Kendra Ruminer's Two Cents of Real Estate

Take A Peek At Los Alamos, New Mexico

Month: August 2023

Our Amazing Libraries!

August 24, 2023 /

Thanks to the new Oppenheimer movie, Los Alamos memorabilia is a hot item on E-bay. A lot of this memorabilia includes postcards. I have to say that these are So. Much. Fun! While brainstorming ideas for this blog, I ran across a beautiful and very dated postcard photograph of the Post Office and Mesa Public Library circa 1945. It got me thinking about our two public library branches. Both are beautiful and modern. They offer our community a huge number of amenities and access to an enormous collection of information and artwork. So, how did this very small, remote town come to have such a great library system? The history might surprise you!

The First Library in Los Alamos

Considering the gathering of so many scientists, engineers, and pioneers of academia here in the early days of Los Alamos, it can’t be a surprise that creating a library became such an important task.

According to Lisa Bier’s research in “Atomic Wives & the Secret Library at Los Alamos”, the first librarian was Charlotte Serber, wife of prominent physicist Robert Serber. She was an unusual choice because she wasn’t a librarian at all. The history suggests that Oppenheimer chose her specifically because she wasn’t a librarian and therefore wouldn’t have the same hang ups about library protocol. It makes a lot of sense if you consider the haphazard and often slapped together quality of the Secret City during the early days. There probably wasn’t much time for protocol.

The original library materials had to be ordered, but could not be sent directly here. All mail to residents of Los Alamos was forwarded through a single post office box in Santa Fe. PO Box 1663 is still Triad’s LANL operating address today. In fact, many residents five to six generations back who were born in Los Alamos had PO Box 1663 on their birth certificates!

Library materials were ordered and borrowed through UC Berkley and numerous other scientific organizations. Over 1200 hardcover books and full runs of 50 different periodicals made the list.

But the coolest part of the library story illustrates the difficulty of keeping things secret. At one point, an investigator from Los Alamos was sent to Santa Fe to discover how random Santa Feans had gotten the names of some of the most secret and famous residents of Los Alamos. Turns out that these scientists and engineers had gotten library cards to the Santa Fe Library in their own names in order to borrow books! The books would be sent via mail. Can you imagine how strange it must’ve looked to the post office to have all of these books, periodical journals, and scientific research journals plus something like 250 copies of the Sears Catalog among other regular mailings. It would’ve been pretty obvious that there was something special going on in PO Box 1663!

This desire for secrecy prompted the security service to hang around in Santa Fe spreading misinformation about what was actually going on in Los Alamos. The “official version” was that we were making electric rockets up here. Eventually, as you might imagine, the Manhattan Project wasn’t able to be kept a secret anymore.

LANL Research Library

Of course, that original library is long gone. The current LANL Research Library is located on the main campus of LANL here in Los Alamos. It’s near the Otowi building and is able to accessed by the general public during regular business hours. As you might expect, not everything available to badged LANL employees is accessible to Average Joe, but just being able to go in there and see the building and some of the historical information housed there is worthwhile! If you do happen to work for LANL and have a badge, you can access the library 24/7. It’s an amazing collection of periodicals, technical papers, records of experiments, and books from every possible corner of the globe on any number of topics!

Mesa Public Library

The main branch of our local library is pretty recognizable to folks as they head toward the former location of Central School. Though the school was actually located more in the vicinity of Circle Drive, the library is just a little further up Central Ave with the main driveway entrance being just across from the Justice Center.

What a lot of folks don’t realize, is that the Mesa Public Library has tons of art on display and cataloged for educational use. Depending on the circumstances, some of the art can be checked out like a book. The gallery displays works from many well known contributors to the art world. The downstairs often offers kindermusic classes, story time, and any number of other kid friendly local activities.

The upstairs area of the modern library has rooms which can be reserved for meetings, group events, and other gatherings. There is no fee for local clubs or groups. You just need to chat with the ladies at the desk.

