October 5, 2024 | A Minor Miracle at The Circle

Friends and neighbors:

On Saturday, Oct. 5, a crash involving two cars at The Circle did significant damage to the ring of bollards surrounding the Fountain at The Circle but somehow entirely missed the fountain itself.

Even better, none of those involved in the crash were killed, despite one of the cars apparently going airborne and then ending up across The Circle resting on its side. And further, the crash occurred just a few hours after FOFW volunteers finished up their monthly workday cleaning up around The Circle and Fountain Walk.

Anyone who knows the history of the fountain knows that the version we enjoy today is a replica of the original 1911 fountain, which was destroyed in 1958 when a large truck lost its brakes and hurtled down Marin Avenue directly into the fountain, blasting it into pieces.

So we are indeed fortunate that history did not repeat itself Saturday. Likely part of the credit for that goes to the foresight of those who helped the Friends of the Fountain and Walk plan the new fountain, which was erected in 1996. That plan included the placement of concrete bollards around the circumference of the fountain island, providing a layer of protection again just such a mishap.

Now, along with hoping those involved in the accident will be OK, FOFW will turn its attention to working with the City of Berkeley to make repairs to the protective bollards as soon as possible. We want the island to be back in perfect shape in time for our volunteers to decorate the fountain and the island for the holiday season in late November. We will do everything we can to make that happen, including funding these repairs, thanks to the generosity of donors who continue to support us.

Fortunately, after partnering with the city for more than 30 years, FOFW has the support of the city agencies most focused on the fountain and walk: Parks and Public Works. We are counting on our friends there to help us get these repairs done quickly.

We will report back on progress as soon as we can. In the meantime, please try to proceed through The Circle just a bit more slowly. We’ll all get where we are going, maybe just a few seconds later.

Thanks.

–Board of Directors, Friends of the Fountain and Walk