10A Action Items 2018 0305 - Laserfiche WebLink

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26 Peralta (north of San Leandro Creek) and Don Jose Joaquin Estudillo (south of San Leandro Creek). The ranches gave way to farms as settlers, squatters, and “49ers” arrived in the early 1850s. The town of San Leandro was laid out in 1855 and became the seat of Alameda County in 1856. The original town plan established a grid of streets, with sites set aside for prominent buildings such as the County Courthouse and City Hall. After a catastrophic earthquake destroyed the Courthouse in 1868 and the transcontinental railroad reached Oakland in 1869, the county seat was relocated from San Leandro to Oakland. However, San Leandro continued to prosper as a small agricultural town. The city incorporated in 1872 and had grown to about 2,300 residents by 1900. Farms and orchards surrounding San Leandro produced a variety of fruits and vegetables, including cherries, tomatoes, onions, potatoes, asparagus, sugar beets, rhubarb, and apricots. San Leandro continued to grow at a moderate pace during the first 40 years of the 20th Century. Many of the neighborhoods in the northeast part of the city, such as Broadmoor and Estudillo Estates, were developed during this time period. The railroad corridors running through the city were developed with industry, while Downtown was the center for commerce and civic life. By 1940, San Leandro had 14,000 residents. Still, the town covered just a few square miles and was surrounded by farms and orchards. The 1940s and 50s were a time of transformation for the city. A development boom, initially created by the need for wartime housing and then sustained by returning veterans and their families, brought about a 350 percent increase in the city’s population in just 20 years. Much of San Leandro’s current form and character was defined during this era and nearly half of the city’s current housing stock was added. 65