CASTRO VALLEY FORUM A COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER SERVING CASTRO VALLEY SINCE 1989
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2025
YEAR 37
INSIDE YOUR
FORUM
Latin Rhythms
Patrón Latin Rhythms comes to CV Arts Center February 22
Page 4
Made with Love
Say ‘I love you’ with these Valentine’s Day dessert recipes
Page 5
Fitness for All
The positive effects of fitness on the neurodiverse
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INDEX Classified Ads ........ 8 Events .................. 4 Food & Dining ......... 5 Health & Fitness ... 12 Homes .................... 5 Obituaries ............ 11 Opinions ............... 11 Our Town ................. 3 Sports ................... 12 Weather ................ 2 WWW.MYCVFORUM.COM
THE BUTI FAMILY
Three Streets Named After CV Pioneers By Linda Sandsmark
CASTRO VALLEY FORUM
Travelers on Redwood Road may have noticed a street named Buti Park Drive across from Proctor Elementary School. For those curious about that street name, the Butis were Castro Valley pioneers over 100 years ago, according to their great-grandson, Michael Wrenn. Wrenn’s great-grandparents, Michele (Mike) and Livia Buti, came to Castro Valley in 1922 and settled in Crow Canyon. Originally from Tuscany, the couple met in San Francisco while working at Levi Strauss. They moved here from the peninsula. “My great grandfather was a bootlegger during prohibition,” says Wrenn. “He ran a whiskey distillery, but he also had chickens and grew tomatoes. After the Depression Mike and Livia Buti had a Flying A gas station on the Lincoln Highway, near what is the intersection of Castro Valley Boulevard and Crow Canyon today.” Wrenn’s grandmother, Ida Buti Calliott, was Mike and Livia’s daughter. She had two brothers, PHOTOS BY LINDA SANDSMARK Remo and Bruno, who became major players in see PIONEERS on page 10 Buti Park Drive and Buti Park Court are off Redwood Road.
NO. 7
MAC MEETING
County Scolded For Fees By Amy Sylvestri
CASTRO VALLEY FORUM
The Castro Valley Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) scolded the County for squandering over $1 million in developer fees that should have gone to local parks at this week’s meeting and approved a new concept that would give them more oversight in the future. The County and The Hayward Area Recreation District (HARD) is in the process of asking all the area MACs for help best utilizing money they collect from new residential developments in the unincorporated area. When a new housing project is approved, the developer either sets aside land for public recreation/ park use or --more commonly-pays in-lieu fees which are to be used to improve park facilities in the HARD area. see MAC on page 3
Out of Public Market’s Ashes, a Fire Station Alameda County Fire Department (ACFD) Chief William McDonald said the Public Market’s 51,070-square-foot Last Tuesday, the Board site would be ideal for replacof Supervisors decided that Alameda County will buy the ing the existing Fire Station 26, burned-out Lake Chabot Pub- located across the street in a lic Market site for $3.3 million converted single-family home. and convert it into a replace“We have three other fire ment for Fire Station 26. stations that we are working on to upgrade as part of Phase At its February 4 meeting, 1, so this Public Market site the Board approved the purchase of the former shopping would be part of our Phase site and food court from owner 2 plan,” Chief McDonald told the Board of SuperviKil Ho Cho, including an initial deposit of $25,000 and sors. “We will work with the project manager and expect to $200,000 in closing costs. have the designer’s drawings Demolition could begin later near the end of 2026 or early this year, with the construction of the fire station starting 2027.” see MARKET on page 2 optimally in 2028. By Michael Singer
CASTRO VALLEY FORUM