Weekend events in and around the Fruitvale

This weekend in the Fruitvale neighborhood a few different cultural and community events will take place.

Happening this Friday, October 9th at the East Side Cultural Center is Pecha Kucha Night Oakland: Graffiti for Social Change - Don't Sweat the Technique.

10 presenters, who range from authors, local artists, photographers, and social activists will use slides to discuss how graffiti has been and can continue to be used to create and encourage social change. The night begins at 7pm with a 5$ admission charge and is open to all ages with a beer and wine bar for patrons over 21 years of age.

The event is being held in conjunction with the Estria Invitation Graffiti Battle, which is scheduled to take place on Saturday October 10.

East Side Cultural Center
2277 International Blvd
(510) 533-6629
www.eastsideartsalliance.com


The Estria Invitation Graffiti Battle, hosted by Bay Area graffiti artist, Estria, is scheduled for 11am-5pm Saturday October 10th at deFremery Park in Oakland.

24 graffiti artist from around the United States will compete in a live painting battle. This event is free and open to all ages. An after party will be held at Farmer Brown from 10pm-1am where guests can meet the artists.

More information can be seen at the event's website www.estriabattle.com

deFremery Park
1651 Adeline Street
Oakland CA 94607

Farmer Brown
25 Mason Street @ Market St


Also taking place this Saturday, October 10th is the Oaktoberfest Festival held in the Dimond District neighboring Fruitvale at the crossing of Fruitvale Ave and MacArthur Blvd.

This year Oaktoberfest will feature a biergarten, an eco fair, a kid’s area with root biergarten, and live music. There will also be a homebrew competition and food vendors.
More information can be found at http://www.oaktoberfest.org/

Check back here for more in depth coverage of this event.


On Sunday, October 11th and Friday, October 30th the East Side Cultural Center will be hosting a Dia De Los Muertos community altar making and celebration.

The festivities will last from 10am-2pm on Sunday the 11th and from 4pm-8pm on Friday and will include a free lunch, dinner, and art activities for the entire family. Participants are asked to bring photos of friends and family for the altar. This event is free.

East Side Cultural Center
2277 International Blvd
(510) 533-6629
www.eastsideartsalliance.com

Powderface Cafe : a thirdplace in Fruitvale

A multitude of smiling faces all sprinkled and smudged with powdered sugar greet you as you walk into Powderface Cafe, home of the beignet, a New Orleans style doughnut. The bakery and coffeehouse is famous in the Fruitvale area for their delicious, made to order pastry, fresh brewed coffee, and lively atmosphere.

Filling almost every inch of the cafe's walls are photographs of customers, including firefighters, police officers, children, bikers, and teenagers, proudly displaying their various powder face. The powder face is a side effect of eating the beignet, which is a square, hole less doughnut that is amply covered in powdered sugar.



There is hardly ever a slow moment at Powderface Cafe. Due to its convenient location across from BART it has become one of the biggest unofficial community gathering spots in the Fruitvale neighborhood. The café is situated in what many feel is quickly becoming the heart of the Fruitvale area, The Fruitvale Transit Village. This location provides an almost never-ending stream of patrons, with BART providing a large amount of foot traffic, including commuters and tourists. The surrounding area, which includes the library, multiple schools, and the shopping area of International Boulevard serve to draw in many local residents including a large number of teenagers. Many patrons are regulars, stopping in for a coffee, beignet, or a delightful crepe before heading to work in the morning or grabbing a smoothie or sandwich for lunch.

As if anticipating the popular community-gathering place the cafe would become Powderface Café has ample seating. The coffeehouse offers a large inside cafe seating area, as well as an expansive outside patio area complete with large umbrellas for shade, and multiple benches located near the doors.

It’s not uncommon to hear shouts ring out as those coming from the BART station or waiting for a bus nearby recognize friends, neighbors, and fellow café regulars sitting in the outside, patio area. During one of my visits to Powderface I actually ran into a former source that said that he stopped at the cafe almost daily to grab either a sandwich or something to drink.