Of course, the first Mesa Public Library was part of the original Central Park Square Complex. The library was initially funded as a subscription library in 1943 by 70 local families who each donated $5. By 1945 it was free and open to everyone. In the image below, the library is on the right, but you can’t tell how far it extended. As I recall, the library building occupied all of the space between what is now the corner you can see in the image, and the jewelry store on the opposite corner. There were always stores fronting the parking lot at 15th and Central Ave. It really does give me a sense of nostalgia to see this photo image. I’ll talk more in another post about Central Park Square in general.

White Rock Branch Library

The first branch library in White Rock was opened in 1985. It was located in a small section of the White Rock Community Center on Longview Dr. The space still hosts the White Rock Senior Center, but in 2015 the county built a fabulous library on the corner of Sherwood Blvd and State Road 4 directly across the highway from the White Rock Visitor Center. If you’ve never been to the White Rock Branch Library, it’s worth a visit just for the spectacular views from the windows. Handily enough, the library is right next to the White Rock Youth Activity Center which offers kiddos 3rd-8th grade the opportunity to go back and forth depending on what activities they want to participate in. If you haven’t visited, make a plan to do it soon!

Regardless of whether or not you love books, it’s hard to deny the value in our local libraries. It’s just one more amazing thing about life in Los Alamos. When you’re ready to make the move, give me a call! This is a great time to sell real estate in Los Alamos County and a popular time to join our community. I’d love to talk to you!

Main Gate Park

August 12, 2023 /

There’s no doubt that the Oppenheimer movie has generated some additional tourist traffic this season. With all of the extra questions folks have been asking about the “old days”, I thought it might be interesting to dig a bit into the spot where traffic up the hill literally stopped. The Los Alamos Main Gate.

Main Gate Park

You’re probably plenty familiar with this local location. There’s a small, sparse campground there. The building with the facade on it is actually bathrooms. And none of this blocks the road or prevents any kind of traffic from passing through. In fact, if you just look at Main Gate Park and the tower on the other side of the road, it’s difficult to visualize exactly how the old front gate worked.

The Missing Pieces

So many times when we see historic images of the Main Gate, this is the image we see. An old car parked in front of a tiny building that very much resembles the bathrooms we have today. This historic photo from 1943 is certainly accurate. However, the background is entirely wrong. It appears that the clapboard building is on a skid that allows it to be moved around. It was likely in the middle of the street, which makes a lot of sense in 1943. But in the beginning, they thought there would only be a handful of scientists and some support staff. You might say that things quickly got out of hand and required a “main gate upgrade”.

The biggest missing piece of the original setup is actually the Petree Garden Center. As it is today, someone added more windows because it was a restaurant for a good many years. But when Los Alamos Landscaping purchased the building several years ago to become their garden center and a base of operations, I got the opportunity to take a peek at some of the still existing and rather ancient parts beneath the building that show it was very much part of the old main gate.

What structures, you ask?

The main “structure” that remains is an old tunnel that goes beneath the road and was used to access the tower on the opposite side of the road. The tunnel has some interesting graffiti. There was a youth group using it as a “hang out” at one point. Structurally speaking, it’s likely still sound. However it hasn’t been updated with any new wiring or safety egress for a long time so it is considered “closed”.

If you put the pieces together, this is what the gate looked like during most of the Manhattan Project.

This image is from a very old postcard. It shows how the Main Gain at Los Alamos used to appear when it was functional and the Secret City was closed to all but authorized personnel. The location makes quite a bit of sense really. Can you imagine what the view is like from that tower?

Since we’re talking about the Main Gate, I thought I’d toss in this postcard image as well. The photo is of the curve just past the Totavi gas station at the bottom of the hill. At that time it was called the K-195 highway. Some of you might remember when it looked like this. I suspect when the city was still closed, the road was much narrower and probably not paved. The ride up to the Main Gate must have been a nail biter for folks who’d never experienced mountain driving! It’s still that way for some visitors even though the locals tend to drive the thing like NASCAR.

