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By the end of 1999, the East Bay newspaper world was abuzz: A new publication was about to hit town. I heard the talk, and then I saw the ad: The about-to-launch Pleasanton Weekly was searching for a managing editor.
Pleasanton had charmed me from the time I was growing up in San Jose in the 1950s and my Uncle Earl owned Pinard’s Jewelers on Main Street. I’d moved to south Walnut Creek in 1982, but my in-laws all settled in Pleasanton.
I was not really looking for a job, as I was gainfully employed as editor at the Contra Costa Times weeklies, five papers covering cities from Walnut Creek to Benicia, working at the Concord office.
But still. A chance to be in on the ground floor of a fledgling newspaper that focused on one place. To discover the inner workings of Pleasanton, meet new people and join other professionals in this exciting endeavor. And its parent company, which published the Palo Alto Weekly, had an excellent reputation. I sent in my resume.
My interview was soon set up with president Bob Thomas. I left work early to travel down Interstate 680, stopped at the Pleasanton Library to freshen up, then continued on to the Weekly’s original office on First Street right off Bernal.
As I was interviewing, a delivery truck pulled up with the first issue of the Pleasanton Weekly — Vol. I, Number 1, Jan. 28, 2000. Everyone rushed out to ooh and aah over this product of many months’ efforts. Within minutes, community members were stopping by to view the edition and offer congratulations.
Eventually we settled back down to the interview, and editor Jeb Bing stopped in for a while, too. As Bob explained the mission and talked about all things Pleasanton, I was hooked. I wanted this job! I wanted to help provide the dynamic, idyllic city of Pleasanton with the best possible newspaper.
Soon I had a second interview with Bob and Jeb, and provided more samples of my work and references. The offer letter came late on a Saturday, and I rushed to thrust it into my husband’s hands and say, “Tell me I’m not dreaming.”
My first day of work, Jeb and I walked to City Hall where he introduced me to City Manager Deborah Acosta McKeehan and explained I would be covering the City Council meetings. At my first meeting I chose a seat front and center not knowing the TV30 camera focused on that spot; after that, I sat to the side.
In my former job, I had done the layouts, but at the Weekly we have professional designers who make it fun to write as they turn feature stories into works of art. I had never worked in proximity to advertising staff before, but now I witnessed them in action, imperative to keeping the business going.
From office staff to ad reps to design to tech support to editorial to management, the entire enterprise was, and still is, a group effort with a tangible product that residents responded to positively.
Staff members have come and gone in the past 20 years, sharing our personal joys and sorrows as well as the work. Pleasanton has continued to evolve, sometimes for the better (yay, Firehouse Arts Center!), sometimes sadly (goodbye, Tully’s). Our office has moved down the street, across from Richert Lumber on Sunol Boulevard.
Twenty years ago, after we proofread printouts of the pages late each Wednesday, they were driven with the computer disk to the printers. Today they are sent electronically.
The staff now also posts news continually online, with a daily Express edition delivering headlines to readers’ email inboxes. I currently work part-time as the editor of the Tri-Valley Life arts and entertainment section.
But the excitement has never abated as each week a delivery truck pulls up in front of the office and stacks of the latest edition of the Pleasanton Weekly, hot off the press, are delivered.
Editor’s note: Dolores Fox Ciardelli is Tri-Valley Life editor for the Pleasanton Weekly. Her column, “Valley Views,” will appear in the paper on the second and fourth Fridays of the month.
Editor’s note: Dolores Fox Ciardelli is Tri-Valley Life editor for the Pleasanton Weekly. Her column, “Valley Views,” will appear in the paper on the second and fourth Fridays of the month.
