana; and his niece, Erica Zertuche. He is survived by his wife, Cris Pardi; his brother, Richard Pardi; his sister, Maria Zertuche; his brother, Larry Pardi; and his twin brother, Frank Pardi. He is survived by many sister and brother-in-laws, nieces and nephews

Casey Alfred-Sample

Casey Alfred-Sample, a beloved figure in Half Moon Bay, California, passed away on May 2, 2024. She was born on December 28, 1953, in San Mateo, California, to parents Jerry Alfred and Florence (Bunny) Nebel-Alfred. During her time in Half Moon Bay, Casey established the renowned catering company, Sample This! Fine Catering, and a quaint cafe known as Casey's Cafe. She had a profound passion for history, literature, culinary arts, storytelling, and horses.

Left to cherish her memory are her siblings Tim

Alfred, Kurt Alfred, and Kelly Heuer, as well as her daughters Paige Hutcherson and Emily Neuhauser. She also leaves behind her beloved grandchildren: Lucy Neuhauser, Eleanor Neuhauser, Bobby James Hutcherson, Ruby Hutcherson, and Penelope Hutcherson.

A memorial service to celebrate Casey's life will take place at Our Lady of the Pillar in Half Moon Bay on May 30, 2024, at 1 pm. Casey's presence in the community and her legacy of culinary excellence will long be remembered by all who knew and loved her.

Frank Stabile, Sr.

Frank Stabile, Sr., 90, passed away peacefully at home on April 14th, 2024, surrounded by his loving family, following a brief illness.

He was predeceased by his parents: Joseph and Lena; his loving wife, Patricia; his brother, Nick; and grandsons: Matthew and Michael. He is survived by brothers, Anthony and George; children: Deborah, Joseph and Frank Jr.; grandchildren: Melinda, Joseph Jr., Caitlin, Kelly, Bryan, Molly, Patricia; and great grandchildren: Ruby, Leo, Lylia, Isaac, Dylan.

Frank enjoyed spending time at Johnson’s beach in Guerneville with the Russian River people fondly known as the River Rats. He was a proud long standing member of the Pacifica Moose Lodge, where he was always the main attraction on Thursday and Friday nights. He is a veteran of the USAF. He was the go to guy anytime anyone needed advice or a ride somewhere. He never turned down a good meal. It was his idea to have an annual family crab fest featuring our local seasonal delicious Dungeness crab, his role in the crab fest was to eat as much crab as possible in one sitting, and believe us, he could put down a lot of crab.

The family wishes to acknowledge the loving care and support provided by his niece Shannon Stabile and her wife, Denise, who graciously opened their home and hearts to Frank during his final years. Frank had a large loving community that was always supportive and there for him anytime he needed something. He will be missed. Rest in peace, Frank.

Services will be private. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the Pacifica Moose Lodge, 776 Bradford Way, Pacifica CA 94044.

COASTSIDE

With a 12-month shelf life and distribution every month, you buy only one ad and get ongoing, long-term exposure for your business.

The Coastside Guide is popular with both residents and visitors to the coast. It covers everything the coast has to offer from dining, shopping, art, entertainment, beaches, hiking, and more — from Pacifica to Pescadero!

This comprehensive guide to the coast features special pricing, as well as year-long distribution to key locations in your community.

Deadline to reserve your ad space: Friday, June 21

COASTSIDE

LIST YOUR EVENT

Do you have an event coming up?

List it free on our online calendars at hmbreview.com and/or pacificatribune.com.

WORKSHOPS SEAWEEDS AND PINE NEEDLES

Madrone Arts, the new artist collective in Pescadero, offers two art-making workshops in June. On June 9, collective member Kathleen Dickey will take participants of all ages to collect seaweed and then return to the gallery to create prints with the plants. Attendees will also learn about seaweed botany and taste seaweed-based foods. Later in the month indigenous elder Cata Gomes will teach the ancient skill of pine needle coil basket weaving.

WHEN: 8 – 11 a.m. on Sunday, June 9 (seaweed) and 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 22

WHERE: Pescadero State Beach and Madrone Arts, 216 Stage Rd, Pescadero

MORE INFO: madronearts.com

MUSIC M’EARTHTONES CHOIR IN CONCERT

Join the eclectic choir for a lively and surprising evening of songs in styles ranging from madrigals through world/folk traditions to pop/rock and beyond. For more than 20 years the local group has been creating harmony in a dissonant world. Wear a festive hat to join the merrymaking and remember the slogan, “Think globally, act vocally!”

WHEN: 7 p.m., Saturday, June 15

WHERE: Half Moon Bay Odd Fellows, 526 Main St., Half Moon Bay

MORE INFO: www.hmb-odd.org

THEATER TWO PLAYS OPEN THIS MONTH

Two provocative plays open at theaters on the coast this month. The Pacifica Spindrift Players present “In the Next Room (or the Vibrator Play)” set in the 1880s and based on the true history of doctors using vibrators to treat “hysterical” women. Coastal Repertory Theatre in Half Moon Bay presents Lillian Hellman’s 1934 play “The Children’s Hour” about the lives of two headmistresses at an all-girls boarding school falsely accused by a disgruntled student.

WHEN: “The Children’s Hour” June 7-23; “In the Next Room” June 14-30

WHERE: Coastal Repertory Theatre, 1167 Main St., Half Moon Bay and Pacifica Spindrift Players, 1050 Crespi Dr., Pacifica

MORE INFO: https://www.coastalrep.com/ https://www.pacificaspindriftplayers.org/

M'Earthtones Choir.

PET TIPS

Big Dog Coastside

Pet Tip: Practice with your dog at least a couple of times a week leisure walks. This may sound ordinary, but the idea is to leash your dog and go for a walk without a predetermined route. Let him decide where to go, stop where he wants to sniff, for as long as he needs, without pressure. Remember, it's not about going far; it's about sharing unique and enjoyable moments!

Renato Rios Big Dog Coastside

www.bigdogcoastside.com

True Training 101

Pet name: Balto

All Animal Mobile Veterinary Clinic

Pet Tip: Beware of giving your pets human food and medication. Antiinflammatory meds for us are toxic to dogs and cats. Also grapes onions garlic macadamia nuts chocolate are toxic. If your animal eats these seek medical attention promptly.

allanimalmobilevet.com

Pet Tip: THE RECALL DANCE: Dog not listening? Cheering, shuffling movements, clapping, squeakers, bowling treats, PARTY to get your dog’s attention while moving away! Start inside when the dog’s paying attention and then test it when they are lounging. This can be used anytime you need your dog to stay engaged while making everything a fun, shared event! From here, we can move onto more skills that help with all sorts of behaviors in any/all situations!

truetraining101.online

Shamrock Ranch

Pet name: Mila

Pet Tip: Need a tip on how to control your dog's digging? Assuming you don't have a gopher issue, simply fill each hole your dog digs 3/4 of the way with dirt, then put some of your dog's poop in the hole and cover with dirt to fill. Repeat with every new hole. After about a week, your dog should stop digging.

shamrock.dog

Half Moon Bay Brewing Co.

Pet name: Walnut

Pet Tip: If you're looking for a new furry companion, we encourage you to consider adopting a pup in need of a home! Aside from creating a dog-friendly dining space on our patios, HMB Brewing Co. also encourages adoptions for dogs in need during their Barks & Beers Adoption Events. Dogs like Walnut have found furrever homes because of events like this. We encourage you to find local adoption events in your community!

www.hmbbrewingco.com

Rockaway Ricky Memorial Fund

Pet name: Rockaway Ricky

Pet Tip: Did you know pet care assistance is available to the elderly, our unhoused neighbors and families in need? Yep that’s right!

The Rockaway Ricky Memorial Fund is here to lend a helping paw! Established in 2018, the fund was created after the passing of the Lommori Stahl Group’s beloved mascot, Rockaway Ricky. If you are a qualifying resident of Pacifica, you may receive funding assistance for veterinarian care, pet medication, end of life services, pet food, and supplies. rockawayricky.org

Sadie

Chunk & Chloe (aka Chunky Monkey & Cocoa Puff)

Shari Chase Charlie Rich Klein

Cali

Alison Farmwald

Henry Sebastian Miño-Bucheli Gaston,

Opal

Susy Castoria

Above: Renato Rios aka “Big Dog Dog“ Trainer specialized in Dog PsychologyOwner & Founder

Below: Leaders of the pack from left to right Luis Jaracuaro, Lexi Hernandez (daughter) Lila Nelson (wife): Owner & Founder and JC Rios- Nelson (son)

By Shari Chase

Chunk

BREED: Bernese Mountain Dog

AGE: 5 months

ABOUT THE BREED:

Big, powerful, and built for hard work, the Bernese Mountain Dog is also strikingly beautiful and blessed with a sweet, affectionate nature. Berners are generally placid but are always up for a romp with the owner, whom they live to please. The Bernese Mountain Dog is a large, sturdy worker who can stand over 27 inches at the shoulder. The thick, silky, and moderately long coat is tricolored: jet black, clear white, and rust. The distinctive markings on the coat and face are breed hallmarks and, combined with the intelligent gleam in the dark eyes, add to the Berner's aura of majestic nobility. A hardy dog who thrives in cold weather, the Berner's brain and brawn helped him multitask on the farms and pastures of Switzerland. Berners get along with the entire family and are particularly gentle with children, but they will often become more attached to one lucky human. Berners are imposing but not threatening, and they maintain an aloof dignity with strangers.

