Michael Drummond/Senior Staff

More than 40,000 Bay Area residents took to Shattuck Avenue on Sunday in celebration of Berkeley’s second Sunday Streets event.

From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Shattuck Avenue closed to cars and welcomed pedestrians and cyclists instead. Between Haste and Rose streets, participants could engage in a variety of activities, including live art and salsa dancing, as well as watch various performance groups.

“It’s about getting people to experience their urban environment in a totally different way and appreciate Berkeley in a new way,” said Sunday Streets Berkeley director Emunah Hauser.

The event is organized by Livable Berkeley, a coalition which strives to make Berkeley a more sustainable place, and a few partner organizations. According to Hauser, more than 150 organizations and activity leaders, including several UC Berkeley clubs and organizations, participated in Sunday Streets.

Sunday Streets drew people not only from Berkeley but from surrounding cities as well.

“It’s a really special feeling to have so much of a main street shut down,” said Oakland resident Tina Marie. “People look at each other differently. You’re taking people in.”

Because the street was closed off, several bus lines scheduled detours and added temporary stops near University Avenue and Oxford Street.

For Berkeley resident Michael Marchant, the absence of cars created a safer environment for his children.

“We look forward to any of these events where they block off streets to cars,” he said. “It makes it easier as a parent if you don’t have to worry about traffic.”

Hauser said this year’s Sunday Streets had a larger focus on transportation outreach than last year’s. Bay Area Bike Share allowed people to test bikes, and goBerkeley, a pilot program aiming to improve transportation in the city, asked for feedback from residents about public amenities.

To focus on physical activity and active transportation, Livable Berkeley does not invite street vendors to set up booths. Instead, many stores along Shattuck set up tables themselves, providing free samples or selling smaller store items.

Belli Osteria, a restaurant which does not normally open on Sundays, set up a pasta-making demonstration. Its co-owner Damien Morrison said Sunday Streets increased the restaurant’s exposure.

While some businesses had lines out the door, others saw a decrease in customers.

“There are plenty of distractions, so probably not as many people want to hang out in the comic book store,” said Mike Courtright, an employee at Fantastic Comics. While Courtright saw some new faces in the store, he saw fewer of his regular customers.

Sunday Streets, however, does not come without cost for the event’s organizers. Hauser estimates the event cost about $65,000 this year.

Although fundraising and private sponsorship cover a large part of this cost, Berkeley City Council pledged in January to provide Sunday Streets about $59,000 to split between 2013 and 2014.

Councilmember Kriss Worthington predicts the council will continue funding the event for subsequent years. Still, he feels the city’s contribution is a little high.

“It’s unfortunate that the other longtime community events don’t get more funding,” Worthington said. “This event gets as much as 20 other city events, so there’s a degree of unfairness.”

But for Councilmember Laurie Capitelli, Sunday Streets is “money well spent.”

“Everything shouldn’t be business,” Capitelli said. “Sometimes we should just celebrate as a community, and that’s important.”

Contact Tahmina Achekzai at tachekzai@dailycal.org.

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Arya Aliabadi/File

Every campus has its own traditions and “signs” that differentiates it from other campuses. Nothing says home like these four #typicalBerkeley behaviors.

1. You don’t follow street lights

Maybe the Beatles could bring crosswalks back into style.

Regardless of whether the light is green or red, students unabashedly walk across the street to get around the city.

2. You have defined calves from walking up hills

Picture of Bancroft Avenue.

Seriously, we could be renamed University of California, Hills. Lugging around our heavy books from a Southside apartment to Evans inevitably leads to us getting some mad calves.

3. You’re back in bed by 10 p.m. because everything is closed

This kid knows how to party.

For a college city, we tend to shut down pretty early. Heading to Shattuck past 10 p.m. will leave you walking around with nothing to do if you’re under 21.

4. You can’t go anywhere without seeing people drink boba

The tapioca balls are a favorite.

The proliferation of boba shops around campus shows just how obsessed we are.

Image Sources: beatles maniac11, tpholland,  davedehetre and punctuated under Creative Commons

Contact Sujin Shin at sujinshin@dailycal.org.

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takingshotsdc/Courtesy

While for some it’s never welcome and for others it’s embraced wholeheartedly, the end of summer vacation is here. It’s time to take out your bucket list and start from the top. Or maybe it’s time to make a bucket list and cross out all the epic things you did, places you saw, people you loved, food you ate and trails you trailblazed to get back to Berkeley. To welcome you back, we at The Daily Clog compiled a list of things to say goodbye to and a few to say hello to.

Contact Josh Escobar at jescobar@dailycal.org.

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At 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, BPD received a call from a community member who had become concerned after trying to engage with the man. After BPD performed a welfare check, paramedics from Berkeley Fire Department pronounced him dead at the scene.

Afterward, the Alameda County Coroner’s Office picked up the body for identification. Because there were no signs of foul play, the man’s death is not being investigated as suspicious, and BPD has closed the case.

