Page One

Now You See It, Now You Don’t

Tuesday December 18, 2007
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The former San Pablo Florist and Nursery at 1806 San Pablo Ave., the front page photograph of Friday's Planet, was reduced to rubble early Saturday to make way for condos in West Berkeley.
The former San Pablo Florist and Nursery at 1806 San Pablo Ave., the front page photograph of Friday's Planet, was reduced to rubble early Saturday to make way for condos in West Berkeley.

The former San Pablo Florist and Nursery at 1806 San Pablo Ave.—a key piece of pre-World War II Japanese history and one of the last standing links to Berkeley’s hidden Japantown—was reduced to rubble early Saturday to make way for condos in West Berkeley, although property owner Syed Adeli had told the Planet on Dec. 7 that demolition wouldn’t occur for two months. Tonight he’s expecting the City Council to defer $315,588 in fees so that he can start construction before his building permit expires on Friday. Photograph by Richard Brenneman.