Central San Mateo

I’ve moved out of my normal home as it undergoes construction.

This means that I’m month-to-month, in a furnished apartment nearby downtown San Mateo, in a neighborhood named “Central”.

I often work from home, and I have frequently been using an un-motorized kickscooter to coast around the neighborhood and explore the sights & sounds.

It’s been a nice alternative to walking or biking as it roughly doubles my walking speed while allowing riding on the sidewalk.

Of course, it doesn’t help when car owners block the sidewalk:

But thankfully there is a fair amount of safer bike infrastructure in the neighborhood:

Gorgeous cottage court, although the driveway is huge, leaving the lot largely paved over:

I stopped & chatted with a neighbor who explained this is new-ish development of housing (circa 2012):

Nice that they added a bench–it’s probably the only one for a 1/2 mile!

There is some heavier commercial properties, next to a massive highway (101 Bayshore Highway).

Some other interesting/desolate alleyways:

There’s a lot of single family homes reaching end-of-life:

Some nice fall vibes:

Some nice cars that aren’t sold any more:

Nice lighting:

Some architecture that isn’t really built any more:

Can you believe this next residence is worth $1.7 million?

With a 20% down payment (~$340k) and prevailing jumbo interest rates at ~6.5%, that is ~$9k/month mortgage:

The location is great, though!

Trees are battling with ivy pests:

And lots of surface parking:

And a speeding, one-way highway arterial cuts right by (speed-reading sign is broken):

But an epic evening skyline: