Safeway-Oakland, Calif-3747 Grand Avenue

Uh...California.

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Jason B.
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Safeway-Oakland, Calif-3747 Grand Avenue

Post by Jason B. »

Does anyone know the history of the Safeway store located at 3747 Grand Avenue in Oakland, Calif. (near Piedmont)? It is one of the few remaining Safeway stores that I know of that has its main entrance onto a city sidewalk instead of a parking lot. This leads me to believe that this is one of Safeway's oldest active store buildings, but this is just my guess. Although this store does not have a huge pylon sign, the building reminds me of the 1950s Safeway buildings in Lodi, Livermore and Pittsburg. There is a small parking lot next to the building, one of the few store parking lots on Grand Avenue. The interior of the store appears to have been remodeled in the past two to three years.
justin karimzad
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Re: Safeway-Oakland, Calif-3747 Grand Avenue

Post by justin karimzad »

That's the Safeway in this slideshow;
http://www.groceteria.com/safeway/slide ... nd/01.html
...and Charles Hathaway's site;
http://www.flickr.com/photos/romleys/1639164494/
I think it opened in February 1960.
klkla
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Re: Safeway-Oakland, Calif-3747 Grand Avenue

Post by klkla »

You can still make out some of the original design today even though it has received the total 'lifestyle' treatment:

Image

This must be one of the smallest lifestyle stores in the chain.
Jeff
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Re: Safeway-Oakland, Calif-3747 Grand Avenue

Post by Jeff »

The Safeway / Vons in Long Beach that was converted into their new small format store is probably as small as this location,
klkla
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Re: Safeway-Oakland, Calif-3747 Grand Avenue

Post by klkla »

Jeff wrote:The Safeway / Vons in Long Beach that was converted into their new small format store is probably as small as this location,
You're probably right about it being smaller although it's not technically a full lifestyle store. It's a hybrid small store format being used as a test (in case Fresh & Easy had gotten it 'right').
TheQuestioner
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Re: Safeway-Oakland, Calif-3747 Grand Avenue

Post by TheQuestioner »

Interesting to see such an ancient store survive as Safeway all these decades. Must do some nice business. Before scrolling down, I looked at the original photo on Charles' site. I should have known better than to get excited and hope that maybe the exterior had survived unmolested. It is almost unrecognizable now. I thought it might have been in a less well-off part of Oakland and survived due to apathy. Often some of the best preserved old stores are in run-down areas. I suppose I should have considered it a miracle that I got to see that old Safeway, now gone, that was somewhere around 7th and Clement. It's so rare to find a "Circle S" era Safeway intact these days. I think I was unaware of how rare Marina Safeways and other vintage designs were until a few years ago. Living in Suburban MD, where there are still several Marina Safeways in service, misled me to assume that they were still relatively common elsewhere. Funny to see how this Oakland Safeway tried to "marina-ize" the entryway some time after it was built. Thinking of old Oakland Safeways now, I checked Goole street view and see that the Claremont Ave. Safeway in Oakland is now closed. When did that happen? I always thought it was cool to see such a vintage store active in a relatively well-off area. Oh well, glad all of us are out there documenting these places before they are refitted or destroyed.
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TheStranger
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Re: Safeway-Oakland, Calif-3747 Grand Avenue

Post by TheStranger »

TheQuestioner wrote: Thinking of old Oakland Safeways now, I checked Goole street view and see that the Claremont Ave. Safeway in Oakland is now closed. When did that happen? I always thought it was cool to see such a vintage store active in a relatively well-off area. Oh well, glad all of us are out there documenting these places before they are refitted or destroyed.
The Safeway on Claremont near Route 24 (a gable) has been closed for some years now, while the one at Claremont and College a mile north is still operational (a marina) but slated for replacement in the near future.
Chris Sampang
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