Spotted this sign in the Walnut Creek We Olive store. Anyone who loves olive oil and is looking for a job might find this a good match.
Spotted this sign in the Walnut Creek We Olive store. Anyone who loves olive oil and is looking for a job might find this a good match.
From the Walnut Creek Walks web page:
North Lime Ridge Open Space celebrates Spring with myriad wildflowers. Take this walk and get a botany lesson at the same time! Meet at 10 a.m. at the Bayberry Drive entrance to the north Lime Ridge Open Space. For details on the walk, including driving directions to the entrance, click here.
Brent Robert Kastroff
From a Contra Costa County Fire Protection District press release:
Late on Friday April 6th, 62 year old Walnut Creek resident Brent Robert Kastroff was arrested by Contra Costa County Fire District Investigators and the Walnut Creek Police Department at his home in the community of Rossmoor.
In January of this year, Fire Investigators received information about a small fire that occurred on private property on Vista Del Valle in Lafayette. The property is a large parcel that contains 3 homes but the majority of the 90 acres is grass covered land that even when maintained can still pose a wildfire threat to nearby homes and residents due to it’s size and topography. The investigation lead to the discovery of a previously unreported fire in May of 2011 in the same area; however there were no leads in either incident.
Last month Fire Investigators received information about a third fire on the same property that was similar to the previous two fires. Fire Investigators were able to develop some witness information after conducting a thorough neighborhood canvass assisted by the on duty firefighters from Lafayette Station 17. The investigation led Fire Investigators to contact Mr. Kastroff at his home in
Rossmoor which is adjacent to the property where the three fires had been discovered. Mr. Kastroff was interviewed and admitted to Fire Investigators he had started the fires and eventually led them to the very spots where the fires had been discovered earlier. Mr. Kastroff stated he did not feel he had done anything wrong because the fires were small and he had only started some pieces of paper on fire which caused small spots of grass to burn. What Mr. Kastroff failed to realize is the danger posed by causing a fire to start – even a small fire. Any fire, accidental or intentional, has the potential to become catastrophic and deadly. Fire investigators submitted the case to the District Attorney’s Office late Friday and a warrant for arson was issued for Kastroff’s arrest. Kastroff was booked into the County jail where his bail was set at $225,000 for three counts of arson to forest land.Kastroff has a history of fire setting dating back to 1995 and Kastroff was arrested in San Rafael in 1998 for setting fire to small papers in a trash can.
Other arsonists apprehended by the Fire Investigation Unit, such as Scott Weinberg who set numerous fires in the Concord and Walnut Creek area in 2009 and eventually caused over one million dollars in damage to a commercial building, and Thomas Hartman of Pittsburg who is currently awaiting trial for allegedly setting approximately 50 fires over the past two years, exhibited similar behavior to Kastroff in the beginning of their arson sprees.
Fires of any size should be reported immediately to the fire district. A fire appearing to be small or harmless may be important signs of dangerous or potential arson activity.
If anyone is aware of any fires possibly associated with Mr. Kastroff they are asked to contact the District’s Fire Investigation Unit at 925-942-9140 or call the Arson Tip Line at 1-866-502-7766.
I was contemplating making this a “sign of the day” post, but I decided to focus on public vs. private parking in downtown Walnut Creek instead. The sign says, “PRIVATE PARKING” at top, and right below, “PAY PUBLIC PARKING”. Is this confusing to anyone?
I’m so used to these signs that I never really pay attention anymore, but it is somewhat bizarre, isn’t it? How could there possibly be both private and public parking in the same spot!? I believe what it means is that the City of Walnut Creek farms out these public spaces to a private company who manages them to earn revenue for both the company as well as the city, but I can only imagine the confusion to visitors to Walnut Creek. Maybe the wording could be changed, instead of “PAY PUBLIC PARKING”, to “CITY OF WALNUT CREEK” or something.
*UPDATE* A reader below notes that, “these are privately owned parking spaces that are made available for public use, for a fee. The City has nothing to do with enforcement, collection or revenue.”
In that case the sign should be changed from, ” PAY PUBLIC PARKING” to “Parking Meters Available to Public” or something.
The parking garage situation in downtown Walnut Creek is another confusing anomaly because the private garages are free, and the publicly own garages are fee-based. I bet there are quite a few visitors to Walnut Creek who assume the public garages are the best deal available. Or am I off base here?
Spotted at the Fujian Japanese restaurant in downtown Walnut Creek, the sign says:
Fire Station
of the
Walnut Creek Volunteer Fire
Department
part of the
Central Fire Department Protection District
1926 to 1965
Nona Mock Wyman, one of the owners of Ming Quong, the jewelry and gift shop located in downtown Walnut Creek will be publishing a book titled, “Bamboo Women“.
From her website:
Mock Wyman’s first memoir was Chopstick Childhood, her story of growing up at the Ming Quong orphanage in the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1940s.
For the Spring 2012 season, China Books in San Francisco will publish Nona’s long-awaited sequel, Bamboo Women, an inspirational portrait of her Ming Quong “sisters” and their bonds of friendship which have spanned more than 70 years.
Has anyone read her first book, “Chopstick Childhood”? Sounds like an interesting read.
Sandy’s Unique Boutique, the women’s clothing boutique in Lafayette is closing by the end of the month. They are having a huge sale at 50 – 70% off to get rid of inventory so drop by 3569 Mt Diablo Blvd (in the back) to check them out before they close.
Apparently they used to have a store in Walnut Creek which closed years ago.
Since this blog will eventually cover more of Lafayette, and possibly Orinda since some interesting shops are opening up in theatre square, is there any good term to use that encompasses Walnut Creek, Lafayette and Orinda? Lamorinda is often used for Lafayette/Orinda/Moraga, so on that note how about:
Any suggestions?
A strong-arm robbery occurred last night around 8:35 pm on the corner of S. Main St. and Creekside Dr, resulting in a stolen purse. From a Walnut Creek Police press release:
Date / Time Occurred: March 23, 2012 at 8:35 pm
Location: Creekside Drive, Walnut Creek
Crime Description / Code: Robbery / 211 PCSuspect: #1: Hispanic male, approximately 30 year old. Dark colored hair, eyes and goatee. Approximately 5’ 6” tall and weighed 180 lbs. He was wearing a dark colored hooded jacket, and dark shorts.
Suspect #2: Hispanic male, 5’5”, 150 pounds, wearing dark clothing.
On March 23, 2012 at approximately 2035 hours, two women were walking on the sidewalk of Creekside Drive near South Main Street when they were approached by two Hispanic males. Suspect #1 grabbed the purse from the shoulder of one of the women. The woman screamed while she tried to hold on to the purse. The male overpowered her and stole the purse. No weapon was seen. The two suspects entered a vehicle waiting a short distance away. No one was injured during the incident. The vehicle was described as possibly a late model Sedan. If you have any information regarding the robbery, please contact the Walnut Creek Police Department at (925) 943-5844.
