I was so pleased, back in January 2014, to learn that University Art was relocating to Redwood City from Palo Alto. Rents had gotten too high there, so the family-owned business — which began in 1948! — went looking for a place they could own. The relatively high costs of commercial real estate in Palo Alto led them to expand their search, and by 2013 they had settled on a site along El Camino Real in Redwood City. At the time the site was home to Suraj Indian Cuisine, but that building was completely inappropriate for University Art’s needs. Accordingly, they tore down the old restaurant building and built a lovely store with large glass windows looking out over both El Camino Real and the store’s new parking lot. In the years since then, University Art has seemingly been doing a good business selling art supplies, framing various artworks, and hosting art classes, among other things. But sadly, after 78 years of serving the arts community first in Palo Alto and then in Redwood City, the family behind this beloved business has decided to close their store.

Currently, they’re having a store closing sale, with everything being “at least 30% off.” They’re also still accepting orders for custom framing, but only through March 14 — at 25% off their regular prices. So if you have, or anticipate, any need for art supplies of any kind — paper, pens, paint, glue, standard or custom picture frames, canvases, and so much more — don’t wait: go by, thank them for being a part of Redwood City for the past 12 years, and get some great bargains. I can personally attest to theirs being a terrific store, and they’ll be greatly missed.

Although it by no means makes up for the loss of University Art, I was delighted to see that the Nine Lives Foundation has settled on a “furever home”: their “brand-new, state-of-the-art adoption and veterinary facility” for cats.

Although still being remodeled, Nine Lives will soon be located at 749 Brewster Ave., in what was the Sequoia Health & Wellness Center building. Until then, though, you can visit them at their adoption center at 3106 Rolison Road in Redwood City (Wednesday through Friday) or their cat clinic at 3137 Jefferson Ave. (Monday through Friday). See their website for more information including hours of operation.

Have you been to the Redwood City Caltrain Station lately? Sadly, I suspect that an undesirable element has spoiled things for the rest of us:

For years Redwood City had a proper railroad station, apparently with an indoor waiting area, ticket counter, and baggage room. But that station was damaged by fire in 1979, and subsequently torn down. Our current “station” — which is just an open-air patio with a pair of automated ticket dispensers, at least allowed folks waiting for a train to have some shelter on rainy days. No longer, however: sturdy metal screens block all the openings to the station, and the ticket dispensers have been relocated so that they can be accessed from the outside. Now, the station is just an empty shell, taking up space and performing no useful function except perhaps as a place for storage of some sort. Seeing it as it is today makes me glad I’m no longer commuting to work on Caltrain; that would be a depressing way to start my day.

Speaking of sad sights, why the heck do people do things like this?

On the brighter side, my wife and I finally made our way to Bravo Taqueria:

(The above photo is slightly out-of-date; the orange barriers are gone now.) Although they are still in a start-up mode, and thus when we were there not all items on the menu were available, my wife had a shredded beef super taco and I had a chicken super burrito. Both were loaded with avocado and other such ingredients, and we very much enjoyed both. The restaurant’s interior is nice and comfortable, but we took advantage of the unusually good weather we are having right now and sat at one of the outdoor tables (which are around the right side of the building in the above photo; where you can see the parked cars). All-in-all, we had a nice lunch and are looking forward to going back again soon.

Bravo Taqueria’s hours weren’t posted on the building when I was there, but I believe that the hours listed on Yelp are accurate, at least for now: Monday – Thursday 12 – 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. – 9 p.m., closed Sunday.