Contact Elise Aliotti at ealiotti@dailycal.org

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David Shapiro/Courtesy

“Find Your Inner Pizza” — This is something every diner in Berkeley has attempted at some point in time, whether you are trekking to either pole for Zachary’s deep dish or strolling into the Gourmet Ghetto for a few slices from the Cheese Board Collective. No matter how far pizza fanatics have gone to look for find pizza nirvana, those four words are emblazoned on the sign of BUILD Pizzeria Roma, the newest addition to Berkeley’s pizza landscape. Opening on Tuesday, BUILD aims to offer something different from usual college pizza fare — a place where customers have the opportunity to create traditional, customizable Italian-style pizzas.

After being seated, diners are presented with both a menu and a ticket. This golden ticket is the key to your inner pizza. When your design specifications are ready, you take the ticket up to the “Building Department,” where you are faced with a myriad of fresh sauces and seasonal ingredients, many of which are organic or local when possible. From here, you get to, yes, build your own pizza. I built two, one with smoked mozzarella, mushrooms, roasted garlic and anchovies on red sauce and the other with olives, onions, pulled mozzarella and pancetta also with red sauce.

While the pizzas baked in a stone, wood-burning oven, chef Clara Yun fixed a custom salad with cucumbers, beets, pickled onions and olives finished with house vinaigrette. BUILD offers some standard pizza and salad options as well, such as Mediterranean-style pizza or Caesar salad.

In almost no time, the pizzas were finished cooking and delivered to the table steaming, thin-crusted with a nice snap and crunch, tasting subtly charred in a way that can only be achieved in a wood-burning oven. The pizza was quite delicious, with no ingredient overpowering another, allowing for your personal creativity to shine through.

For patrons who are of age, BUILD has a full bar with wines, craft beers on tap and an array of original cocktails conceived by consulting mixologist Scott Beattie. The bar also has a full cocktail menu inspired by Italian tapas.

Owners Lisa Holt and David Shapiro also hope to use the restaurant to expand charitable efforts through the BUILD Pizzeria Foundation. The foundation will focus on environmental and planetary causes, local and community-based areas of concern and organizations that assist in the empowerment of women.

When it comes to pizza, though, “it’s all about choice and your own individuality,” Holt says. And come Tuesday, diners will get to make that choice, but it’s not a difficult one. BUILD Pizzeria Roma’s pizza stands apart from its competitors on Shattuck and deserves a build or two.

BUILD Pizzeria Roma is located at 2286 Shattuck Ave.

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Following the failure of Berkeley’s sit-lie measure, the City Council will consider establishing a committee to address ongoing problems of homelessness in the city. In light of Jesse Arreguin’s proposal for his Compassionate Sidewalks Plan, homeless residents and a business owner discuss transience and the city.

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The victim has been identified as 32-year-old Berkeley resident Stephan Jarjisian, according to the Alameda County Coroner’s Office.

Officials from Berkeley Fire Department and Berkeley Police Department were dispatched to the scene around 3:10 p.m., according to a BPD press release. After being taken to Highland Hospital by paramedics, Jarjisian was pronounced dead around 3:55 p.m.

The BPD Fatal Accident Investigation Team closed the road later that evening to further investigate the cause of the accident.

“Obviously, in every death investigation, we want to make sure that we look at every detail of the investigation,” said BPD Public Information Officer Jennifer Coats. “We want to be as thorough as possible for any investigation but especially when it involves a death.”

The coroner’s office said the victim’s family has been notified.

The driver of the SUV cooperated during the investigation at the scene with police, and officials say they do not suspect any drugs or alcohol were involved in the accident.

“The officers did speak to some witnesses at the scene, but if there are any more out there, we ask that they please call us,” Coats said.

Police ask witnesses of the incident to call the Traffic Bureau at 510-981-5980 or the nonemergency police number at 510-981-5900.

Contact Gladys Rosario at grosario@dailycal.org.

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Spirit Halloween opened in September at 2295 Shattuck Ave. and offers an assortment of costumes and props for children and adults.

Store employee Theo Rogers said business has been great, as the location in Downtown Berkeley has brought in a lot of foot traffic.

“Since we’re located on Shattuck, we get a lot of walk-ins,” he said. “Since this is so close to the school, this place is a pretty good location for business.”

Assistant store manager Delores Evans said the Spirit store is unrelated to the costume store Halloween City that was at 2190 Shattuck Ave. last year — the location now occupied by Walgreens.

Rogers said Spirit Halloween is owned by Spencer Gifts while the other store is owned by Party City. It is common for Halloween stores to change locations from year to year depending on where and when companies are able to get leases for abandoned buildings, he said.

“The location that this store is in right now is probably going to be different next year,” Rogers said. “I already saw a few people coming in and scoping out the place to have their own business put in here.”

