The Burlingame Voice

Art off the Avenue

Public art is alive and well in burlingame today. Local artist and business owner,Nancy Call Torres and her class from Art Attack! Studios have been working on a mural on the wall next to the tot lot on Primrose Avenue. According to Torres, who designed and directed the painting of the mural, the group hopes to be have the mural completed on Friday. In fact a dedication of the mural is scheduled for Friday at 2pm. Come on by and congratulate Nancy and her students.

   

Glorious

There isn't much to say beyond this profile of Morning Glory epitomizes "Gems of B'game"

Morning Glory Boutique recently reached a defining milestone.

This month marks the 38th anniversary of the store's opening. The sisters who run the boutique say this makes the business the oldest on Burlingame Avenue in terms of continuous ownership.

For nearly four decades, the store has been owned by Maureen "Moe" Munroe, 57, and Paulette Beto, 56, both of San Mateo. They started the shop at 1436 Burlingame Ave. with a loan from their father in the summer of 1972, just after Beto graduated from Burlingame High School.

The sisters have developed a store with a contemporary look, a distinctive style and an emphasis on customer service, Munroe said.

Brian McDonnell--where have you been hiding?  There are dozens of stories like this that will prevent the Mercury Times from losing it's roots in B'game.

Lionizing Dan

The Mercury Times' Carol Livengood is reporting on the Citizen of the Year--Dan Anderson

The Burlingame Lions Club honored Dan Andersen, one of its past presidents and very active members, as "Citizen of the Year 2010" at the annual Burlingame Lions, Rotary and Soroptimist Joint Services Luncheon. Established in 1930, the award is given to individuals who have made a difference within the community by contributing their time and effort for the betterment of the city.

For more than 20 years, Andersen has been active in efforts to improve the Burlingame community, help protect neighborhoods, and help those in need. A Lion since 2003, Andersen is currently District 4-C4 zone chairman, and will became the Peninsula Council of Lions secretary July 1.

Andersen founded the "Don't Zap Us" program that defeated Pacific Gas & Electric's plan to place power lines down the middle of Trousdale Drive, one of the city's main thoroughfares. He also conducted forums on "How to Make Burlingame Even Better," emphasizing smart growth and transit-oriented living.

Congrats Dan!  Keep up the good work.

Pez Lawsuit Settled

The San Mateo County Times is reporting the barest of details on a recently settled lawsuit

A judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed against the Burlingame Pez Museum by the makers of the iconic candy dispensers. The case was dropped after the sparring parties agreed to a settlement. One point of contention was a 7-foot 10-inch dispenser. It was certified by Guinness World Records as the world's largest dispenser in 2007. Pez Candy Inc. claimed in the suit that it did not authorize the giant replica and demanded its destruction.

Here's hoping the Pez Museum can continue sweetening up California Dr.

Remembering Mr. Welch

I missed this obituary last week in the Times so thank you to the blogger who brought it to my attention

Robert Marvin Welch Aug. 12, 1936 - Mar. 28, 2010

Resident of Burlingame Robert Marvin Welch died peacefully at home surrounded by his family on March 28, after a 12-year courageous battle with multiple myeloma cancer. Bob was born in Dawson, MN, August 12, 1936 to Marvin and Leona Welch. Bob attended Dawson schools and was active in Boy Scouts, church activities, and athletics. He attended Augsburg College on athletic scholarship. Bob served as team captain in football both his junior and senior years, and was a Little All-American candidate. Bob married Martha Mattson in 1956 and they had two daughters, Robertta and Pamella.

Bob enjoyed a successful and rewarding 38-year career in education as a teacher, coach, and administrator. Bob first taught in Round Lake, MN before moving to CA in 1960 where he taught in Burlingame. He spent 35 years at Hoover School, Franklin School, and Burlingame Intermediate School (BIS). Under Bob's leadership as Principal of BIS, the school was recognized as one of the first Distinguished Schools in CA. BIS was selected by the National Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development as one of 25 schools in the nation to develop plans to become a model middle school. Bob served on the original state committee that wrote "Caught in the Middle," a blue print for change in the middle school level. Under his leadership, BIS served as a mentor for schools up and down the state.

