Crazy John's deep-discount store in
the Dimond district is being locked up
to make room for good ol' Farmer Joe's
Produce and Market.
The announcement came this week that
Farmer Joe's, a small but widely known
fruit and natural foods market in the
Laurel district, is setting up a second
store in the Dimond. Neighbors and the
district business association spent
months rallying behind the idea through
the Internet.
"The excitement speaks for itself,"
said Dimond Improvement Association
Chairwoman Hoang Banh, referring to
several e-mail messages and message
board posts flooding Dimond district
residents' in-boxes.
Farmer Joe's specializes in natural
foods and produce. The store has been a
Laurel district favorite for 20 years.
Owner/manager Diana Tam said
customers have been asking for a bigger
store, with a better selection of meats
and a new beer and wine selection, for
years.
"Choice is what we'd like to have,"
Tam said. "A broader range of choice."
The property where Crazy John's now
sells close-out items used to be an Al
bertsons grocery store. It is on a busy
corner of the district, on MacArthur
Boulevard and Fruitvale Avenue, right
off Interstate 580.
Albertsons shut its doors more than
two years ago, leaving a large, empty
store in the heart of the Dimond.
Several months passed as city leaders
negotiated with Trader Joe's, a chain
grocery store, and Farmer Joe's to take
over the space. Trader Joe's rejected
the site.
Crazy John's took over Albertsons'
lease and set up shop last year after
Albertsons' refused to sublet to another
grocery store. Albertsons' lease, and
therefore Crazy John's sublease, expires
in December.
Tam said if the city's permitting
process goes smoothly, Farmer Joe's
should be open next summer.
"It's a big endeavor, but I think
we'll just have to do it!" she said,
adding she wants Farmer Joe's to be a
grocery store for Oakland residents who
would otherwise travel to Berkeley or
Emeryville for natural products.
Farmer Joe's will be just one of
several relatively new businesses in the
Dimond that cater to a health-aware
public. Paws and Claws, a natural pet
foods store that also bathes pets,
opened along MacArthur Boulevard in
early 2004.
The district is home to a
chemical-free dry cleaner and a holistic
veterinary medicine practice.
On Sept. 1, builders broke ground on
the planned Lincoln Courts senior
housing project, which will replace the
maligned Hillcrest Motel at MacArthur
Boulevard and Lincoln Avenue with
low-income units.
The Dimond Improvement Association is
now pressuring the city to help them
literally clean Dimond streets --
business owners have reported coming to
work with human waste splattered on the
curbs and trash on the streets.
Neighbors are also lobbying to get a
foot patrol officer back to the area to
stop homeless and mentally ill drifters
from bothering shoppers and residents.
Several neighbors and business
leaders met Wednesday night to discuss
these issues. They also brainstormed a
plan in the works to improve traffic and
pedestrian safety in the area.
To learn more about the Dimond
district Internet message board, visit
www.dimondnews.org
