Having visited all of the usual suspects (Broadway Plaza, the Syufy project out on E. Bayshore Road, etc.) last week, for this week’s walk I focused more on upcoming project sites, rather than ones that are nearing completion. This week I did walk by the seven-story modular building at 112 Vera Ave., though: there were a number of workers on the building’s exterior scaffolding, seemingly getting the exterior ready for the application of painted stucco (on floors three through seven) and brick (floors one and two):

I then went by 1201 Main St., which is located where Main Street crosses the railroad tracks, on the other side of the tracks from the Chan Zuckerberg Institute building:

Last August the Redwood City Planning Commission approved a project to construct a six-story mixed-use (office and residential) building on the site, and just recently blue construction fencing went up around the property. A demolition permit has been issued, although a permit to then excavate for the underground parking garage remains pending. So we could see on-site activity commencing soon, or it could be a while. Fortunately, this site is very close to the two ELCO Yards parcels where site prep is underway for the eventual construction of two seven-story apartment buildings, so while keeping an eye on those two — I’m visiting the sites on a weekly basis these days — I can easily watch for activity at 1201 Main St.

This week I also went by 901 El Camino Real, where a former AutoZone store plus the tiny (long empty) Yumi Yogurt building plus the adjacent taqueria all will eventually be replaced by a six-story office building with an integrated teen center. Construction fencing went up around the former AutoZone and Yumi Yogurt buildings some time ago, but for weeks now I’ve been noticing activity in the larger building that didn’t appear to have anything to do with construction. It now appears that while the developer is waiting for the opportune time to commence work on the project, they’ve temporarily leased the former AutoZone building to a rather fascinating company called Tachyon.

According to its website, Tachyon is “engineering more efficient and powerful particle accelerators” and “moving antimatter production and storage from lab to factory.” Right here in little ‘ol Redwood City (and Austin, TX)! Who knew? Perhaps I’ll next stumble across a company working on time machines…

After learning about the high tech goings-on directly across El Camino from Sequoia High School, I spent the largest part of my walk idling at the corner of Main and Marshall streets, watching the replacement of the signals that used to regulate traffic at the then five-way intersection of Main, Marshall, and Spring streets. With the one-block section of Spring Street that originated at the otherwise conventional intersection of Main and Marshall now being absorbed into what will be the project to construct a seven-story mixed-use (office and retail) building where Wells Fargo Bank used to have its stand-alone building, the signals at the intersection are being greatly simplified, since now they only need to regulate a conventional four-way intersection. And having watched the construction of the foundations needed for the new signals on previous visits, I was fortunate to show up this week just after the old signal had been taken down, and while the new one was being made ready for installation.

As fascinating as it was to watch the arm of the signal being craned and then bolted into place (the vertical pole having been installed prior to my arrival), I was really taken by the amount of wire being used to hook the new signals up. There were yards and yards of multiple strands of wire lying along the sidewalks on all four corners, wire that was being fished through the arms, down the inside of the vertical poles, and into underground chambers. Hooking up traffic signals seems a tricky process, one that clearly requires some specialized skills.

The crew wasn’t able to finish the project in one day (I was there on Tuesday) but were coming back on Wednesday. By now it may well be all done; I have yet to go by and see the result. Which I will do each time I’m out walking: I’m hoping to catch some of the demolition of the old Wells Fargo building, whenever that occurs.

On Saturday, I attended the grand opening of the new galleries in the San Mateo County History Museum. Having watched the relocation of Lora Mundi (aka the Lathrop-Connor-Mansfield House) and the subsequent construction of the Taube Family Carriage House and Automobile Gallery, I was eager to get inside both. On Saturday I went for the ribbon-cutting and joined a lot of other people who were as eager as I to see the new additions to our museum. Although I did manage to get a glimpse of everything that day, I kept my visit somewhat short: I knew I could come back on another day and enjoy a more leisurely (and less crowded) visit. What I didn’t realize is just how soon that would be: just one day later, as it turns out. On Sunday I was back in Courthouse Square to explore Redwood City’s excellent Diá de los Muertos event. Wanting to see the ofrendas (the altars constructed to honor one’s ancestors), my wife and I headed into the museum. That’s when we discovered that more than just the upstairs galleries where the ofrendas had been constructed were open that afternoon. Indeed, the entire museum — including the new galleries — were open — for free!. And since the new galleries were not the focus of Sunday’s activities, we had them mostly to ourselves.

On Saturday I got to explore the inside of Lora Mundi — the “steamboat gothic” house at the corner of Marshall and Hamilton streets:

The house is beautifully decorated with a host of period-appropriate pieces. Unfortunately, due to the crowds on Saturday I took hardly any pictures inside; Lora Mundi is one place I plan to go back to and spend quality time in.

On Saturday, my wife and I accessed the Carriage House via its main entrance from the courtyard off Marshall Street. On Sunday, however, we got to it by passing through the history museum’s new HERO Natural History Gallery. Regrettably, I didn’t take photos of that gallery, but plan to on a return visit. This new Natural History Gallery isn’t huge, but it effectively highlights a number of giant creatures that long ago roamed the area that is now San Mateo County. And it connects directly to the Carriage House, which stands next to Lora Mundi along Marshall Street:

The Carriage House has three internal floors. The ground floor lobby, which is entered into primarily from the courtyard between the two Marshall Street buildings,  presents a tribute to Tad Taube, the keystone donor who made this new building possible. From that lobby, one passes through glass doors into the Kopf Family Automobile Gallery. Thanks to the Kopf family — owners of Towne Ford (among other dealerships) — those of us who love cars now have a small, but exquisite local museum that will host a rotating collection of classic cars.

Somewhat understandably, all of the cars currently in the gallery seem to have a connection to the Ford Motor Company, from a Model T to a lovely Mercury Eight convertible to this absolutely gorgeous classic Thunderbird:

There is also a pristine-looking Ford GT:

And right next to it, a bright yellow De Tomaso Pantera with (what else?) a Ford engine:

Head upstairs, and you go back in time, to an era when horse-drawn carriages were how the well-heeled got around. The county’s large collection of historic carriages includes a number that were owned by Lurline Matson Roth, who in 1975 deeded her estate — Filoli — to the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The county’s carriage collection has been in a climate-controlled facility for the last 40 years, and finally, thanks to this new facility and its second-floor carriage gallery, we members of the public can get a good look at some of the best:

The building’s top floor consists primarily of a large open room — the Corey Room — and kitchen that can be rented for private functions, charitable or corporate events, and the like. On Friday, we were treated to a concert played using historical instruments:

For those who have never been to the San Mateo County History Museum, or those who have been but feel as if they’ve “seen it all,” now is a great time to go back and see all of the wonderful new collections that this great museum has to offer.

Until next week, when I hope to bring other new finds from in and around Redwood City, stay safe and stay dry! As I write this my backyard has received 0.84 inches of rain since midnight, and the forecast shows rain off and on through next Thursday, at least…