If you’ve got additional information about our Main Gate, please feel free to leave it in the comments! I’d love to hear your thoughts. As always, I try to be thorough in my research, but there are a lot of pieces to the puzzle of Los Alamos and sometimes they don’t always fit together to make the same story. I’m a third generation Los Alamos resident and I love the history of this amazing place! If you’re ready to be part of our community, give me a call. I’d love to talk real estate with you!

Groups For Your Kids

August 7, 2023 /

Moving to a new town is stressful for the entire family. A change of pace. A change of scenery. New friends. Losing regular contact with old friends. Leaving your clubs, social groups, coaches, even having to change your hair or nail salon. These are experiences that we don’t often realize affect us deeply when we move. Even a cross town move can be stressful that way. Perhaps you were incredibly close to your “old neighbors”. Sure, you guys still live in the same town. But without that proximity, it’s likely that the relationships will undergo a significant change.

One of the best things about Los Alamos is the huge amount of groups, clubs, activities, social venues, and things to do. I can actually imagine readers scratching their heads as they read this. I’m not fibbing, folks. Really. There are TONS of things to do in Los Alamos if you make the effort to connect. So, as we begin a new school year, let me throw out a few things that belong on a FAQs list for Los Alamos.

“Do people really allow their unsupervised children on the city bus?”

Some of this answer is dependent upon the level of responsibility and independence in your own kiddo. But really, the answer is YES! Our Atomic City Transport system is really easy to utilize and it’s free. You don’t need tokens or a bus pass. Whether you’re local or not, you just climb on and ride to your destination. You can also get the phone app for the ACT that will help you navigate routes or show you exactly where “your” bus is. If you’re worried about your kiddo getting off at the wrong stop or not knowing how to navigate a change of bus, try riding the route with them a few times until they’re comfortable. Yes, it’s more effort on your part in the beginning. But having a kid who can get themselves places using public transportation is an amazing bonus later on!

“My child has difficulty making friends or becoming part of a “group”, how can I get them involved?”

Los Alamos Little Theater and the Los Alamos Light Opera often have parts available for budding youth actors. Reach out to them via their websites for more information. While the Derby Dames don’t have spots available for young players, the YMCA has a Jr Roller Derby Team. You can get more info about the Los Alamos Cherry Bombs on the YMCA website.

If your child is more interested in outdoors, Los Alamos has you covered! We have active Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, United States Pony Club, and 4-H. If your kiddo is passionate about any of the activities offered through these organizations, reach out and talk to the local community. Even if you don’t have livestock or your own “pony”, that doesn’t mean you can’t participate. You’d be surprised how often there are folks willing to share their resources.

“Where do kids “hang out” in Los Alamos?”

This is a bit more complicated of course. You’ve probably noticed that kids in Los Alamos hang out pretty much everywhere! But if your kids are new in town and looking for a spot to meet up, you might try the Activity Centers.

Both the Teen Center and the Youth Activity Center are located in the Community Center building next to Ashley Pond. The Youth Activity Center is operated by Los Alamos Family Council and welcomes kids 3rd thru 8th grade. The YAC was created as free service to the community and provides a safe space for kids to hang out after school and on holidays. The Teen Center is for high schoolers only. It’s operated by the Family YMCA.

The emphasis of both Activity Centers is on safe, clean, and respectful fun. The Centers often offer Art Groups, planned field trips, fun activities, and plenty of games of every shape, size, and variety. The Teen Center often offers opportunities for “after hours” activities. Teen Center employees host an Auto Meet in the Ashley Pond parking lot on Wednesday evenings for teenagers who want to talk cars. The group welcomes anyone whether they have a car or only wish they did.

I could probably go on and on about the fun things to do here in Los Alamos. As we move toward fall and back toward winter, the awesome seasonal activities will once again be in full swing. Skiing, Ice Skating, and even Snow Shoeing! But for now, I’ll leave you with these ideas and wish your family the best school year yet!

As always, when you’re ready to be part of our community here on the Hill, give me a call. I’m your hometown real estate broker. I’d love to chat about real estate in Los Alamos with you!

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