Re: 9th Avenue

12/30/15 - posted by Steffen Johnson

Hi Daniel

I grew up on 10th and Ortega right around the corner from Kim's Market (but I don't recall it being called Kim's Market). It was a very small store but was good for picking up items you needed in a hurry. My mom would sent down there all the time to buy milk for my younger brothers and sisters. That when milk was 50 cents a half gallon. It was also a place where all the neigborhood kids would gather to buy candy, ice cream and assoicated novelities. I remembher the store having several owner and all were of oriental descent. The one I remember best was called Doloris. I far as I remember she own the store and ran it with the help of her two young sons. I think both were in college studying medicine at the time. About the early '70 Dolaris sold the store. The story I heard was that the new owner wanted to redesign the store and start selling fresh fruit and vegetables. The store was shut down for a revamp but never reopened. The building owners at that time turned the store into a garage.

But back in those days there were these small mom and pop stores all over the place. There was another one at the corner of 10th and Noreaga run by an older gentleman we called "Pops" and then there were two more at the corner of 9th and Moraga across the street from each other. By the early '70 most of these stores had gone out of business.

Sorry I don't have any pictures of the market but to be honest it was not a very picturesque store although it did give the neigborhood some character. IMHO after the garage was installed the building itself was somewhat of an eye sore.