Grand Avenue Merchant News – January 2022by Ken Katz – If you were passing the Grand Lake Theatre during daylight hours early in December, you may have been a bit perplexed by the marquee, which listed nothing but movies that were hot stuff back in 1987. On the other hand, if you were anywhere in the commercial district on the evening of December 9, you were probably thinking, “What the ___ is going on?” — especially if you were behind the wheel of a car stuck in traffic. Speaking of cars, four classic 1980s models were parked in front of the Bank of America on Lake Park which was blocked off entirely. Three more, less luxurious 1980s models were parked on Grand, which was barricaded from MacArthur to Elwood. The source of all that excitement was… CONTINUE READING
Lakeshore BID – January 2022 Highlights
by Kira Pascoe – Lakeshore is ushering in 2023 with a lot to celebrate! There are new classes, cuisines, fashion, and more. Rico Rico Taco was featured on Check Please (and is expanding)! Proposition Chicken and Rico Rico Taco are partnering to give back to the community. Many merchants had a celebratory New Year and supported the Third Annual Lakeshore Stroll. Read all about it! Welcome, 2023! New Year’s Eve was both celebratory and eventful on Lakeshore. We welcomed the new year with elegant dinners, delicious drinks, toasts to the new year, and overall giddiness at many businesses. However, it also was the day of the hardest rain, with an “atmospheric river” ushering us into 2023. Unfortunately, some businesses like The Cat House Bar and others were flooded and had… CONTINUE READING
I’m retiring. Will Artificial Intelligence Replace Me?
by Ken Katz – Several times in the recent past, I’ve announced that I want to turn over management of the Splash Pad News once we celebrate the park’s 20th Anniversary in October 2023. So far, no one has stepped up to the plate, and I’m worried that a publication that subscribers look forward to every month will be lost. A couple of weeks ago, when my older son, Adam, came home and sat down at my computer to demonstrate the marvels of the newly public OpenAI (artificial intelligence) website, I began to think, maybe this could turn out to be a viable alternative. The following “experiments” were an unscientific test of that hypothesis. Since Adam’s been helping me sell a large cache of vintage postcards online, the prompt he used on Open AI’s chatbot, ChatGPT, asked for a limerick … CONTINUE READING
Farmers Market Updates – January 2022
by Dan Foster – Market Participant Spotlight
Bangin’ Ass Barbecue – Just a woman and her grill trying to bring a little of St Louis to the Bay. We want every bite to take you to a happy place. Our food is simple but delicious.
Dooryard Provisions – Dooryard Provisions is a small batch local packaged food business focusing on seasonal and hand foraged foods. Choose between local seaweeds, herbal tisanes, healing spice blends and provisions for your journey or everyday. Dooryard Provisions is made from all organic ingredients and focuses on using seasonal, foraged and gleaned foods as well as uses local farmers from throughout Sonoma and Marin counties.
Latisha Baker – Latisha Baker Artworks is a creative handmade arts studio based in Oakland. We create our collection using the primary medium pyrography or wood-burning. CONTINUE READING
December 2022 Calendar
by Sheila McCormick – This month’s top picks:
January 6: Nudibranch “Boomtown” in Lake Merritt
January 19: Stagebridge: The Art of Storytelling for Those Over 50
January 26: Mayor Sheng Thao
For the full month’s calendar, please click on this link.
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