BERKELEY — Blame it on the pandemic or rising inflation costs, but whatever the cause, Bay Area animal shelters are in crisis.

And all across the region, people like the workers at LJ Kruse Plumbing in Berkeley are helping.

Every Thursday morning, Marie McLean, who works at the century-old plumbing company, walks a few blocks to the Berkeley Humane Society animal shelter.

“It’s a joy for everyone in the office,” said McLean, who has worked at the plumbing company for 15 years. “We love the dogs. You feed a dog, you take him for a walk, you play with him for a bit and then you take a break and he is standing at the gate crying for you. That is amazing.”

Berkeley Humane has been working with Kruse for some time. That day, McLean picked up a year-old terroir mix named Hugo who was found abandoned in Oakland.

The good-natured puppy spends a few hours in the plumbing company's offices and wins the hearts of everyone who works there.

“The hope is that this dog finds a loving home,” McLean told KPIX.

Will Kruse is vice president and service manager. He loves having dogs like Hugo in the office.

“We care about animals and animal reuse here,” Kruse said. “Berkeley Humane is just a few blocks away, so it’s a natural partnership.”

In the last decade. Kruse says some of his employees and even customers have adopted dogs that they brought into the office.

This is special because Will grew up on the streets and actually volunteered at Berkeley Humane as a child.

“It means a lot to me as an adult and business owner to give back to the community I grew up in,” Kruse said.

Kruse Plumbing is currently running a donation program. Every $3 of every service call is donated to Berkeley Humane.

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Justin Andrews

Justin Andrews joined the KPIX 5 news team in May 2021. You can follow his reports on the morning and midday newscasts.

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This storied San Francisco home might be half finished, but it’s certainly full of history.

Members of the Pacific Palisades community will likely know the architectural significance of this particular Tudor Gothic Revival mansion. For the unsed, here’s the skinny: The landmark Tobin House in the Bay Area was built in 1915 for Michael H. de Young, a journalist and the founder of the San Francisco Chronicle. Now, the last remnant of his medieval-looking estate has just been listed for $13.85 million.

More than a century ago, de Young commissioned architect Willis Polk to construct the stately California property. It was initially designed to be two adjacent homes, one for each of his daughters. The current residence was meant to be built alongside a twin house that was connected via an archway, but the right side was never completed. No one knows for sure what caused Polk to stop halfway through, although local folklore suggests de Young’s daughter Helen wanted to remain in her own estate.

Inside the historic Tobin House.

Jacob Elliott for Sotheby’s International Realty

“Anyone who has been in this part of San Francisco for a long time has noticed this home’s beauty,” listing agent Stacey Caen of Sotheby’s International Realty told the Wall Street Journal. “The incomplete arch makes people wonder what could have been.”

The sellers, husband-and-wife duo Anthony and Celeste Meier, bought the Tobin House in 2004 for roughly $6.5 million and carried out nearly $5 million worth of renovations. Currently, the couple runs an art gallery on the first floor. “As a stand-alone, it’s a beautiful piece of sculpture,” Anthony said.

The Bay Area residence was built in 1915 by architect Willis Polk.

Jacob Elliott for Sotheby’s International Realty

The 8,990-square-foot home has five bedrooms and five bathrooms spread across its four stories. While the exterior comes off as foreboding thanks to its gray concrete plaster facade and copper chimney stacks, the inside tells a much brighter story. There are diamond-patterned lead windows that let in ample amounts of natural light in the living room. In addition, the third-floor sitting area features a vaulted ceiling with a skylight. The modern floor plan also includes a wine room, a gym, a gourmet chef’s kitchen, a walkout terrace and a large library.

If you’re wondering why the couple has chosen to part ways with the historic property, it’s because, like many empty nesters, they’ve decided to downsize. Their loss could be your gain.

Click here to see all photos of The Tobin House.

Jacob Elliott for Sotheby’s International Realty

The post A Century-Outdated Gothic Mansion in San Francisco Lists for $13.9 Million – Robb Report appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

BERKELEY — Blame it on the pandemic or the rising cost of inflation, but whatever the cause Bay Area animal shelters are in crisis.

And across the region, people are stepping up to help like the workers at LJ Kruse Plumbing in Berkeley.

Every Thursday morning, Marie McLean, who works at the century old-plumbing company, walks a few blocks to the Berkeley Humane Society shelter.

It’s a joy to everyone in the office,” said McLean, who has worked at the plumbing company for 15 years. “We love the dogs. You feed a dog, you walk a dog, you play with it a little bit and then you go on a break and it’s at the gate crying for you. That’s amazing.”

Berkeley Humane has been in partnership with Kruse for a while. On this day, McLean picked up a 1-year-old terroir mix named Hugo, who was found abandoned in Oakland.

The sweet-natured pup spends a few hours in the plumbing company offices, winning over the hearts of all who work there.

“The hope is that this dog will find a loving home,” McLean told KPIX.

Will Kruse is the vice president and service manager. He loves having dogs like Hugo in the office.

“We care about animals and recusing animals here,” said Kruse. “Berkeley Humane is just a couple blocks away so it’s a natural partnership”

Over the last decade. Kruse says some of his workers and even customers have adopted dogs that they’ve brought into the office.

This is special because Will grew up down the street and actually volunteered at Berkeley Humane when he was a kid.

“Means a lot for me as an adult and business owner to give back to the community that I grew up in,” said Kruse.

Kruse Plumbing has a donation program going right now. Every $3 of every service call will be donated to Berkeley Humane.

Justin Andrews

Justin Andrews joined the KPIX 5 news team in May 2021. You can catch his reports on the morning and noon newscasts.

The post Century-old Berkeley plumbing firm helps discover pets a ceaselessly house appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

BERKELEY — Blame it on the pandemic or the rising cost of inflation, but whatever the cause Bay Area animal shelters are in crisis.

And across the region, people are stepping up to help like the workers at LJ Kruse Plumbing in Berkeley.

Every Thursday morning, Marie McLean, who works at the century old-plumbing company, walks a few blocks to the Berkeley Humane Society shelter.

It’s a joy to everyone in the office,” said McLean, who has worked at the plumbing company for 15 years. “We love the dogs. You feed a dog, you walk a dog, you play with it a little bit and then you go on a break and it’s at the gate crying for you. That’s amazing.”

Berkeley Humane has been in partnership with Kruse for a while. On this day, McLean picked up a 1-year-old terroir mix named Hugo, who was found abandoned in Oakland.

The sweet-natured pup spends a few hours in the plumbing company offices, winning over the hearts of all who work there.

“The hope is that this dog will find a loving home,” McLean told KPIX.

Will Kruse is the vice president and service manager. He loves having dogs like Hugo in the office.

“We care about animals and recusing animals here,” said Kruse. “Berkeley Humane is just a couple blocks away so it’s a natural partnership”

Over the last decade. Kruse says some of his workers and even customers have adopted dogs that they’ve brought into the office.

This is special because Will grew up down the street and actually volunteered at Berkeley Humane when he was a kid.

“Means a lot for me as an adult and business owner to give back to the community that I grew up in,” said Kruse.

Kruse Plumbing has a donation program going right now. Every $3 of every service call will be donated to Berkeley Humane.

Justin Andrews

Justin Andrews joined the KPIX 5 news team in May 2021. You can catch his reports on the morning and noon newscasts.

The post Century-old Berkeley plumbing firm helps discover pets a ceaselessly residence appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

Most mornings at Polk Manor, I woke up to the sound of seagulls. Or car break-ins. Or nothing at all. Living in a single room in the Tenderloin is actually much quieter than you might think. For about three years I lived alone in a centuries-old 8-by-10 hotel room above a radical feminist bookstore, a cluttered storefront selling sequined negligees, and a massage parlor called Healing Winds that never appeared to be open. If I didn’t, I would probably be a completely different person.

Single occupancy or SROs are perhaps the last vestige of affordable housing in San Francisco. They are converted hotel rooms with shared bathrooms and a shared kitchen area (if you are lucky enough) and typically serve low-income residents. They house about 30,000 residents in the city, and most of the units are in the Tenderloin, although some are still in the Chinatown and North Beach areas. Once ubiquitous in the 1970s, the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency nearly wiped them out. Their efforts to “clear slums” and “remove rot” deprived low-income residents of their stable housing and contributed directly to the city’s ongoing homelessness crisis.

