Living in Belmont

Welcome to Belmont, California – my home town. The San Francisco Examiner’s Larry Rosen calls it

“a stand alone community…[that] marches to a different low-key drummer.” -(Real Estate – November, 15, 2009)

Belmont Homes

It sure does and that’s much of Belmont’s charm and appeal. Sitting just south of the track home developments in San Mateo and built in the early 1900s, Belmont’s eclectic mix of houses and hills looks and feels dramatically different from its northern neighbor. The home sites around and amidst the hills offer panoramic views and this terrain is what impeded the track-style homogenous housing construction that was so common in the mid-1900s. With cookie-cutter subdivisions virtually non-existent, home buyers can expect a wide array of floor plans, styles and elevations contributing to Belmont’s unique appeal.

Downtown Belmont

Belmont is conspicuously a bedroom community relatively devoid of the commercial/industrial development. Belmont doesn’t have a classic downtown as does its neighbor to the south the City of San Carlos, but most residents prefer it that way. Many are protective of Belmont’s laid back small town character and seem to be very adverse to notions of growing Belmont into a small city. Belmont’s answer to some people’s “lack of down town” criticism – clearly a minority viewpoint – is a strategy to develop a “village mode,” according to City Manager Jack Crist. “In theory,” says Crist, “you should be able to walk out of your (home) and shop, eat and work.” While that’s not today’s Belmont, where a short drive is almost always expected to shop or dine, many people like it. Home owners have space, natural beauty, and a semblance of privacy provided by topographic constraints. Belmont’s refusal to join the trend to urbanization like its neighbors appears to be the key to maintaining the village-like ambiance so many of its residents have come to love.

That’s not to say that quaint and woodsy Belmont lacks amenities or the comforts of civilized life. In fact, the unique combination of atmosphere, diverse terrain and history, in addition to convenience to shopping, transportation and its top quality school system that prompted Forbes Magazine (May, 2009) to name Belmont, California as #11 in the their list of “Top Towns To Live Well.”

Where to Eat in Belmont

Belmont offers a variety of options for local foodies. Here are a few of my favorites…

The Best Dining in town is unequivocally at The Iron Gate – 1360 El Camino Real.

Other notable restaurants include: The Van’s, Vivace, Caprino’s, Hola Mexican Restaurant and Narita Japanese Cuisine. Of course, Belmont also has a nominal supply of Starbuck’s and the usual assortment of fast food vendors.

For the Best Pizza, try Toto’s Pizza located at 1250 El Camino Real just south of Ralston Avenue.

For the Best Burger in Belmont, I like the Village Host in the Carlmont Village Shopping Center.

The Best Deli is the Beli Deli at 1301 Sixth Avenue near City Hall.

For the Best Breakfast or a Sweet Craving head to the Pilgrim Kitchen at 311 El Camino Real – a Belmont institution. It has been serving up donuts and coffee for what seems like for ever. Order your holiday pies well in advance and expect to wait in line, but the taste is well worth it.

Of course, there is more about Belmont than eating options…

Where to Shop in Belmont

Convenient and abundant shopping is available at The Carlmont Village Shopping Center (1017 Alameda De Las Pulgas at Ralston). With 31 stores and services, and 19 professional offices including Lunardi’s, an upscale grocery, this is the most centrally located shopping venue in Belmont. There is also a Safeway located just across the intersection.

In and around the Belmont Village Center (El Camino Real at Ralston) there is a wonderful variety of retail stores, services and eating places including a super Safeway, A.G. Ferrari, Walgreens and Namaste Plaza Indian Supermarket. The nearby Belmont Hardware Store has provided local do-it-yourselfers and contractors products, service and practical advice for decades.

The smaller Belmont Plaza (El Camino Real at Davey Glen) serving the town’s north side has a variety of shops and professional offices. It’s also where the world’s greatest chiropractor Dr. David Wittwer. D.C. Practices. (390 El Camino Real #I)

And for anything you can’t find in town, most residents head over to nearby Hillsdale Shopping Mall which has over 100 stores, shops and restaurants and is just 2.5 miles from Belmont’s town center. All the major chain retailers are represented.

What to Do in Belmont

Events: Throughout the year, Belmont sponsors a variety of fun events including a regularly scheduled Farmer’s Market, the Art and Wine Fair, Holiday Craft Faire, Art Exhibits and Music in the Park presented on Sunday afternoons throughout the summer months. These events bring together Belmont residents creating a sense of community and shared experience that bond neighbors together.

