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27 <br /> <br />Most of the neighborhood shopping centers and the commercial strips along East <br />14th Street and other arterials date from this period. <br />Despite the suburban character of the development, San Leandro emerged from the <br />boom period as much more than a “bedroom community.” The city was among the <br />fastest growing industrial centers in the Bay Area during the post-war years, adding <br />6,000 manufacturing jobs between 1947 and 1954 alone. Much of West San Leandro <br />was developed with industry and numerous warehousing and distribution facilities <br />were built south of Marina Boulevard. At the same time, early shopping centers such <br />as Pelton Center and Bayfair Mall made the city a thriving retail destination. The <br />favorable balance between jobs and housing enabled San Leandro to offer a <br />competitive tax rate and a high level of City services. <br /> <br /> <br />The pace of growth slowed as the city reached its natural limits during the 1960s. <br />On the east, steep hills created a barrier to large-scale development. On the west, <br />most of the shoreline had been acquired for park uses. Established communities lay <br />to the north and south. The focus of new development shifted to smaller infill sites, <br />including greenhouses and nurseries, and other properties that had been bypassed <br />during the boom years. <br />By the 1980s, other factors had begun to shape the form of San Leandro. The Bay <br />Area’s economic base shifted from manufacturing to services and technology, and <br />many traditional industries left the city. As the thousands of families who moved to <br />San Leandro during the 1940s and 50s matured, school enrollment dropped and <br />several schools were closed and redeveloped with housing, commercial, and <br />institutional uses. The percentage of senior citizens in the city increased from six <br />percent in 1960 to 20 percent by 1990, giving San Leandro the highest median age in <br />66