The cafe is a popular place for students to study, either alone or in groups. On weekday afternoons, many tables are occupied with college or high school students bent over laptops, listening to I-pods, or simply chatting with each other. Students are not the only lingerers here at Powderface Café. Mothers also sit and talk together, watching their children play or in one instance rollerblade nearby in the Village courtyard. Many local business people also use the cafe for informal meetings, brainstorm sessions, and lunch dates. Some patrons stay for hours, slowly sipping their drinks, silently observing the hustle and bustle around them or talking amongst themselves and with those who pass by.

In the Fruitvale neighborhood, Powderface stands as a unique center for community gathering, offering more than the traditional coffee house in atmosphere and local flavor. The café is located at 3411 East 12th Street Suite 132 in Oakland, California.

Upcoming Activities at the Oakland Public Library Cesar Chavez Branch

Looking for something to do with the family this fall?

The Cesar Chavez Branch of the Oakland Public Library will be hosting multiple different activities for families and community members of all ages in the final weeks of September and throughout October.

The Chavez Chess Club will be meeting at 11am to 3pm on Saturday, September 26th. All ages and levels of experience are welcome from absolute beginners looking to learn the game to advanced chess veterans looking for partners to play with.

The Teen Game Zone happens each Wednesdays at the Cesar Chavez Branch from 3:30pm to 5:30 pm. Teenagers are able to play video games such as Guitar Hero, traditional board games, and enjoy complimentary snacks.

Contact Pete Villasenor at 510-535-5620 for more information on either the Chess Club or the Teen Game Zone.

On Thursday October 8th the Cesar Chavez Branch will host a MOCha Re-Create Art Workshop at 11 am in conjunction with the Museum of Children’s Art. Participants will recycle and reuse various materials to create art that they may enter in the City of Oakland’s “Re-Create” art competition and exhibition. This event is designed to teach participants about the 4R’s: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Rot.

For children up to age 7 Saturday, October 10th offers dance classes for young children in partnership with Luna Kids Dance. The event begins at 10:30 am and will teach children about the various ways to use dance for self-expression. Contact the children’s librarian at (510) 535-5620 for more information.

Tuesday, October 13th 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm marks the monthly Lawyers in the Library event. The Alameda County Bar Association and the legal Aid Society of Alameda County who co-sponsor the event will provide free legal information and referrals in both English and Spanish. A sign up lottery will be held at 5:15 pm, as this event is quite popular. Contact Pete Villasenor at (510) 535-5620 to confirm event details.

Celebrate Halloween on Saturday October 31st at 1pm with Spooky Halloween Crafts. Children can make spider decorations and cat masks at this festive and free event.

The Cesar Chavez Branch of the Oakland Public Library is located at 3301 East 12th St. Suite 271

Model Shopping

In Fruitvale, a neighborhood bursting with rich and colorful Latino culture it can be hard to stand out amongst the crowd. Yet the vibrancy of the Fruitvale Transit Village has allowed it to shine amongst the bustling shopping district that surrounds it.

The Fruitvale Transit Village, a mixed-use development located between the Fruitvale BART station and International Boulevard, has become a landmark in the Fruitvale neighborhood. Many claim the unique shopping and living center has been responsible for neighborhood's revitalization.

“A long time ago this area was really bad,” said Program Manager of the Fruitvale Business Improvement District, Maria Sanchez. “Before there was nothing around BART and International Boulevard. Now you don’t feel like you’re in a place that is really bad because you get off BART and there is Fruitvale Transit Village with lots of shops and an officer patrolling. You feel safe.”

Robert Raburn of the East Bay Bicycle Coalition, who has an office in the Fruitvale Transit Village, believes that the Village has worked to draw businesses into the area. “The Fruitvale Transit Village has helped the Fruitvale area. Its smart growth and new development has served as a magnet for other developments.”

Planning and development of the Fruitvale Transit Village began in 1991 when BART revealed that it wanted to build a parking garage next to the station. Members of the Fruitvale community opposed the idea out of concern that it would increase traffic and pollution without adding anything to the area. With the aid of the Fruitvale Unity Council community members and leaders such as Councilman Ignacio De La Fuente, and the BART agency designed The Fruitvale Transit Village Project.

Michael Hunt, aid to Vice Mayor and District 5 Councilman, Ignacio De La Fuente, said that “creation of Fruitvale Transit Village, in conjunction with several community organizations and transportation agencies,” has been one of De La Fuente’s biggest accomplishments while serving the Fruitvale neighborhood. “He’s created something in Oakland that is now being copied in other places. Something that has brought businesses to Fruitvale.”



