LAMORINDA WEEKLY | To the Manor Born


Front row from left:Brian Davis, Janet Davis, Rena Munson, Dolores McCoskey, Evo Alexandre, Martina Alexandre, Sandra Jamieson, Kathy Ferber, Concetta Conkling, Kathryn Choi, Felicia Teller, Hollace Gertmenian, Sharon Galliani. Back row from left: George Duey, Betty Duey, David Munson, Lynn McCoskey, Doug Jamieson, Stan Ferber, Sam Choi, Dick Mead, Al Gertmenian and Ray Galliani. Photo Cathy Dausman

The bells of Saint Mary's College and the lowing of cattle still echo among the gently rolling hills in central Moraga, especially in Rheem Valley Manor. According to an account written by Moraga Historical Society archivist Maggie Skinner, Donald Rheem bought a home and acreage in Rheem Valley in 1934.

Rheem was the son of Standard Oil Company president William S. Rheem. Today, a nearby elementary school, a boulevard, and a neighborhood still bear Donald Rheem's name.

The parcel of land that is Rheem Valley Manor is roughly bounded by St. Mary's Road on the south, Rheem Boulevard on the east and Moraga Road on the west. It contains some 400 households built in the late 1960s and early 1970s, before Moraga was incorporated in 1974. The streets are wide. Many lots are flat and large enough to accommodate backyard swimming pools.

Retail shops, the Lafayette Moraga Regional Trail and Moraga Commons Park are within walking distance. Forty years ago, the hills were still largely grassland. Homeowner Brian Davis said the land was once owned by Utah Construction Company. UCC granted development rights to three builders - Osmundsen Construction, Wooldridge Development Company and Harold Smith. Olive trees, a signature of a Harold Smith built home, still flourish in many front yards.

Davis remembers only three other homes in the development when his family arrived in 1968. Lot prices ranged from $9,000 to $12,000, depending on location, and a house could be built for about $35,000, he said. "I told my wife if we could ever sell our home for $75,000, we'd have it made," he recalled.

Davis remembers neighborhood 4th of July picnics held on the grounds of Saint Mary's College and cattle escaping to wander the neighborhood. "It was quite common for cattle to get loose from the ranch on the other side of Rheem [Boulevard] and roam down Fernwood [Drive]," he said.

Carol and Larry Haag bought their Rheem Valley Manor house from the original owner, Victor Bergeron's daughter. Theirs was "the first home built in the Manor," Carol said.

Bergeron, a restaurant owner, was better known as Trader Vic. Carol Haag said Bergeron frequented his daughter's house and liked to play the baby grand piano she kept for him in the living room. When the Haags bought the house, they inherited Bergeron's outdoor brick barbecue and patio Tiki lights from his restaurant.

Today the neighborhood is a mix of original owners and young families attracted to the Moraga school district. Even residents who thought they'd move away have stayed on. Linda Foley and her husband nearly left Rheem Valley Manor 10 years ago. They considered living in Carmel, Napa and Blackhawk before realizing their Moraga neighborhood "was the best spot for us." They remodeled their original house "and built a completely different one," Foley said. "It's an entirely different house and landscape [now]," she said. The Foleys stayed in Rheem Valley Manor because "we love this area, the house, the 'hood.'"

Later editions of Lamorinda Weekly will feature other Orinda, Moraga and Lafayette neighborhoods. To suggest your neighborhood as a subject, please contact the reporter at cathy@lamorindaweekly.com or call the office at (925) 377-0977.