-American Kennel Club

A SMALL TOWN FIRM WITH A NATIONAL REPUTATION

Workday Saturday, June 8 • 10 a.m. – Noon

Come one, come all. Join us Saturday on the coastal prairie for our next habitat restoration workday at Wavecrest Open Space. There is much work to do, and it’s a beautiful place to connect with others and share in the stewardship of our open space land. Meet at the Smith Field Ballparks at the end of Wavecrest Road in Half Moon Bay. Wear layers, sturdy shoes, and sun protection. All ages welcome and encouraged. Under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.

Make a donation to support open space preservation on the coastside at www.coastsidelandtrust.org/donate 650-726-5056 | info@coastsidelandtrust.org

Edward A. Daniels, Esq.

Since 1964, we have been a small-town firm committed to the highest standards of client representation.

Our transactional team focuses on estate planning and administration, from simple wills to complex trusts. We also counsel on business matters, including corporation and LLC formation.

Our litigation team represents both plaintiffs and defendants in enforcing their rights in personal injury, probate and trust, class action, employment and business matters.

Corey, Luzaich, de Ghetaldi & Riddle LLP

Your Attorneys on the Coast

625 Miramontes Street, Suite 106, Half Moon Bay | 650-726-7578 | www.coreylaw.com

COASTSIDE / Growing Things

Story by Maggie Mah

“Gardenomics:”

Good Moves for a Lifetime of Safe and Healthy Gardening

It’s a fact: gardening is great exercise with big benefits for both physical and mental health. It’s also hard work and many of the tasks we do in the garden can lead to aches and injuries if not done properly. Here’s the good news: paying attention to how you move your body and using the right tools can keep you gardening happily for many years to come. We call this idea “Gardenomics” or ergonomic gardening. (And, P.S., it has nothing to do with terminally cute garden statuary.)

The Center for Disease Control defines ergonomics as “the scientific study of people at work,” the goal of which is to “reduce stress and eliminate injuries and disorders associated with the overuse of muscles, bad posture, and repeated tasks.” Sound familiar? Here are basic movements that are frequently done while working in the garden and how to do them “Gardenomically”:

It’s important to take breaks and stretch when you are gardening.

Bending: Rounding the back or hunching over puts significant force on the lower back. Save yourself by “hinging” from the hips and keeping your back long and flat. If you need to get closer to the ground, try going down on one knee with the other leg at a 90°degree angle while maintaining a flat back.

Reaching: Work with your hands close to the body, preferably in the area between the shoulders and hips. Reaching above or below this “zone” will cause your back to arch or round. Also: working with your arms extended is less efficient and puts strain on elbows and shoulders. If you find yourself stretching too far, change your position or find a tool to help you do what needs to be done.

Twisting/bending sideways: Avoid these movements to maintain a neutral spine. Also, lateral (side) muscles are usually weaker than front abdominals and are more easily strained. Face your task head on and keep your feet pointed straight to the work area. Turn by moving your feet instead of twisting.

Lifting: Keep your back flat, bend at the knees and engage the large muscles in your legs and glutes to lift heavy objects. Consider lightening the load by purchasing soil and other bulk items in smaller packages.

Carrying: Hold objects close to the body, not out in front or at a distance. Use hands and arms (not just fingers!) to grip.

Kneeling: Use a foam cushion or wear knee pads to protect your knees and change your position frequently. Be mindful of bending and reaching while kneeling!

Handwork: Keep your wrist straight with your thumbs pointed up and avoid bending or twisting the wrist when using hand tools. “Thumbs up” position will also help keep elbows down and arms closer to the body. Wear relatively thin, well-fitting gloves for protection and enhanced dexterity. Repetitive “pinching” motions (weeding, seeding) put a lot of stress on the tendons. Use tools to facilitate weeding and take frequent breaks.

MORE “GARDENOMIC” TIPS:

Use the right tools: Make sure cutting tools are sharp, oiled and fit your

Photo credit: Pixabay

Photo credit: Courtesy of UC Master Gardener Norine Cepernich Extending the arms away from the body causes the back to round and puts excessive pressure on the vertebrae.

Keep garden tools clean and in good repair or consider repurposing them like the ones here.

hands. Shovels should have a wide enough ledge to accommodate your foot and allow you to use your body weight to dig. Shop for ergonomic gardening tools to make jobs easier.

