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An unusual building system was developed in Berkeley
Scattered around west Berkeley is an unusual building system which consists of pre-cast concrete wall panels with translucent glass blocks set into the concrete in a pattern that created a lattice-work of diamond-shaped openings in a grid-pattern. They are referred to as “concrete grid forms.”
This building system appears to have been developed around 1938 by George A. Scott at his 3075 Telegraph Avenue shop. His company was called the Concrete Grid Form Company and his office, constructed with grid forms of course, is still standing at 3075 Telegraph. Architects Walter Steilberg and Bernard Maybeck were enlisted by Scott as consulting designers. About the same time, Fred Stadelhofer of Berkeley Pump developed a variation on the form with cement contractor E. H. Buel.
Scott's method of constructing the forms had the concrete poured into an egg-crate like mold with the glass blocks installed later. Buell's method had the concrete poured directly around the glass blocks.
A wall of these pre-cast panels was exhibited as a garden wall at the 1938 Treasure Island Exposition, and the system was featured in an article in the September 1940 issue of Architect and Engineer. Walls of these concrete grid forms provide light with privacy and an interesting decorative pattern. The translucent glass block is associated with the Art Deco Style and is again being used today.
Concrete grid-form buildings can be seen at various locations around Berkeley. There are several concrete-grid form buildings built by the Berkeley Pump Company between 1945-1955 by E.H. Buel in the 2200 block of Fifth Street, the 2300 block of Fourth Street, at 816 and 830 Bancroft Way, and 721 Channing Way. On the north side of the 700 block of Bancroft is an impressive block-long wall of these grid forms. Berkeley Pump was a large manufacturing business in Berkeley which made pumps for a variety of uses but its manufacturing plant was a collection of buildings scattered across several blocks. The buildings have been mostly converted to offices and some retail uses.
The best place to view these concrete grid forms is at 1001 University Avenue. The former Mobilized Women of Berkeley building (1938, attributed to Bernard Maybeck) is now part of Amsterdam Art and the large auditorium is open as part of their retail business. Other grid-form buildings are located at 3075 Telegraph Avenue (1938), 805 Camellia (1946), 746 Folger (1951), the bathrooms at Kleeberger Field on the university campus; 1025 Carleton Street; 1800 Dwight Way; and 1865 University Avenue.
Susan Cerny is author of Berkeley Landmarks and writes this in conjunction with the Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association.