On any given day one can expect to find the plaza of the Transit Village busy with families, teenagers, and out of area visitors drawn to the many shops the Village and surrounding neighborhood offer.

Within the Fruitvale Transit Village there are multiple eateries, including Powderface Cafe, located directly across from the BART station entrance. Powderface offers New Orleans style beignets, coffee, and smoothies along with a relaxing atmosphere in which to observe the activity of the Fruitvale Transit Village. The delicious aroma of authentic Vietnamese food leaks from Saigon Wraps, a small restaurant that serves banh mi sandwiches along with Vietnamese BBQ and rice plates.

New to the Fruitvale Transit Village is The Plug, a tattoo and piercing shop owned by Muhammed Salem. Despite the current economic recession, Salem states that business is "not bad, not booming but we're doing alright." With multiple people wandering into the shop to look at the t-shirts and body jewelry he also sells it is evident the area provides businesses with plenty of foot traffic. "I used to be in The Mission before here and it's a lot safer here," adds Salem.

Farther along the Fruitvale Transit Village on E12th Street is the Cesar E Chavez Branch of the Oakland Public Library where kids of various ages “hang out a lot,” according to Christina Sanchez, a teenager who was in the library with a few of her friends taking advantage of a reading corner.

There is no denying that The Fruitvale Transit Village has become a center of activity for the surrounding Fruitvale neighborhood. With weekly farmer’s markets and festivals such as the Dia De Los Muertos or Day of the Dead Festival hosted within the village the area serves not only as a shopping center but also as a gathering place for the Fruitvale community.

Exploring Fruitvale

Until recently, I had known of Fruitvale as only a stop along the San Francisco BART line. I was not even aware that it was officially considered a neighborhood of Oakland.

Online research of the area's recent news headlines resulted in several articles on criminal activity. However, it is not all bad news in the Fruitvale neighborhood as seen in the articles and web sites describing community leader’s attempts to revitalize the area with Farmer's markets, cultural festivals, and community programs.

After visiting the Fruitvale district in person, it became clear that it is an area in the midst of a transition. In many ways, the area is two very different neighborhoods in one, a flourishing business district and family centered community during the day and a place troubled with crime and gang activity at night.

Many people whom I spoke with in the Fruitvale neighborhood said that while they felt safe in the area during the day it was a different story at night. "I think this is the best BART area, a lot more shops than compared to the Pleasant Hill area,” said Declan Murthgh, who recently moved to the East Bay from Ireland. However, when I asked Murthgh if he felt safe walking around the area alone he told me "during the day I would. At night time, absolutely not considering what has happened in the last couple months."

Even those familiar with the area echoed a similar sentiment. "International is right when it starts to get shitty. There are a lot of shady looking characters,” said Blaine Bulklew. “I don't like to walk around there at night."




Some, such as AC Transit bus driver Chris Richer, questioned the neighborhood's safety in total. "I come here a bit because of my job as an AC transit driver. I would not on my own but I'm forced to because of my job. I don't think it's safe here."

For the Fruitvale neighborhood, the 2009-year got off to a rough start with the shooting of Oscar Grant by BART police officer Johannes Mehserle at the Fruitvale BART station.


The Oscar Grant shooting appears to still weigh heavily on the mind of many businesses in the neighborhood. Robert Raburn, the Executive Director of the East Bay Bicycle Coalition, whose office is located in the Fruitvale Transit Village, remembered that “right after the shooting the police were scared to come into the neighborhood.”

For new business The Plug, a tattoo and piercing shop that opened early this year in the Fruitvale Transit Village, the Oscar Grant shooting came right before their shop opening. “We were just about to open when that happened, it was pretty intense,” said employee, Thaer Alhafhawi. According to the shop's tattoo artist, Mark Beccia the shop chose to postpone its opening due to the protests happening in the area. “When that happened it actually kind of disturbed me but the lease had been signed,” explained shop owner, Muhammed Salem.

I look forward to covering the Fruitvale area for the remainder of the semester. It should be an interesting year for this neighborhood given the current economic recession and the state’s limited budget.