Coordinates: 37°39′45″N 121°52′29″W / 37.6625°N 121.87472°W / 37.6625; -121.87472
Pleasanton (formerly, Alisal and Pleasonton ) is a city in Alameda County,California, incorporated in 1894. It is a major suburb in the San Francisco Bay Area located about 25 miles (40 km) east of Oakland, and 6 miles west of Livermore. The population in July 2007: 66,544 at the 2000 census. In 2005 and 2007, Pleasanton was ranked the wealthiest middle-sized city in the United States by the Census Bureau. Pleasanton is home to the headquarters of Safeway Inc. Oracle and Kaiser Permanente have offices in Hacienda Business Park. Although Oakland is the Alameda County seat, a few county offices and a courthouse are located in Pleasanton. Additionally, the main county jail is in the neighboring city of Dublin. The Alameda County Fairgrounds are located in Pleasanton, and the annual County Fair is held there during the last week of June and the first week of July. Shadow Cliffs Regional Park is located on the east side of town.
History
Pleasanton is located on the Rancho Valle de San Jose Mexican land grant and was founded by John W. Kottinger, an Alameda County justice of the peace, and named after his friend, Union army cavalry Major General Alfred Pleasonton. A typographical error by a U.S. Postal Service employee apparently led to the current spelling. One of the earliest houses built in the valley in 1854 is still standing and serves as the centerpiece of the Alviso Adobe Community Park. In the 1850s, the town was nicknamed "The Most Desperate Town in the West" and it was ruled by bandits and desperados. Main Street shootouts were not uncommon. Banditos such as Joaquin Murrieta, upon whom the legend of Zorro is based, would ambush prospectors on their way back from the gold rush fields and then seek refuge in Pleasanton. This reputation passed and in 1917, Pleasanton became the backdrop for the film Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm , which starred Mary Pickford. The town was once home to Phoebe Apperson Hearst, who lived in a 50-room mansion on a 2,000 acre (8 km²) estate, now the site of Castlewood Country Club.
In 2009, the TV show, America's Best Looking Males came to Pleasanton searching for the most attractive males in the country. After 3 days of constant screenings, modeling, and personality tests, the crew concluded that Pleasanton's own Gautam Prasad is America's most attractive male. Tune in on NBC in 2010 for the televised broadcast of the event.
Geography
Pleasanton is located at 37°40′21″N 121°52′57″W / 37.6725°N 121.8825°W / 37.6725; -121.8825 (37.672530, -121.882517) and is adjacent to Hayward, Livermore, and Dublin. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 21.8 square miles (56.5 km²), of which, 21.7 square miles (56.1 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.4 km²) of it (0.78%) is water. On the east side of town on Stanley Blvd. near the Livermore border is Shadow Cliffs Regional Park, a lake that holds swimming, fishing, boating, and a waterslide. On the west side is the Pleasanton Ridge with the two parks Pleasanton Ridge and Augustin Bernal Park. Much of Pleasanton is drained by the Arroyo del Valle and Arroyo Mocho watercourses. Pleasanton lies along the route of the historic First Transcontinental Railroad.
Climate
The highest recorded temperature was 115 °F (46 °C) in 1950. The lowest recorded temperature was 18 °F (-8 °C) in 1990.
Architecture
Because of the preservation of Pleasanton's historic downtown area, many examples of architectural styles dating back to the mid-1800s exist. Buildings in Gothic Revival, Pioneer, Italianate, Commercial Italianate, Colonial Revival, and Queen Anne styles can be found within walking distance of each other.
One of the icons of downtown Pleasanton is the Kolln Hardware building, located at 600 Main Street. It is designed in the Commercial Italianate style, but the prominent five-sided corner tower and a few other features are indicative of the Colonial Revival style. The structure mixes in a little bit of Queen Anne design in the tower and gable. This building was built in 1890 and has always housed a hardware store, first by the Lewis Brothers, then Cruikshank and Kolln. The hardware store has been known as Kolln Hardware since 1933. Only recently, in 2004, Kolln Hardware shut its doors. Bud Cornett, a Pleasanton developer, purchased the landmark and has invested in its renovation and earthquake retrofitting. After more than 100 years serving the community as a hardware store, Comerica Bank is set to take over the space.
La Hacienda del Pozo de Verona (The House of the Wellhead of Verona) was another Pleasanton landmark that was destroyed by a fire in 1969. Construction was originally started by architect A.C. Schweinfurth for William Randolph Hearst in the 1890s. Phoebe Apperson Hearst had the hacienda remodeled and expanded by architect Julia Morgan for use as her primary residence after her husband died. The estate was built upon a 453-acre rancheria obtained in 1886 by George Hearst, who intended to use the location for a race horse farm. The name was inspired by the circular, carved marble wellhead purchased by Phoebe and William in Verona, Italy and installed in the middle of the courtyard. The hacienda was the only female-owned estate to be mentioned in Porter Garnett's Stately Homes of California . The architecture of the hacienda has been called California Mission style by various sources. The original architect used the term "provincial Spanish Renaissance", while Garnett wrote it would be more accurately called "Hispano-Moresque". Moorish influence was found throughout the estate, such as in the guardhouses which stood on either side of the courtyard entrance. The hacienda was topped by imported red Spanish tiles and had undecorated walls of white stucco. After Phoebe's death in 1919, William had the wellhead and other furniture and objects moved to Hearst Castle at San Simeon and sold the estate.
the area contains significant diversity.
Events and festivals
Pleasanton continues to maintain a small town flavor with regular events for the community. Every Saturday morning the Farmers' Market sets up on Angela, off Main Street. The Alameda County Fair runs annually at the Fairgrounds in Pleasanton. The Fairgounds in Pleasanton are also home to California's Biggest Scottish Highland Games once a year.
First Wednesday
For many years, the Pleasanton Downtown Association has organized and held the popular First Wednesday celebrations from May through September. On every first Wednesday of those summery months, Main Street is blocked to traffic and adopts a street fair atmosphere. Each First Wednesday celebration is given a different theme and planned with related activities. Typically the first First Wednesday' s theme is Cinco de Mayo since May is the first month for these street parties. At this local event, businesses and organizations from downtown and around the Tri-Valley set up booths in the center of the street. A local band performs in the Round Table Pizza parking lot, which is closed off for dancing. The parking lot is also set up as a kind of beergarden, with beer and wine available for consumption.
Friday Concerts in the Park
Another Pleasanton Downtown Association tradition is the Friday Concerts in the Park series. Every Friday from June until September the PDA schedules different local bands to perform in the evenings at the Lions' Wayside Park off of First Street. The events are free of charge and draw a crowd. Locals will start laying out blankets in the park on Friday mornings as a way to reserve a spot. The music is generally eclectic. Past acts have included Tommy and the Four Speeds, The CoolTones, Night Fever Band, Night Shift, Midnight Hour, Magic Moments, La Ventana and Public Eye.
Economy
Pleasanton experienced a major economic boom starting in the early 1980s, largely associated with the development of a number of business parks, the largest of which is the Hacienda Business Park. These host a number of campus-like clusters of low-rise and medium-rise office buildings. Pleasanton has been successful in attracting a number of corporate headquarters, such as those of Safeway, Inc., Thoratec Corporation, Polycom, Shaklee Corporation, and Ross Stores. Despite an increase in office space vacancy rates in 2000–2004, economic development has remained strong through the middle of the decade.
Pleasanton was also the headqu
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