Toting buckets: Carry two at a time to keep yourself balanced and to avoid twisting or hunching. Hold one bucket in each hand, with thumbs facing forward.

Pruning: avoid tilting your head back and arching your neck. Use longhandled tools or a ladder to get closer to the area you want to prune. If using a ladder, take care to observe safety precautions, be sure your balance is good enough to use a ladder, and have another person nearby.

MOVING THINGS:

Rolling is better than carrying and a cart is better than a wheelbarrow. Here’s why: with only one wheel, the wheelbarrow requires lifting the entire load before it will move. It is also more likely to be unsteady which can cause injury. With a cart, the load is more balanced over the wheels, more stable and requires less lifting to move. Don’t load too much. An overloaded vehicle is more likely to tip and cause an injury.

Push, don’t pull: Pulling a load causes your back to round, torso to twist

RESOURCES:

and places strain on your shoulders. Pushing, on the other hand, involves using powerful gluteus muscles and gives them a great workout. Push with both arms to avoid twisting.

Garden design: Construct raised beds narrow enough to minimize reaching and high enough to minimize bending. Paths should be wide enough to easily maneuver carts, tarps and other equipment. Narrow pathways increase the likelihood of twisting or becoming unbalanced when transporting loads or equipment. If lower maintenance is part of your goal, consider perennial plants and natives over annuals.

Leave the leaves: Raking and bundling leaves is labor intensive and counter-productive to a healthy garden. Leave them be to enrich the soil and save your energy for other tasks.

Remember, gardening is a workout so take a few minutes to warm up before getting started, be sure to take frequent breaks, stay hydrated, wear sun protection and do some stretches to loosen up when you are done.

Happy gardening! COASTSIDE

Maggie Mah is a UC Master Gardener of San Mateo and San Francisco Counties.

For more about the health benefits of gardening go to: ▸ www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/gardening-may-bring-a-harvest-of-healthbenefits ▸ ucanr.edu/sites/Mariposa/files/323411.pdf

For more about gardening ergonomics go to: ▸ uhs.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/ergonomics_tips_for_gardening_at_home.pdf ▸ www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2001-111/pdfs/2001-111.pdf

For more about ergonomics, go to: ▸ www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/ergonomics/ - ergo

Photo credit: Pixabay

Special times from Pacifica to Pescadero

▸ Coastside Gives

The morning after a record-setting “Coastside Gives” day of giving that raised over $1.6 million for local nonprofit organizations, staff and board members of the Mavericks Community Foundation that organizes the event gathered at Old Princeton Landing to select prize winners and celebrate their accomplishments. Photos courtesy Laura Acton

▸

Joan Baez visits an old friend

The legendary singer and activist surprised the audience attending a screening of “Joan Baez - I Am a Noise” at the Half Moon Bay Odd Fellows Ocean View Lodge. Baez answered questions from her friend Jan Tiura about her mental health journey, her singing career and her pursuit of social justice. Following the conversation, Baez greeted people in the audience. Photo courtesy Gail Evenari

▸ Breakfast of Champions

The Pacifica Sports Club honored several community athletes on May 17 at its annual Breakfast of Champions awards at the Pacifica Moose Lodge. Outstanding student-athletes from local high schools for the 2023-2024 school year were recognized. Recipients of the honors this year are (l-r) front row, Sienna Pon, Pacific Bay Christian School; Madison Donati, Terra Nova High School; and Jordan Galicia, Pacific Bay Christian School; back row, James Buenaventura, Oceana High School; Shannon Cleary, Oceana High School; Riley Lask, Mercy High School Burlingame; and Jasi Mann, Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep. Not pictured, Vinny Smith, Terra Nova High School and Jack Ruegg, Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep. This was the 40th year that the Pacifica Sports Club has been honoring Pacifica athletes. Photo by Horace Hinshaw

COASTSIDE

By Stephen Johnson

TO LEARN MORE:

www.oceanshorerailroad.org/history/ www.cityofpacifica.org/about-us/history/ocean-shore-railroad

The Saga of Car 1409 of the Ocean Shore Railroad

The people along the coast of the San Francisco peninsula were invariably farmers-- mostly Italian and Irish immigrants -- who grew artichokes, cabbages, peas, beans and potatoes. Getting their produce to markets in San Francisco by wagon was always problematic, especially when bad weather turned the dirt roads into mud.

Investors in San Francisco saw the need for transportation along the coast, and in the late 19th and early 20th century rail lines were considered the best way to transport people and goods. Thus they formed the Ocean Shore Railroad, not only to bring produce to the city, but also to offer a passenger/holiday service between the city and Santa Cruz.

