The Turkeys Have Returned, So It Must Be Fall! The Piedmont Perspective, Vol 66, September 4, 2008

What’s New?

Ahhhh! (That’s the sound of me rested and revived!) I hope you had a wonderful and restorative Labor Day as well. Now that the last of the summer holidays are behind us and the turkey sightings are upon us (Have you seen the big male strutting his stuff on LaSalle Avenue?) we have officially entered the “fall season” in Real Estate terms. (Your calendar will record it as September 21, but we’re talking real estate time here!)

What does that mean for you?

Expect a flurry of new listings to hit the market before the Thanksgiving holidays.

Let’s begin with my new listing at 6217 Westwood Way in Montclair- open this Sunday from 1-4:30. Light, bright and airy, this sleek and sophisticated mid-century modern offers an open floor plan featuring 4bdrms/2.5 bths, inviting family room with adjacent courtyard patio, floor to ceiling windows, updated kitchen and bathrooms, magical front garden entry with level lawn and large fenced back yard. Close to the village and Montclair schools! Price: $789,000. www.6217westwood.com

“It sounds perfect, but I’m looking in Berkeley.”

Look no further than Matt Heafey’s newest listing at 1033 Middlefield Road. This 3bdrm/2.5bth Park Hills mid-century features an open living room with fireplace, dining room with canyon views, eat-in kitchen with cool checkered floor and downstairs bonus/game/exercise room with half bath. It also offers an inviting front garden with level lawn and two-car garage. Price: $749,000. Open Sunday 2-4:30. www.grubbco.com

Tricia Swift’s 2bdrm/1bth listing at 102 Oakmont Avenue is a “little gem” and it is also currently the most affordable home in Piedmont! Now that the tenants have moved out and new staging has moved in, this nifty home is worth revisiting and reconsidering! Price: $745,000. Open this Sunday 2-4:30! www.grubbco.com

What’s Coming?

A “contractor’s dream” on Highland Avenue for a very affordable price, a stunning and magnificent 5-bedroom traditional in a much-coveted location, a French Chateau near Hampton Field, a circa 1938 home with charm and space in St. James Woods, and the Jesse Wetmore 1878 Folk Victorian, adjacent to City Hall – the only nationally registered home in Piedmont!

Have I wet your whistle?

Terrific. Now give me a shout back and I’ll fill you in!

What’s Pending?

Several Piedmont homes went pending during the month of August, including 77 Oakmont Avenue, 54 Lake Avenue, 18 Blair Avenue, 125 York Drive, 300 Wildwood, 211 Lafayette Avenue and 25 Sea View Avenue!

Many of them attracted more than one offer!

What’s Happening?

The Piedmont Appreciating Diversity Committee (PADC) and the PHS/MHS Wellness Center have invited Brian Copeland, star of the award winning show Not a Genuine Black Man, to perform in Piedmont this Sunday! KGO talk show host and comedienne Brian Copeland will perform at the Alan Harvey Theater at 800 Magnolia Avenue in Piedmont on Sunday, September 7 at 3:00 PM. Please join your community and feel free to invite your friends for a funny and thought- provoking afternoon. For more information about the show please go to: http://www.briancopeland.com.

This event is a joint fundraiser for PADC and the PHS/MHS Wellness Center and is appropriate for middle school children and older.

PADC promotes global awareness, inclusiveness and an appreciation of differences by providing grants to teachers and supporting diversity programming for all students in the Piedmont Unified School District.

The Wellness Center — now just a year old — provides services to promote emotional, physical and social well being for Piedmont and Millenium High School students.

BUY YOUR TICKETS NOW AT: https://enrollment.piedmont.k12.ca.us/BrianCopeland/

What’s Fun!

On the subject of diversity, my friend and I met last week to see the documentary – A Man Named Pearl; the tale of a southern black man, discouraged from buying in an “all white” neighborhood, due to community prejudice. Rejected because the neighbors were concerned that “he wouldn’t keep up his yard,” Pearl has spent the last 25 years proving them wrong.

“Everyone comes up against obstacles,”Pearl says. “The important thing is that you don’t let those obstacles define you.”

His 3-acre garden, largely comprised of “throw away” plants by the town’s professional nursery, could rival any at the Palace of Versaille and is now visited by tour buses from far and wide! This touching story told through the gravity-defying shapes Pearl has created with NO formal training and little more than his imagination and a pair of electric hedge clippers will absolutely mesmerize you (even if you don’t like to garden).

Pearl has created living sculpture from boxwood, juniper and anything else he can shape, train, curve and cut. En masse, the garden creates a sea of stunning shapes and sizes. Geometry in motion. His yard isn’t just one man’s hobby; it’s a life lesson in passion and what commitment to a goal can accomplish. This film is a must see!

You will never look at your garden the same way again.A Man Named Pearl is playing at the Elmwood Theatre on College Avenue.

The Piedmont Plug!

Deidre and Michael Coen invite you to join them for a potluck gathering for PRAISE – Piedmonters for Resources Advocacy and Information in Special Educationon o September 9, at 6:30PM at their home in Piedmont – 107 Pacific Avenue. RSVP to Deidre Coen at coenco@earthlink.net.

Deidre has been at the helm of this important support and educational group for the past few years and does an unbelievable job of booking speakers and organizing events for PRAISE meetings. PRAISE seeks to support families and parents of kids with learning disabilities and special needs.

If you haven’t yet discovered PRAISE and you have a child who is developmentally, socially or academically challenged, PRAISE welcomes your membership.

PRAISE meets next on October 28 from 7:30-9:00 PM . The topic will be “homework strategies.”

See you next week!

THANKS FOR READING!

For more information about any of the properties or events listed above, please call me at (510) 339-0400 x264, or simply respond to this email. I’d love to share my real estate tips and my experience in the Piedmont community with you!

Feel free to visit my website at JulieGardner.com for more information as well.