Even though my rent, including utilities, was $ 850 a month, I knew why most people didn’t choose to live in a hotel. Whenever I mentioned the shared bathroom situation, they could hardly contain their disgust. “I’m sorry, but I could never live like this,” said my colleague, who slept in a dining room with a sheet partition.

I didn’t care what people said, I loved my apartment and my neighborhood – living there felt special. My room had high ceilings, an old ornate fireplace, and an out of place sink next to my bed. I didn’t have a kitchen, but I definitely had a hotplate that set off the fire alarm. I draped my coat with philodendrons and stuffed empty corners with thrifty odds and ends, records and books. The hotel was also ravaged, according to building manager Rick, who served in the Vietnam War and still wore army suits. Other renters said they saw ghosts but I never did.

From my window you could see the crumbling water mural of the O’Farrell Theater and the glow of cheap pubs luring passers-by. On Friday and Saturday nights I drank whiskey and PBR in the Edinburgh Castle Pub; The next morning I would feed my hangover with diluted coffee and an omelette from Moulin’s, a Dutch takeout home run by an elderly Korean couple. After that, I’d rummage through the shelves at Goodwill on Geary and Larkin and walk with my arms full. To this day I am convinced that it was heaven on earth.

Although I lived alone, I never really felt lonely at Polk Manor. The building was inhabited by a diverse group of tenants: they were all older artists, veterans, and weird local furnishings, the kind of people who clung to the edge. Except for David, the baker from Costa Rica, and Daniel, the barber, all of them must have had some form of social security. They probably found it strange that a 22 year old should move into Unit 405, but they still treated me with kindness, curiosity, and respect.

One of the first tenants I met was the old woman who wore her Sunday clothes every day. When I introduced myself in the elevator and told her my name, she said, “Oh, that’s sexy, it sounds like a mermaid!” And gave me a big kiss on the cheek. She was friends with another tenant, a six-foot-tall woman with a speech impairment, who brought the parcels to everyone’s front door. I could always spot her on Eddy Street because she was wearing a miniature backpack with a bright pink pompom on it. Then there was the older painter across from me, the one with the tortoiseshell kitten that always ran into the hallway.

While I eventually forgot all names over the years, I will always remember Gabriel. He occupied the unit next to mine, and it was so small and dark that it must once have been a closet. He was a hulking Native American who wore a Harley-Davidson and had rough, knotted hands from construction. Like many other seniors there, he did not speak to his family – it was always dark in our neighborhood during the holidays.

Polk Manor, 743 Polk St., San Francisco

Ariana Bindman

One day I found Gabriel crying in the hallway. I asked him if he was okay and he was sitting cross-legged on the floor of my room. He took out a photo of his daughter and told me how much he missed her and how much he wanted to get to know his grandchildren. After listening to me, he gave me an eagle feather, an abalone clam, and a bundle of sage, all of which I still have. Then he started asking me for money so he could buy medicine.

He could be fickle at times because of the medicine I think. One evening he knocked on my door yelling at me for showering and leaving water on the bathroom floor. But the next evening he came up to me shyly and asked: “Are we still friends?” I nodded and said yes, of course we are. It was the last thing I ever said to him.

When he was killed on O’Farrell Street, his daughter and widow were helping clean up his room. She was knee-deep in boxes; it was amazing how much Gabriel hoarded. According to his widow, who worked at the Irish gift shop near Powell, he collected and talked to dolls – he told her they were his friends.

After his death, it felt like things were going to change at Polk Manor. Rick, the longtime facility manager, announced his resignation on the lobby bulletin board. His wife, whom he married less than 24 hours ago, died unexpectedly. He wrote that he was moving to New Jersey to mourn and that he would not miss most of us. In a way, I was happy.

Perhaps a year later, when I was packing my bags and moving in with a friend in Oakland, it felt like a chapter in my life as a young adult had come to an end. For obvious reasons, the world feels more complicated now. The Goodwill on Geary has closed, the gay bars have all disappeared, and so have many of the Polk Manor residents who roamed the city streets. I still regret never choosing the 777 for Healing Winds, and I still wish I had remembered everyone’s names. Like old friends, the neighborhoods we know and love change and move on, far, far away until they appear in the distance like glowing neon lights.

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