In 2007, Bob received the "Wall of Fame" recognition from the Burlingame School District for outstanding service to the children and community of Burlingame. In 1995, Bob retired from the Burlingame School District and took a position as Principal of Middle School at Hong Kong International School. He served in this position until soon after he was diagnosed with cancer. Bob and Martha returned to their Burlingame home in July of 1998. They continued to enjoy their love of travel, their involvement with Hope Lutheran Church (San Mateo), and avid support of their grandchildren's activities.

So if you have gazed at the banners in the BIS auditorium and wondered how the Distinguished School effort happened, you now have the rest of the story.

Best of 2009....what category?

As 2009 stumbles to a close, let's consider the trite but true "best of" selections for Burlingame.  I have a few and you should feel free to add more:

Best fine dining restaurant:  Rocca

Best grocery store:  Mollie's

Best elementary school fundraiser:  Washington Dad's Club wine auction

Best lunch:  Bonne Sante, but Sam's does the job just fine

Best baby clothing store on Burlingame Ave:  who cares?

Best hike/bike:  the Bayfront edges out Mills Canyon by a view

Best architect:  TRG Associates

Best new building:  it looks like Walgreen's will turn out OK after all

Best Chinese food:  Hot Wok, just over the border in San Mateo, but so close they win

Can't wait to hear your selections.

Coyote Point museum revived

The S.F. Examiner has an article describing the revival of the nature museum on Coyote Point.  Reporter Andrea Koskey writes

In 2006, visits to the environmental museum in Coyote Point Park plummeted to 78,000 per year from its peak of 110,000 in 2000, said Abi Karlin-Resnick, the museum’s director of advancement.

One significant factor that contributed to the decrease, she said, was that the museum’s only exhibit — a text-based collection explaining different California habitats — had not changed in 20 years.

20 years is a long time for one exhibit so the new executive director, Rachel Meyer, took the approach that

To pull the floundering museum out of trouble, Meyer introduced interactive exhibits, rather than just the one permanent display where visitors could read about environmental change. In addition to science-based exhibits, the museum also houses live animals — including an African hedgehog and a California newt — that can be viewed up close, along with 1.3 acres of botanical gardens.

Fund-raising and attendance are growing again.  I'll designate it a Gem of Burlingame even though it's in San Mateo!

20 Year Honor

On Monday, November 16th at 7:00 p.m. the City Council will be honoring five time Mayor Rosalie O'Mahony in Council Chambers for her twenty years of dedicated service to this community.

The public is invited.  There will be presentations on a Children's Bill of Rights and an update on High-speed rail followed by the honorary proclamation for Rosalie.  After a 10 minute recess, the Council will continue with its agenda including considering the BevMo! application on the Avenue, Park and Rec fees, Rec Center seismic study update and a financial report on Q1.

Another History Lesson

KALW 91.7, a local affiliate of National Public Radio, recently featured a segment on The Source with our very own Joanne Garrison titled How the City of Burlingame Got Its Name. To hear the piece, go to

www.crosscurrentsradio.org and then enter "Burlingame" in the search box in the upper right corner.

One thing the radio station did is compare the size of the Howard's rancho (6,500 acres) to Golden Gate Park (1,000 acres).  That's fun to think about!

Copies of the book "Burlingame Centennial 1908-2008" full of such fun stories are still available for purchase at locations listed on the Burlingame Historical Society's website at

www.burlingamehistorical.org or by writing the author directly at MsJGarrison@aol.com.

History for Sale

Many Burlingame residents know that there is no official historic property list for our city.  The Burlingame train station is a listed historic property, but that's the only one in town.  This is due to the reluctance of all past city councils to vote for any of the draft lists that have been compiled.  Nonetheless, there are properties in town that have rich histories.

I recently noticed one that is for sale.  The long-time residence of Colonel Ernest Norberg has gone on the market and the brochure available in front hints at the Colonel's contribution to B'game.  Here are some more high points from his 1979 obituary.

After surviving the '06 quake, the Colonel moved to Burlingame with his family.  His father was a carpenter who built many homes in B'game.  Norberg attended Berkeley, fought in WW I and established an architectural practice in S.F. and later in B'game.

He designed the Levy Bros. building on the Avenue, the Howard Ave. Elementary School (now Washingtone School), San Mateo High School, the Casa Baywood apartments and Hacienda Garden Apartments (in San Carlos) and the Christian Science Church (in San Mateo).  He was a 20 year B'game planning commissioner, Rotarian, Legionaire, Elk, and AIA member.  The only think not mentioned is whether he designed his own house.  It can be yours for about $1.8 million.