But there was another motivation - to bring city-weary people to see the coast and motivate them to buy land along the route (which the investors had already bought) for cottages or homes.

The route was planned to be a two-track electric line, going from the OSRR station in San Francisco’s mission district, along what is now Alemany Avenue, to the coast and then heading south. It would pass through what are now the communities of Daly City, Pacifica, Montara, Moss Beach, Princeton, Half Moon Bay, Swanton, and end up in Santa Cruz.

With funding from investors secured, work began in 1905 and proceeded steadily; by 1906 the rails had reached Mussel Rock off of today’s Daly City. Then the 1906 earthquake struck, and a landslide pushed rolling stock and rails into the ocean, causing many months of delay and extra costs. At that point a decision was made to make the railroad a single track, and to use steam engines instead.

The route faced many challenges - sheer cliffs, wide gullies and solid rock that blocked the way. The rock at Pedro Point had to be blasted with dynamite to create a tunnel through Montara Mountain, then more blasting to create a level roadway for the tracks along Devil’s Slide.

Any geologist today would tell you this was a terrible place to have a rail line due to the unstable nature of the sedimentary and cracked granite rock, which were prone to give way in earthquakes or even during very heavy rains. Nevertheless the building continued, even as an occasional landslide would close down the trackway. The tracks went as far as Tunitas Creek before the company ran out of money to continue the line. Passengers could then take a steamer car from there and continue to Santa Cruz.

The railroad’s slogan was “It Reaches the Beaches.” The route became a favorite holiday trip for San Franciscans. Most of the income of the railroad, however, was from its freight revenues, bringing horse manure from the city to the farms along the coast, and bringing back produce and dairy goods from those same farms.

Unfortunately, the railroad was never very profitable, and when trucks became a major competitor for the freight service, the railroad quit operations in 1920. The tracks were removed and the roadbed was paved to become Highway 1.

The passenger cars were sold to other railroads or dismantled, but one

lone car was found decaying on a property in Sebastopol. It was identified as car 1409, one of five built in 1909 by the W.L. Holman Company exclusively for the OSRR. When notified of its discovery, members of the Pacifica Historical Society drove up to verify its origins and convinced the property owned to give it to the Society.

Thus began a twenty-year effort to restore the car and return it to its original look so that its role in history will be remembered. The car was placed on a farm, then moved next to Pacifica’s sewage treatment plant, before residing next to a taqueria. Recently it was moved to its permanent

home next to the Coastside Museum.

Over the years, Society volunteers and paid craftsmen worked on the car when time and money allowed. So far the outside of the car and its roof have been restored, and carpenters are now working on the floors and interior woodwork.

The Society is in the process of raising funds for the trucks, rails and ties so the car has a permanent foundation on which to rest. Eventually the Society hopes to put in lights, seats, and panels so visitors can see what it was like to travel by rail along the coast in the 1910s. There will be informational panels about the fares, schedules maps of the route and, ultimately, a shelter in the form of a station to protect the car from the elements. This would be the only small railroad museum on the San Mateo County coast.

Taking a cue from railroad museums in other areas, the Society would like to give school groups a chance to learn about railroads on the peninsula from docents dressed as conductors inside Car 1409. It would be an opportunity for kids to hear about train rides they can take in the Bay Area and perhaps become the next generation of rail fans. COASTSIDE

Stephen Johnson is the President of the Pacifica Historical Society

Photo courtesy Pacifica Historical Society Car 1409, found in Sebastopol.

COASTSIDE

Moon over Romeo Pier, created in 2014 by Barbara Masek. Since then, the iconic Coastside building was taken down due to structural issues. A brilliant sunset cast upon El Granada, as the rising moon was seen. It has been enhanced creatively to convey emotion and appreciation of this local scene. Barbara Masek Photography is a commercial photography service since 2010. Barb works with clients in head and portrait, event, promotion and website assignments at www.barbaramasekphotography.com. Her artwork can be currently seen at Ocean Blue Art Vault Gallery and in the current Coastal Art League Member’s Show. Barb photographs travel, Coastal Landscapes. Her artwork is offered in a variety of sizes, media types and image merchandise. Direct ordering and fulfillment. www.barbaramasekphoto.com. Barb is happy to consult to meet client preferences.

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Burlingame Window & Door Showroom 1410 Broadway, Burlingame 94010

Also in Walnut Creek with Home Improvement Centers in Concord and Pinole

Call for an appointment. 650-401-3500 or 800-936-5267. Open Monday - Saturday.