The Nut · The Creek · Dub C
Joey and Danielle at the Locust Street Festival
GOOD MORNING, WALNUT CREEK!
Walnut Creek showed up in a big way at the Locust Street Festival. The booth stayed busy from open to close, the hats and shirts sold out, and we finally got to meet hundreds of you in person instead of in the comments. If you grabbed a hat, you already heard it from us in person. Wednesdays are back.
Same email you remember. The openings, the events worth leaving the house for, and the city decisions that actually touch your week. Every Wednesday, 6 AM. Let's get into it.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Milky Flakes brings rolled ice cream downtown
Downtown has a new dessert stop. Milky Flakes is open at 1399 N Main St, rolling ice cream to order on a cold plate and folding in cereal flavors you grew up with. Pick a base, pick a cereal, and watch them roll it into ribbons in front of you. It is a little bit of a show and a lot of a sugar rush, and the early crowd has been a mix of families after dinner and teenagers filming the roll-up for their stories. The line moves faster than it looks. Go on a warm evening and thank us later.
MIXT lands in the old Genova Deli space
The San Francisco salad and grain bowl favorite is open on a corner locals know by heart, the former Genova Delicatessen. If you work downtown, this is the quick-lunch option the neighborhood has been short on. Build-your-own bowls, seasonal menus, and a line that turns over fast. Genova loyalists will feel some type of way, and we get it. But the space is alive again, and that beats another empty storefront.
THE BIG STORY
RH walks away from the Neiman Marcus building
The luxury furniture giant RH has officially withdrawn its application to transform the former Neiman Marcus building at Broadway Plaza into one of its showcase galleries. The project was announced with real fanfare, a design gallery with a rooftop restaurant in one of the most visible retail spots in the East Bay. Now the plans are pulled, and one of downtown's marquee buildings is back to waiting for a future. What lands there next matters to every business on that end of the Plaza, and to anyone who cares what downtown looks like in five years. We will be watching this one closely.
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AROUND TOWN
The senior housing village is headed to your ballot
The City Council voted to place the Senior Housing Transit Village initiative on the November 3 ballot. It is one of the biggest land-use decisions Walnut Creek has faced in years, and it is now yours to make. We will break down what a yes and a no actually mean before voting opens.
That drink you carried down Locust Street was legal
The city's new Entertainment Zone debuted this summer, letting festivalgoers carry drinks from participating downtown bars during sanctioned events. If it felt different at the festival this year, that is why. Expect it back for Oktoberfest.
Free bus passes for students
Kids and teens 19 and under ride free to school with the 511 Contra Costa Pass2Class program. School is back in session; grab the pass before the first bell. Get the pass
Heads up on Walker Avenue
Pedestrian upgrades at Walker and San Miguel mean temporary closures for a while. The payoff is wider sidewalks, a raised crosswalk, and ADA upgrades.
FEATURED EVENT
The summer concert series says goodbye
Broadway Plaza's free Thursday concerts wrap for the year on August 20 with Summer Night City, the ABBA tribute. DJ Rich Era starts at 5:30, the concert begins at 7, and seating is limited. Bring a chair. Last call until next summer.
THIS WEEK
Friday 8/14
• Wild at Night: Wild West (6 to 9 PM) - Lindsay Wildlife.
Saturday 8/15
• Books & Botanicals (11 AM to 2 PM) - Broadway Plaza.
Next Week
• Makers Market (11 AM to 5 PM) - Broadway Plaza on Saturday the 22nd.
On Now
• CALeidoscope at Bedford Gallery (Through September 13) - Lesher Center.
• Laura Gibson artwork (Through August 31) - City Hall by appointment.
COMMUNITY BOARD
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Short listings from local businesses land here starting next issue. Thirty words, straight to the neighbors.
Thank you for finding us.
🍺 SEE YOU AT OKTOBERFEST
SEPTEMBER 25 + 26
THE NUT hats and shirts sold out at the festival. The restock lands at our Oktoberfest booth, and it will not last the weekend either.