Terra Linda, San Rafael, California facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Terra Linda
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Terra Linda
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 Terra Linda
Location in California
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| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Marin County |
| City | Terra Linda |
| Elevation | 171 ft (52 m) |
Terra Linda (Portuguese for "Beautiful Land") is a district of the city of San Rafael, California. It was formerly an unincorporated community within Marin County. It lies at an elevation of 171 feet (52 m).
Terra Linda is a residential and light commercial/office community in the Las Gallinas Valley area of Marin County, approximately 14 miles (23 km) north of the Golden Gate Bridge. The housing stock includes about 900 residences built by Joseph Eichler.
History
Terra Linda is located on what was formerly the property of the Manuel T. Freitas family, immigrant Portuguese owners of part of the Rancho San Pedro, Santa Margarita y Las Gallinas Mexican land grant. The ranch was originally operated as a dairy farm. The site of the ranch house and buildings is now the site of St. Isabella's Catholic Church and School.
Terra Linda shares ZIP code 94903 with Santa Venetia, Marinwood, and Lucas Valley. The Terra Linda post office was established in 1961. Its main streets are Las Gallinas, Freitas Parkway, and Redwood Highway. Early Terra Linda residents formed a Community Services District, and Recreation & Parks District, under the direct authority of the Marin County government. These entities built the public infrastructure that stands today. In the early 1970s, citizens voted to annex these entities to the City of San Rafael. Its population is about 10,000.
Most of Terra Linda was built after World War II and was largely completed by 1970. Terra Linda was originally developed by the development group Alliance Construction. The first residences were model homes on Hyacinth Way. They were of the then-contemporary modern (Eichler) style: concrete-slab foundation; hydronic heat; cork floors; low-pitch, open-beam ceilings; clerestory and gable windows. About 900 homes in Terra Linda were built by Joseph Eichler from 1955 to 1965. The distinctive architectural style of Eichler homes provides a historic element.
The valley's main arteries, Manuel T. Freitas Parkway and Del Ganado Road, follow Santa Margarita Creek, whose bed was cemented over in the early 1960s and turned into a storm trough when the area was developed. Plans are being made to restore the creek to its original state and redesign Freitas Parkway to accommodate the creek, at an estimated cost of $20 million. These plans have been in fruition for years and as of 2015 there is no news about this moving forward. Freitas Parkway was originally designed to have three lanes each way (currently there are two) that cross over the ridge into the Sleepy Hollow neighborhood of San Anselmo. This design was never finished after those lands were purchased by the public and placed into the care of the Marin County Open Space District. Details follow: 1972 San Rafael residents approved a bond issue of $2,250,000 bond issue to purchase open space city-wide, including parcels in North San Rafael. 1973 Mont Marin neighborhood formed an assessment district to purchase the 184 acre Mont Marin Open Space for $314,000. 1975 Terra Linda residents, with a 76 percent yes vote, established a community services area with a $1,150,000 bond issue to purchase open space properties. These funds were combined with $500,000 from the 1972 San Rafael bond and $500,000 from the Open Space District to buy the Nunes, Freitas, de Long and Turski lands, the semi-circle of ridges around Terra Linda. per www.94903community.org/Vision.html
Other facilities
At the edge of Terra Linda sits the world-famous Guide Dogs for the Blind, which predates the community. Its "students" and trainers can be seen walking Terra Linda and San Rafael streets each day.
The Mall at Northgate is the only enclosed mall in Marin County. Two anchor tenants dating from its original open-air design were The Emporium, now Macy's, and Sears. There is also a Kohl's (previously Mervyn's) and a 15-screen theater complex, which was once a single-screen theater in another part of the mall. Sears is the only original tenant; the Kohl's [former Mervyn's] is new construction since the mall's enclosure, and Macy's was the Emporium before the enclosure. The original theater was located a half-dozen storefronts north of its present location. Since 2008, the mall underwent an extensive remodeling and modernization.
Kaiser Hospital and clinic, a major facility in the Kaiser Permanente network, and one of the major full-service hospitals in the North Bay area, sits on the hill on the south side of Terra Linda.
Nearby on the opposite side of U.S. Highway 101 is the landmark Marin County Civic Center building, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.
Nearby parks and open space
There are parks in Terra Linda, as well as open space. Like any community in Marin, it is surrounded and encompassed by the natural and relatively undeveloped hillsides, the bay itself, and yet still near the major bay area cities.
Notable residents
- Joseph Alessi, a 1977 graduate of Terra Linda High School and a Juilliard-trained trombonist, Principal Trombone of the New York Philharmonic with a number of accomplishments and recordings
- Stacey Bailey, football player, graduated Terra Linda HS 1978, played college ball at San Jose State and went on to a career with the Atlanta Falcons from 1982 to 1990
- Alvah Bessie, noted Hollywood screenwriter and author blacklisted during the McCarthy era, died in Terra Linda in 1985.
- Ann Curtis Cuneo , multiple gold medal-winning U.S. Olympic swimmer, operated the private Ann Curtis Swim Club and swim team in Terra Linda for 20 years
- Susan DeMattei, mountain biker who won the bronze medal in Mountain Biking at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia, was born and raised in nearby San Rafael
- James Hetfield, vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the thrash metal band Metallica, moved to Terra Linda [approx. 2009] after residing for years in nearby Novato
- Bill Lee, MLB pitcher with the Boston Red Sox and the Montreal Expos, graduated from Terra Linda High School in 1964