For this week’s walk I made my way down Broadway to check on a couple of projects, and then used Second Avenue to hop over to Middlefield Road so I could check on the affordable housing project under construction on San Mateo Avenue. At Broadway and Chestnut Street I of course checked in on the Broadway Village project, which is wrapping up its first phase. None of the apartments are quite ready for occupancy yet, although the affordable building along Chestnut Street, which was the first of the three apartment buildings to get underway, looks as if it could open its doors any day now. I have to wonder if the hold-up is due to some ongoing work on the development’s garage entrances (one of which is on Broadway, and one of which is on Bay Road). In any case, a lot of work is now underway on the bioswales and what will be the new sidewalk along a portion of Bay Road extending towards Woodside Road from the Bay Road entrance to the garage:

The current work is being done along the edge of the street. Just behind where that new sidewalk is going will eventually be one of the development’s three office buildings: a four-story, 110,000-square foot one. But I am personally more interested in what will be beside and behind that building: a small public dog park and a lovely bit of public open space:

[Click the above to get a version you can zoom in on]

I’m looking forward to the day when I can walk right through the middle of this development from Bay Road to Broadway, enjoying the shade of some of the development’s trees and perhaps taking a break on or beside its public lawn.

After crossing Woodside Road, I made my way over to Spring Street, to check on the progress of the Hoover Park rebuild. At the moment the project is still very much in the demolition stage, although that stage looks to be close to done:

Interestingly, the long, narrow building that used to hold the pool equipment (among other things) is not going to be completely demolished: the word “save” has been written on a portion of the building using green spray paint, while large green “X’s” on the remaining half indicate that that part of the building will be demolished:

Back to Broadway, I next went by Stanford’s new medical office building project:

Then, after traversing Second Avenue and then heading back north on Middlefield Road, I jogged a block east to San Mateo Avenue, where the county’s newest affordable housing project in our area is making great strides:

This thing is using a lot of lumber! This end, which faces Douglas Avenue, is particularly thick with framing:

Dubbed “Monarch at Redwood,” the building will ultimately be six stories tall (two more than what is there today) and will contain 86 for-rent affordable apartments ranging in sizes from studios to three-bedroom units. To qualify, a household must earn less than $110,000 per year.

Because it was such a lovely day, after I made my way back in to Redwood City I walked along Maple Street in order to cross over Highway 101. I then looped around the county’s Navigation Center, giving me an updated look at what was once Docktown Marina:

These days, there is nothing left of the place. The one remaining floating home is, as you can see, no longer floating but just sitting on the old launch ramp. And the “historic tank” (that may have held water, fuel, or oil; accounts vary) is sitting nearby, just waiting to be given a final home in the immediate area to serve as a symbol of Redwood City’s early industry. But other than these two things, there are no longer any boats in the former marina.

Across Redwood Creek (and up a bit towards Whipple Avenue), the Syufy Site project continues to make steady progress:

There isn’t much movement on the portion of the project where the VillaSport athletic club will one day stand, however:

Of course, I’ll keep watching, and will let you know when that particular building gets underway.

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It’s that time again: Redwood City is once again recruiting for a variety of boards, commissions, and committees (BCCs). The city has a total of 27 vacancies across the following:

• Architectural Advisory Committee
• Arts Commission
• Board of Building Review
• Board of Port Commissioners
• Historic Resources Advisory Committee
• Housing and Human Concerns Committee
• Library Board
• Parks, Recreation and Community Services Commission
• Planning Commission
• Senior Affairs Commission

Applications will be accepted until Sunday, May 3, after which qualified applicants will be interviewed by the City Council. Most positions have very simple requirements, although, as you might expect, a few — the Architectural Advisory Committee, for instance — require some relevant expertise. See this web page for all the gory details, and find the application here.

Do give some thought to getting more directly involved with our city government by applying to join one of the above. It certainly beats complaining on NextDoor…

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Curious about the kind of companies that call Redwood City home? Innovate RWC is a new quarterly speaker series “highlighting innovative companies based in Redwood City.” On Thursday, April 2, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., Paul Lambert, Co-Founder and CEO of Quilt — a company which builds all-electric climate systems using high-efficiency heat pump technology — will be the inaugural speaker. This event is open to the public, and will be held up at Cañada College (The Grove, Building 5). Registration is required. I’ve signed up; perhaps I’ll see you there?