On the shores

Redwood Shores is an interesting place. For me, the most intriguing is the fact that although Redwood Shores is one of Redwood City’s 17 neighborhoods, you can neither walk nor drive from downtown Redwood City to any part of the Redwood Shores without passing through San Carlos or Belmont. Even on foot, walking the paved path just east of Highway 101, you still must pass through a small part of San Carlos. Redwood Shores and the main part of Redwood City actually are contiguous, but between them lies Bair Island and Steinberger Slough. Thus, to journey from downtown Redwood City to Redwood Shores while staying within the city limits would require a boat.

Although you cannot get to Redwood Shores directly from the rest of Redwood City, you can easily get there from San Carlos and Belmont, both of which directly abut Redwood Shores. So why is Redwood Shores part of Redwood City, and not one of those others? Although I have yet to determine precisely why those cities made the choices they did, the simple answer is that although they apparently were approached first, neither San Carlos nor Belmont opted to annex it.

Redwood Shores has a long and storied history. First used by Native Americans as a source for oysters and clams, the site was later used for cattle grazing and, in the late 1800s, for oyster farming. Ownership of the land changed a number of times before finally winding up in the hands of the Leslie Salt Company. Starting in 1928 and running for some 30 years, the land was used as part of the company’s salt making operations.

By the late 1950s, Leslie Salt was thinking about developing its lands for other uses, and so decided to see if “Redwood Shores” — which back then encompassed both “Redwood Peninsula” (the 2.5-square-mile neighborhood we know today as Redwood Shores) and Bair Island — could be annexed to a nearby city. Leslie Properties Inc., a subsidiary of Leslie Salt Co., approached both San Carlos and Belmont, but both rejected Leslie’s proposal. Leslie then approached Redwood City, that in 1959 agreed to annex Redwood Shores. Four years later, Leslie Properties revealed plans for a community of 100,000 residents on both Redwood Peninsula and Bair Island — although the project was soon scaled back to “just” 60,000.

Initial development focused on Redwood Peninsula. Leslie was in charge of land reclamation, project administration and financing. Redwood City took responsibility for public infrastructure, which included parks, a fire station, a community center and a branch library. This was a significant commitment. My guess is that San Carlos and Belmont had anticipated a commitment like this, and that it would have been too much for either of those smaller communities. Thus, their disinclination to annex the land.

Whether or not the cost of creating public infrastructure really was the reason, with responsibilities fully defined, Leslie focused on the Redwood Peninsula property and making the land suitable for construction. But just as the first homes were being built, the Federal Housing Administration suspended home loan guarantees for the project out of fears the site was a potential earthquake hazard. Thirteen months and several seismic studies later, the FHA declared itself satisfied, but the damage had been done; Leslie Properties found themselves teetering on the verge of bankruptcy. That induced Leslie to sell both Redwood Shores and Bair Island to a subsidiary of Mobil Corporation in 1973.

Bair Island was left alone, with the idea that, once Redwood Peninsula was largely developed, Bair Island would be developed as “South Shores” to accommodate a whopping 40,000 residents. Fortunately, though, in 1982 a citizens’ referendum narrowly defeated that part of the plan (by just 44 votes!). Bair Island ultimately wound up being owned by the Peninsula Open Space Trust, who deeded it to the Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge, thereby preserving its status as a place of natural beauty we all can enjoy.

I have to wonder whether modern-day San Carlos and Belmont wish they could have annexed Redwood Shores back in the late 1950s. In any case, I’m just glad I can walk its sidewalks and trails, and enjoy its shoreline, its wildlife, and the community’s many homes and commercial developments.