Nature Lovers and Hikers can enjoy the open space and natural surroundings at Water Dog Lake and Hallmark Park which is adjacent to the protected State Game Preserve with the CSM Cross Country Trail. The tranquil Twin Pines Park, site of the annual Art and Wine Fair, straddles Belmont Creek where the writer Jack London once worked. And, two more parks are scheduled to begin construction soon.

Parks and Recreation:One of Belmont’s most useful public services is the outstanding Parks and Recreation Department that offers life long learning and recreational programs to residents of all ages. The department’s mission is to enhance the health and strengthen the ties that make Belmont a community, not just a place to live.

Schools in Belmont

Schools are, in fact, one of Belmont’s proudest accomplishments. Its superior performing school system may very well have been the principal reason why Belmont fared so well in the recent housing bust, while many of its neighbors absorbed deeper devaluation.

The Belmont-Redwood Shores School District is among the best performing school districts in California. Serving grades K-5 are Central Elementary School (rated a perfect 10 by GreatSchools.net, Fox Elementary School and Cipriani Elementary School (both rated a 9) and Nesbit Elementary School (presently rated a 7 though is making conspicuous improvements that will surely elevate its performance).

Belmont’s Ralston Intermediate School serving grades 6-8 has been rated a 9.

Carlmont High School serves grades 9-12 as part of the Sequoia Union High School District and is a California Distinguished School. It has a student body of about 2,160. Currently, GreatSchool.Net rates Carlmont Hign School a 9.

The College of San Mateo (CSM), located just minutes from the Belmont town center, sits on one of the most picturesque parcels of land in the County. Serving approximately 11,000 students, CSM is one of three colleges governed by the San Mateo County Community College District. Students can earn either Associate in Arts or Science degrees, or receive a Certification of Proficiency in their chosen field. Also, CSM has the distinction of having three – that’s 3 – former head football coaches who have gone on the win the NFL Super Bowl title. Can you name them?

Other Services in Belmont

The new Belmont Public Library – a world of knowledge and enlightenment – has brought a new vitality to reading and multi-media enjoyment for our residents. What a great addition to Belmont’s intellectual capital.

Belmont’s Public Services are superior: The Belmont Police Department is one of the most professional, well managed law enforcement agencies in California, and our Belmont-San Carlos Fire Department is first rate, top shelf and much appreciated.

Belmont is served by three excellent senior residential communities: Belmont Vista Senior Community, Silverado Senior Living – Belmont Hills, and Sunrise Senior Living.

The Twin Pines Senior and Community Center is a beautiful multi-use facility located in Twin Pines Park that is ideal for weddings, receptions, seminars and parties.

Working in Belmont

While Belmont is a small town of about 26,000 residents, it’s the home of one of the world’s largest and most respected companies – Oracle. The world’s largest enterprise software company, has made Belmont its home since inception. Belmont is ideally situated mid-way between South San Francisco, the Bio-Tech capital of the world and the Silicon Valley, the High-Tech capital of the world. Belmont lies in the heart of one of America’s best job markets and it’s an easy commute in either direction.

Getting to and from Belmont

Most residents find that Highways 92, 280 and 101 are not much further away than about 10 minutes travel time, even during rush hour. Getting into San Francisco or the Silicon Valley via Highway 280 is normally a smooth and comfortable commute. Belmont is just 24 miles south of downtown San Francisco. In normal traffic conditions travel time is estimated about 30-35 minutes.

The renovated Belmont train station is located on El Camino Real, just north of Ralston Avenue. There, residents can board Caltrain which serves 30 stations between San Francisco and Gilroy, California. New, improved train service is anticipated as plans move forward.

While Belmont is just 15 minutes away from SFO, it is not under the flight paths – so the community remains quiet.

Weather in Belmont

Belmont’s weather is best described as classic Mediterranean. Mild days and cool nights with breezy conditions along the hill tops. Very few homes have air conditioning or swimming pools.

Last But Not Least

The Belmont Historical Society (www.belmontmuseum.com) has a wealth of material including photographs and dairies of former Belmont residents and events. If you’s like to know more about the past history of Belmont, California, visit them at 1219 Ralston Ave., Belmont, CA. It’s pretty neat. Nearby is the PEZ Museum at 10 Twin Pines Lane. PEZ? That’s right – the candy in the collectible dispensers.

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Raymond Stoklosa, Chela Stoklosa and Rebecca Williamson are Realtors with The RayChel Realty Group specializing in Santa Clara and San Mateo Real Estate.