Berkeley City College student Sher Her said the location of the store does not matter and that he will still patronize stores like Spirit Halloween as long they are in easy places to access.

“It’s the only costume store around here, so it’s pretty convenient,” he said. “As long as it’s still around here … it doesn’t really bother me.”

Contact Andy Nguyen at anguyen@dailycal.org.

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Katherine Chen/Staff

Berkeley community members took to the streets Sunday for an event that closed off 17 blocks of Shattuck Avenue for pedestrian and bicyclist usage.

Thousands of citizens attended Sunday Streets Berkeley — an event that emphasizes open space and community engagement — to explore the streets and businesses on Shattuck.

“There are no vendors,” said Livable Berkeley Executive Director Erin Rhoades, the main organizer of the event. “It’s not a street festival … the streets are open for the community and local organizations to participate. At the heart of it, it’s really about physical activity, and biking and walking more than you (normally) would in your city.”

The event was modeled after the similarly-themed Sunday Streets San Francisco, now in its fifth year. Both were inspired by the Open Streets movement, which encourages bicycle and pedestrian traffic and community use of public space.

The event — which spanned between Rose and Haste streets — was organized by Livable Berkeley in collaboration with community organizations and the city. The Ecology Center and the East Bay Bicycle Coalition were also sponsors of the event.

Councilmember Jesse Arreguin, whose district encompasses the main area taken over by Sunday Streets, said there were negotiations with neighbors and business owners about shutting down traffic on Shattuck. For the event, bus service in the Downtown area was rerouted.

“At first there was a general concern about closing most of Shattuck Avenue,” Arreguin said. “But I think part of what was done is explaining to these businesses the exciting plans for this event and how successful it has been in other cities.”

Brazil Cafe owner Pedro Robin placed tables on the street and opened his restaurant’s doors for the event, though the store usually remains closed on Sundays.

“I love the whole community, the music,” Robin said. “I hope there’s one (Sunday Streets) per month.”

Sunday Streets is just one in a series of Berkeley events that fills the streets with pedestrians at points throughout the year. The Solano Stroll took over 26 blocks in Albany and Berkeley in early September, and LastSundaysFest last closed off Telegraph Avenue in August.

“The wonderful thing about Sunday Streets versus street fairs is that it’s all about the existing merchants coming out onto sidewalks and being engaged with the communities,” said John Caner, CEO of the Downtown Berkeley Association.

Livable Berkeley and other organizers are already discussing the next steps for the Sunday Streets Berkeley movement, including when it will come to the city next.

“Hopefully this is just the beginning,” said Joe DiStefano, vice chair of the Livable Berkeley Board of Directors. “The most common question I’ve gotten is, ‘Is this going to happen again?’”

Contact Libby Rainey at lrainey@dailycal.org.

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Carli Baker/Staff

The Walgreens in the Downtown Berkeley area has relocated directly across the street in an effort to utilize new amenities, better serve residents and be more expansive.

Upon entering the new store, customers are greeted by a fresh produce section, a kiosk to serve fresh-brewed coffee and a pharmacy section complete with an open waiting area.

Store manager Olufemi Oyemakinde said the additional space of the new store — located at 2190 Shattuck Ave. and Allston Way — allows for the expression of the pharmacy chain’s motto, which is to live well, be well and stay well.

According to Walgreens media relations specialist Robert Elfinger, the new space is 16,892 square feet — a nearly 5,000 square-foot addition compared to the old store.

According to Oyemakinde, the old store closed on Friday, and the new store opened its doors to the public Monday after taking only two weeks to be put together.

“It’s amazing,” Oyemakinde said. “Just today itself, I think probably 75 percent of our produce has been depleted by people who have been coming in. The store is doing well, and I am excited for its future.”

Walgreens now includes a college and apartment living section, offering items such as towels, cooking appliances and utensils.

One of the more significant additions to the store is a fresh produce section of fruits and vegetables as well as other fresh foods like sushi and chicken salads.

According to John Caner, CEO of the Downtown Berkeley Association, the produce section is significant because it is a much closer option for residents in the Downtown Berkeley area to buy fresh produce.

Caner added that the new location will positively improve the Downtown Berkeley area because it is right in the “cultural hub” of the area, since it is located next to the Downtown Berkeley BART station.

Elfinger said the store relocated directly across the street on Shattuck Avenue to evade the busier traffic patterns that were present on the side of the street where the old store was located. Moving to the other side of the street allows for easier access to the new location, he said.

According to Elfinger, the opening of the new Walgreens store has been planned for several years, and the decision to move was not influenced by its rivalry with CVS Pharmacy, which has a store location on Shattuck and Durant avenues near the new Walgreens store.

“We will effect a positive change by providing Downtown the options of various healthy foods,” Oyemakinde said. “There are not many places that offer what we have.”

Contact Pooja Mhatre at pmhatre@dailycal.org.

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