February 25, 2005

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Publication Date: Friday, February 25, 2005

Long live our landmark

Something is happening on Main Street. Pleasanton's most visible historical landmark is undergoing a complete refurbishing, yet the majority of the city is completely unaware of this major project taking place. And that's the way they've planned it.

There's no conspiracy here, simply the city's Support Services Department doing an excellent job for the people of Pleasanton, and making sure no one is inconvenienced in the process. The Main Street Arch is getting a facelift.

Christine Salidivar, executive director of the Pleasanton Downtown Association, says the refurbishing "will ensure the arch retains its place as a historical landmark for years to come." She can't speak highly enough of the many steps the city has taken to ensure this project gets done with a minimum of impact to the downtown area.

"The people at Support Services have been wonderful," she said. "Timing was obviously important; the arch is such an integral part of the downtown identity."

Although the city delayed work on the arch until the downtown event, Truffles and Tidbits, had taken place earlier this month, it is doubtful anyone would have noticed the difference.

"The city has installed a wonderful façade," said Salidivar. "They really have taken care of every detail."

In fact, it has taken seven years of research and planning to make the refurbishing of the Main Street Arch happen. Chris Rizzoli, the lead building maintenance technician for Public Works/Support Services, has made the arch his personal project.

"One day, in 1997 or '98, I was standing in front of Kolln Hardware and I looked up at the arch," he recalled. "I noticed a lot of paint peeling off the background, and though touchups had obviously been done, I thought that perhaps it was time to fix it all properly."

First things first, Rizzoli began making calls to discern which city department was in charge of the arch.

"It turned out no one had ownership of arch maintenance - not streets, not public works. It was not under the jurisdiction of any department," he said. After much deliberation it was decided that if Rizzoli and the Support Services Department wanted to tackle the project, they were welcome to take it on.

With that resolved, the staff began to research the best course of action for the restoration.

"There was a great deal of concern regarding taking the arch down," Rizzoli said. "That arch is extremely important to the city, and having it in place is a priority."

Once it was determined that taking the sign to a separate work site was unavoidable, the big debate commenced. When was the best time to take it down? Pleasanton has downtown activities all year; the city did not want to affect any events.

Finally a plan was formulated that would remove the sign with a minimum of impact. This included the installation of a façade, which would continue to welcome downtown visitors during the restoration. With all obstacles finally overcome, the first side of the arch was removed early in the morning of Feb. 14.

"Each side of the sign will take two weeks to restore," explained Rizzoli. "We will strip them down to the porcelain base and repaint them the 'Pleasanton Green' everyone recognizes."

This is an important detail; the arch background was originally colored cobalt blue.

"In the 1970s the city adopted an ordinance to change the paint to its current green," Rizzoli said. "It would match the new 'carriage lights' that had just been purchased to give the downtown a warmer feeling. But the surfaces were not prepared correctly, they were just painted over. They have been peeling and flaking ever since."

By taking the time to properly prepare the surfaces, the new paint will properly set off those big, white letters for years.

In addition to the cosmetic enhancements, the inner workings of the arch are being improved, too.

"All of the neon tubing will be replaced. And the wiring was terribly outdated," said Rizzoli, holding up a piece of cable obviously way past its prime. "We've replaced all the wiring, and trenched the electricity to the museum so that everything can be turned on and off from there."

Everything? Is there more than just the sign?

Even those who make multiple trips up and down Main Street on a daily basis may not have noticed the accessories installed on top of the arch. Salidivar explained that lights and a double set of horns were installed when the sign was erected in 1932, as a method of communicating with the police.

"You have to remember how small Pleasanton was in the early 1930s," she said with a laugh. "When only one officer was on duty, if he was out of the station, there was no one to answer the phone."

During the day, the horn would sound to summon the officer back to the station. At night, the flashing lights were used, which avoided disturbing sleeping citizens.

While the horns would have been used to signal an air raid during World War II, and were often employed to call volunteer firefighters to duty during the 1950s, neither the horns nor the lights have been operable for some time.

"We'll have them back in working order as part of the project," Rizzoli said. "Everything will be in great shape."

The city has no plans to use the horns or lights right now but it made sense to include their restoration as part of the plan, he explained.

According to historical notes, the Women's Improvement Club held card parties, box socials and drawings to raise the $532 to purchase the arch in 1932, and the city chipped in an additional $91 for the support poles. Today, to buy just one of the sign's two sides would cost $17,000.

"But we were never interested in replacing the sign," stressed Rizzoli. "We always intended to preserve the historical integrity of the arch."

He added that all of the letters spelling out "Pleasanton" have been replaced over time, and have no historical value.

Of course, if John W. Kottinger had had his way, the arch would read "Pleasonton." He intended to name the city after the celebrated Civil War general, Alfred Pleasonton, but a spelling error made by a clerk in Washington, D.C., resulted in the much more appropriate moniker.

The arch was designed to feature the city's name spelled out in the fashion of the rolling hills of the Amador Valley and is truly the gateway to the heart of the city. It is such a part of Pleasanton life, it is hard to imagine downtown without its graceful presence.

Rizzoli said that while Main Street arches are fairly common in the Midwest, the trend never really caught on out here. Fresno and Modesto still have arches, but in many cities they were dismantled in the name of progress as streets were widened and storefronts erected.

Pleasanton can be thankful that city planners had the foresight to retain the structure that has become the city's trademark. This respect for Pleasanton's most-loved landmark continues still, as evidenced by the thorough and meticulous planning of its restoration and preservation.

If you are up early March 14, take a drive down Main Street. The second side of the arch is scheduled for installation between 3 and 5 that morning, bringing the arch project to a quiet conclusion.

Chris Rizzoli will be there, so it will be a chance to stop and say thanks to him and the other city employees for taking such good care of our arch.

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