For years I was determined to publish a blog post every Friday, whether I was in the country or not (at one point I actually managed to take a three-week trip to Europe without missing a beat). But this year — this summer, in particular — I’ve been doing a lot of traveling, and I see no real value in writing a post that doesn’t have some relatively current information behind it. Thus, I’ve been publishing on a mostly ever-other-week schedule since the beginning of July. I expect that I’ll continue to be somewhat sporadic until the end of September, after which I expect to resume a (mostly) weekly publishing schedule again. Chalk it up to summer…

One advantage of publishing a bit less frequently is that the changes that occur over a longer period of time are often more significant than those I observe on a weekly basis. Especially with projects that are just getting started and thus are proceeding somewhat slowly (from a visual standpoint), or with projects that are nearing completion, when what is being done are the small final tasks.

The project out at 557 E. Bayshore — where the Century Park 12 Theatres used to be — is one of the former: it is still in the early stages, with most of the work currently focused on installing the necessary underground infrastructure. Most of that is hard to really see, especially given that there are no nearby elevated vantage points from which I can observe the work. Thus, I have to content myself with pictures like this (taken from the bay side of the project):

and pictures like this (taken from E. Bayshore):

As you can probably tell, right now they are busy installing the underground sewer lines. Undoubtedly they are also going to be running the needed water lines (both fresh water as well as recycled) and underground electrical conduits from their mains (which are out at or near the street, presumably, since the street was dug up a month or two ago). Initially the contractor will be constructing one of the two planned apartment buildings (Building A, which will be located on the parcel roughly where the theaters were) and the two-story VillaSport fitness club, which will be located closer to E. Bayshore and near the Acura dealership. But surely they’ll run the needed utilities to the future site of the second apartment building as well, so that they don’t have to tear things up again once the first two buildings are completed and in use.

ELCO Yards is now falling into the category of projects that are close to completion, and thus the changes I am observing these days tend to be smaller and hard to spot. Main Street, which runs right through the middle of the development, is nearly done now, having received its asphalt:

As you can see, the crosswalks and center striping still need to be painted, and the asphalt immediately around the manhole covers still needs to be added (or it did; these pictures were taken last Tuesday). But the Main Street Dog Agility Park appears complete (but not quite open to the public yet); look closely and you can even see that it has a nice carved wooden sign affixed to the wooden shade structure near the entrance:

The public plaza at the corner of Main and Chestnut streets (and in front of the stand-alone restaurant building, which is still having its interior fitted out) was not quite done on Tuesday, but it seems to be pretty much down to the final landscaping and hardscaping at this point:

And as far as I can tell, three of the four office buildings are pretty much done, with the fourth still receiving a few exterior bits. The build-out of the interiors may still take some time, and from what I can tell should initially be concentrated on the two buildings between Main Street and the Caltrain tracks: those, I believe, are the ones that have been leased to the Chan Zuckerberg Institute for Advanced Biological Imaging. And speaking of those two buildings, take a look at what I spotted up against the tracks between them:

Presumably, this is a bit of public art, either using the actual sign from the old roller rink that used to stand where one of the new buildings is now, or using a replica. For those readers that weren’t here back then, or for those who don’t remember, this is what that building, with that sign affixed to it, looked like shortly before it was demolished:

One project that has not yet started — and likely will not for a while — but gives the appearance that it might, is the office building with integrated teen center approved for 901 El Camino Real, where Redwood City’s AutoZone (and Yumi Yogurt) used to do business and where Carnitas El Rincon is still serving pork tacos, burritos, etc. With the recent closure of the AutoZone (much later than I expected after the new AutoZone opened up down the street), the construction fencing that has been around the old Yumi Yogurt building for years now has been extended to encompass the AutoZone building as well:

Although the project was approved back in late April, I wouldn’t expect to see actual work commence until mid- to late-2026, at least. Me, I’m considering Carnitas El Rincon to be the canary in the coal mine for this project. If they move (or close), that could signal that demolition, and then construction, is imminent. But given that the developer has yet to even apply for demolition and building permits, much less receive them, it’s definitely going to be a while…

One drawback about skipping weekly blog posts is that I convince myself that I’ve already written about a topic that I never actually covered. One such topic is the “latest” Sequoia Station news: not only is Yumi Yogurt apparently returning to Redwood City (to one of the storefronts in Sequoia Station, I’ve heard, although I don’t yet know which one), but the shopping center now has a police substation:

Some time ago I had noted that the space formerly occupied by a mattress store — just across the entryway from See’s Candies, and next to the CVS Pharmacy — had been divided into two separate spaces. I didn’t know back then why the division was being made, but as you can see from the photo above, the smaller of the two spaces is now a substation for the Redwood City Police Department. This should signal a stronger police presence on the property, and therefore should make the center feel much safer for those of us who shop there. If you’ve been avoiding the Sequoia Station shopping center because you didn’t feel entirely safe, consider paying them a visit and see for yourself whether the climate has improved.

Along Middlefield Road, the Rise City Church’s new sanctuary building looks close to done, at least from the outside:

And a bit further down, the extension to the Jardin de Niños park is now displaying a small model of what the bandstand-like structure will presumably look like:

Pretty wild, huh? I presume the artist who will be decorating what today is simply a metal skeleton created this model to show the city what they have in mind. I especially love the animals marking the top of the uprights that support the roof… For those who missed my previous mention, here is a photograph of what that metal structure currently looks like:

Over in Red Morton Park, the parking lot that will be located behind the new Veterans Memorial Building/Senior Center (along Madison Avenue) has finally been paved:

Note the sign over the rear entrance to the building:

Lastly, the business that will be taking over from Baires Bakery, at 2400 Broadway, might be called “Creation Coffee.” At least, that is what is written on a note that was affixed to one of the crates I recently spotted in the space formerly occupied by the short-lived Argentinian bakery. Much of the previous bakery’s interior fittings remain as yet, although there are clear signs that at least some work is being done to customize the space for this new business:

That’ll do for this week. Enjoy the warm summer weather that at long last is paying us a visit. Oh, and I should note that Shakespeare in the Park has once again returned to Red Morton Park. This year they are doing The Two Gentlemen of Verona, each Saturday and Sunday from August 9 – 24. Shows begin at 6 p.m. and run for about 90 minutes with no intermission. And they are totally free! I haven’t yet been by to check, but I presume that they will, as usual, be performing on the lawn at the Valota Road end of the park. Parking is available either in the old Senior Center lot (off of Madison Avenue), in the lot near the Magical Bridge Playground off of Valota Road, or on the streets nearby. But if you live close enough, walk or ride a bike. Note that it may be hot, and that there is very little shade where the play has typically been held, so wear sunscreen and a hat. Umbrellas are discouraged as they block the view for folks behind you. But bring a blanket and/or chairs, and food and drink if you so desire.