Editor's note, May 22, 2:45 p.m.: A technical glitch blocked the poll from being attached to this article when it was first published. It's now attached below. We apologize to our readers.
Last week we asked our readers what they'd building at 10300 San Pablo Ave., and we have received so many suggestions of such variety that we're not sure how to interpret them.
Perhaps the most popular choice in comments on the article and on our Facebook page was a gym or fitness center of some type. A number of people liked the idea of a live-music venue, perhaps with a space for art and a cafe. Others wanted to see a grocery, while several other retail possibilities – notably a Fry's Electronics – were proposed.
So we thought it might help to consolidate the suggestions into general categories and pose the question again in the form of a reader poll, in hopes of determining whether areas of consensus might emerge. We hope that those readers who offered suggestions in the first round will cast their votes in the poll below, and we hope additional readers add their feedback too. And we welcome further comments too.
"This year in February we moved into a beautiful new location in the thriving city of Emeryville right at the eastern foot of the Bay Bridge."
"It's just an old building in an old area," Zammuto said. "There's no traffic flow here. People only come down here if they're specifically going to Guitar Center. As opposed to in Emeryville where it's a retail environment. We've been trying to do this for five years or more." http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:L-nzuG7e-qIJ:www.contracostatimes.com/ci_19728406 Kind of a downer assessment, telling us not to expect a business that depends on heavy retail traffic. But it also suggests that a fitness center might be a really good fit for this spot. Fitness centers don't need fancy buildings, and they don't depend on retail traffic. They get their customers through direct mail. Hopefully the commercial broker who represents this propety is out there talking to the various fitness center operators.
I also think El Cerrito could use a good sit-down ice cream parlor, like Fentons, with great sundaes from house made ice cream and offer a few sandwiches but I'm afraid that space is too big for that type of venture.