ROAD TO THE FUTURE; NEWHALL REVIVAL BRINGS MEMORIES OF ITS HEYDAY.Byline: Patricia Farrell Aidem, photos by Hans Gutknecht When Harry and Jean Osler opened their shoe repair shop in 1951 on San Fernando Road San Fernando Road is a major street in the city and county of Los Angeles. It starts off in Castaic as The Old Road, passing through Santa Clarita and the Newhall Pass, where upon its intersection with Sierra Highway near the junction of the Golden State (I-5) and the , it was a bustling downtown strip where customers lined up outside Hubbard's department store on sale days and doctors, lawyers and bankers scurried by in suit and tie. In the town of 3,000, San Fernando Road was the place to shop. Along the road were the Santa Clarita Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, Valley's first hospital, a cleaners, a Bank of America
Bank of America (NYSE: BAC TYO: 8648 ) is the largest commercial bank in the United States in terms of deposits, and the largest company of its kind in the world. and a blacksmith shop. ``We had two dime stores, a dress shop and jewelry store,'' Jean Osler said. ``When Hubbard's had a sale, they'd be lined up down the street at 8:30 in the morning.'' The Oslers are among the few faces that have been constants as San Fernando Road changed. Freeways took traffic off their road, and new subdivisions brought with them the enemy of every downtown shop - the shopping center shopping center, a concentration of retail, service, and entertainment enterprises designed to serve the surrounding region. The modern shopping center differs from its antecedents—bazaars and marketplaces—in that the shops are usually amalgamated into . San Fernando Road is at a crossroads - literally and figuratively. It is a main highway in one of the state's fastest-growing regions. And it is the target of change, a face lift on the horizon. The city of Santa Clarita is moving forward on a trip back to the future with development of Old Town Newhall, a vision for a trendy pedestrian-oriented business and arts district
The Arts District that would save San Fernando Road after a generation of stagnation Stagnation A period of little or no growth in the economy. Economic growth of less than 2-3% is considered stagnation. Sometimes used to describe low trading volume or inactive trading in securities. Notes: A good example of stagnation was the U.S. economy in the 1970s. . At first glance, San Fernando Road is a hodgepodge hodge·podge n. A mixture of dissimilar ingredients; a jumble. [Alteration of Middle English hochepot, from Old French, stew; see hotchpot. of shops - dress boutiques, a hardware store, a smattering of offices, a laundry, Abe's Pawn Shop a shop where a pawnbroker does business. - Shak. See also: Pawn and a church where the bank used to be. But looking past the peeling front of the 40-year-old buildings shows a strip brimming with character. A white crocheted swimsuit cut up-to-there marks the window of Adriana's Mahogany & Chiffon chiffon (shĭfŏn`), plain-weave, lightweight, sheer, transparent fabric made of cotton, silk, or synthetic fiber; it is made of fine, highly twisted, strong yarn. Boutique. Can't-find gadgets can be found at Newhall Hardware. Spicy aromas emanate from the half-dozen eateries catering to the surrounding Latino neighborhood. The new idea is to add community theater, outdoor cafes and art galleries to the picture. The plans provide a mix of places to browse, places to go, places to buy and places to meet friends. The idea is to continue serving the local community with the necessities, but to go a step further and draw people - and their wallets - from all over. ``When people say Newhall, they think it's a bad neighborhood, but I think the things they want to do will really be good,'' said 29-year-old Pedro Lopez, who recently opened Valencia Bicycle, a few doors down from Harry's Reliable Shoe Repair. ``I hope they bring in some lights and music. Night life. That'd be good,'' said Lopez, who came from Mexico to Newhall 12 years ago, settling with family members and gaining experience working in a larger bike shop nearby. His is one of the modest storefronts that have changed hands countless times in the decades as San Fernando Road slowly lost its luster. ``This was the neatest, sweetest little town,'' said Jeri Bronstrup, who opened the landmark Way Station diner in 1971. ``I fell in love with it. It had everything you could want. I'd love to see it that way again.'' Bronstrup's son, Eric Leeser, grew up with the town, sharing early memories of downtown Newhall before becoming the Way Station's general manager. ``We have a niche here, but what we need is more businesses that people want to come to,'' Leeser said. ``When this city built up, San Fernando Road lost a lot of business to the big stores. Cities have cycles like that. What we want are small businesses, independent ones. They already have big stores in the mall. What we have here is something special.'' CAPTION(S): 8 Photos, Map PHOTO (1--Color) no caption (San Fernando San Fernando, city, Argentina San Fernando (săn fərnăn`dō), city (1991 pop. 144,761), Buenos Aires prov., E Argentina. It is a district administrative center in the Greater Buenos Aires area. Rd. street sign) (2-3--Color) Jose Canoto, left, strolls by as two painted skateboarders seem to leap out Verb 1. leap out - be highly noticeable jump out, stand out, stick out, jump appear, seem, look - give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect; "She seems to be sleeping"; "This appears to be a very difficult problem"; "This project looks of the wall at Billy's sporting goods Noun 1. sporting goods - sports equipment sold as a commodity commodity, trade good, good - articles of commerce sports equipment - equipment needed to participate in a particular sport on San Fernando Road. Harry and Jean Osler, above, stand in the Newhall shoe repair shop they opened in 1951. (4-5) Manager Jeff Walk examines a rifle for a customer at The Old Gun Store in Newhall, far left. At left, a little girl watches the action on San Fernando Road. (6) Owner Jeri Bronstrup makes sure no one has an empty coffee cup at the Way Station diner, which has seen many changes around it on San Fernando Road over its 27 years in business. (7) Jolynn Duvall, right, who works in Newhall, waits on San Fernando Road for the bus to Lancaster. (8) A man moseys on San Fernando Road past the Valley Worship Center. Hans Gutknecht/Daily News MAP: Newhall |
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