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Photograph courtesy of Cookie Curci-Wright
Adobe Abodes: Spanish haciendas are one of the most popular styles of architecture in Willow Glen.
Remember When
These streets are made for walking
By Cookie Curci-Wright
Walking along the picturesque streets of Willow Glen has long been my favorite leisurely pastime. Like many of our neighbors, my husband, Dan, and I realize that our community, with its distinct and diverse collection of houses and gardens, must be seen on foot, up close and personal, to best be appreciated.
Taking a stroll along our neighborhood streets can be a relaxing refuge from the tensions of a busy day. The side streets of Lincoln Avenue offer a proximate view of local homes and gardens, each one fashioned in its own individual way reflecting the homeowners' character and spirit.
Passionate neighborhood gardeners create front yard landscapes to match their home's unique architecture. Modern colonials, Spanish adobe, Cape Cod, wood-framed bungalows, old Victorians and the enchanting peaked roof, rounded windows of the Queen Anne can all be found side by side in our Willow Glen neighborhoods.
My favorite, among these styles, is the Spanish adobe, prominent along Lincoln Avenue. These homes, shelled in red tiles, with their romantic second-floor balconies, represent Willow Glen's rich heritage. They rekindle a time when Spanish ranchos permeated the area in the 1800s. The appearance of these houses adds a sense of old-world tranquillity to their neighborhoods. Swaying above many of these haciendas are tall tropical palms, stretching high above street lamps, towering like bastions guarding our community.
Walking along the older streets, we'll see small yards crowded with tall cypress and spreading pepper trees, or huge maple and elm trees that offer shade to passersby. Chattering orioles and brown squirrels feast on golden sunflowers, whose sturdy, graceful petals, like Willow Glen's enduring charm, blossom throughout the neighborhoods.
The grand willow trees that once grew in our area, during the 1800s, have long been replaced by their smaller cousins, the birch trees. With the exception of two, huge, steadfast old willow trees on Willow Street, few of Willow Glen's namesakes still exist in our area. Like the willows, the birch trees, with their dense and wispy leaves, serve to defuse Lincoln Avenue traffic noises, and host a variety of bird life.
A controversy is raging between those who want to preserve the architecture of our community's older bungalow neighborhoods, and the builders of modern, so-called "monster houses." These huge add-ons and elaborate reconstructions, sometimes, seem chronologically out of place, overshadowing smaller homes, as they squeeze into older, postwar neighborhoods.
However, our Willow Glen community prides itself as an area of economic blending, where modern and traditional often, abruptly, collide, but manage artfully to coexist with one another. As with all things new and different, it will take time getting used to these intruders, but, eventually, they will blend in with the older homes to create their own quaint style of community ambiance.
Each change of season brings a new feeling to our daily walks. In the spring, dormant gardens blossom. In some front yards we'll see the lively green foliage of an exuberant tomato plant growing among borders of purple delphiniums, or a zealous zucchini vine winding itself tenaciously around a hollyhock stalk.
In early summer, our walks take us past smoky backyard barbecues, that arouse anticipation of those long, hot summer nights ahead. Independence Day celebrations spark street parties, with patriotism and "Old Glory" waved on high. By mid-August we see grandparents recline on porch swings. They watch their grandkids frolic in small plastic wading pools, or dart through lawn sprinklers that cool the sidewalks and offer a temporary oasis to the barefoot stroller.
Fall ushers in cooler weather and our daily walks take on a brisker pace. Brittle autumn leaves crunch and scatter underfoot; front porch stoops are dotted with October's bright orange pumpkins; and streets are cluttered with cars.
By November Lincoln Avenue brims with out-of-town visitors. As families gather around their Thanksgiving Day dining tables, drapes and curtains are parted wide, as if welcoming evening strollers to share in their household's holiday cheer.
By Christmas Eve, tiny points of light on tree-lined streets guide the walker's pathway. Warm fireplaces set households aglow and fill the cold night air with the aroma of burning oak logs. The fragrance of oven-baked cloves and spicy cinnamon escape from open kitchen windows and tease a stroller's appetite. Creative front yard Christmas displays delight and spur us to the next glittering attraction.
Willow Glen's annual community Christmas tree-lighting event culminates the year. Like Founders Day, this occasion celebrates our community's pride and accomplishments.
As in most areas of Willow Glen, my own neighborhood is laid back and friendly. There's a comfortable familiarity and sameness of daily routine. Strollers on my street will see cats stretched out on sun-warmed window sills, or couples sitting comfortably on a nearby front porch stoop, sipping coffee, and watching acrobatic gray squirrels perform high-wire acts on cable and telephone wires. Skateboard virtuosos buzz past our houses, while devoted joggers trot silently down our sidewalks.
Our longtime mail carrier, Debbie, briskly walks her route, but always spares a minute for a friendly hello. The sound of the Station 6 fire engine echoes down Lincoln Avenue and, like the weekly drone of leaf blowers and power mowers, it momentarily disrupts our otherwise peaceful afternoon.
Young mothers, pushing toddlers in streamlined strollers, stop to visit neighborhood pals over boxwood hedges and primrose gardens. Morning doves coo softly from rooftop antennas, while the rat-tat-tat of a distant hammer pounds out a stubborn nail--somewhere a child's treehouse is being built. Nearby, at River Glen Park, a Little League game is in progress--kids and parents shout with a competitive spirit.
On Laurie Avenue, a blue nylon flag and a plastic balloon placed outside a front door proudly announce the birth of a baby boy. Across the street, on Lincoln Avenue, a senior citizen quietly reminisces about days gone by, while, in front of her house, a group of giggling children board a school bus.
Walking hand in hand, amiable couples, like Helen and Rex Stickles, pass my house daily, as they walk their dog, Mas. Their friendly faces and generous smiles, as with all Willow Glen residents, reflect community contentment.
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Willow Glen, California Since 1992
