Photograph by Jacquelyn Ramseyer
The Randazzo Enterprise demolition crew started tearing down the Olson Cherry Stand at daybreak Jan. 21. The wood shack has been at the corner of El Camino Real and Mathilda Avenue since 1933. A temporary stand will be relocated next to Pasta Pomodoro and a permanent cherry stand will be up and ready by mid-May.
Sweet & Sour
After more than 100 years in existence, the original Olson cherry stand is demolished
By Jana Seshadri
A historic landmark in Sunnyvale, which provided sweet relief for customers for more than 100 years, is no more. The C. J. Olson Cherries stand, at the intersection of El Camino Real and Mathilda Avenue, was razed to the ground by giant bulldozers in the wee hours of Jan. 21. A new stand, under the same ownership, will take its place in the spring.
"It's been a very, very emotional and hard time for the whole family," owner Deborah Olson said.
Olson's grandfather had built the fruit stand for her grandmother back in the 1930s to sell the fruit from their orchards to the public. Olson's great-grandparents established the orchard and fruit-selling business in 1899. The business, which dealt mainly in wholesale, shipped fresh and dried fruit, chocolates, jam and specialty gift baskets. The land adjacent to the fruit stand was home to cherry orchards until last year, when it was leased out to developers.
Photograph by Jacquelyn Ramseyer
Charlie 'Johnny' Olson, Sr., comforts his niece Lisa Orlando as the two of them watch the demolition of the family's Olson Cherry Stand, built back in 1933. The Olson family has been in the cherry business since 1899.
The Irvine Company, based in Southern California, developed the land by building an apartment complex and a retail shopping center there and named it the 'Cherry Orchard Center' in memory of the orchards. The developer's desire to get rid of the fruit stand was no match for the Olson family's determination to keep it alive.
"The stand was always in the deal," Olson said, adding that she wouldn't have had it any other way.
The Cherry Orchard center houses such popular franchises as Borders Books and Music, Starbucks, A. G. Ferrari Foods, P. F. Chang's Chinese Bistro and a Sprint PCS store. The development was the center of frequent debate during the municipal election campaign last year.
Photograph by Jacquelyn Ramseyer
Deborah Olson, a fourth-generation member of the cherry-growing family, and longtime family friend Ralph Appio, share a moment alone to watch the demolition of Olson's family cherry stand.
Olson and her father, who currently take care of the family business, said they will continue to sell their black Bing and Rainier cherries and fruit to their loyal customers out of a temporary location next to the Pasta Pomodoro. According to Olson, growth and development did not deter the family from operating the business, and they will continue to sell cherries eight months a year.
The fruit is harvested from the trees on the 3-acre plot situated next to the tennis courts west of Mathilda Avenue, on land owned by the city of Sunnyvale. According to Olson, a past agreement with the city lets the Olson family maintain the orchards and harvest the fruit in exchange for the land. Olson's father continues to take care of the orchards. Cherries and other fruit are also imported from the northwestern United States, France, Chile and New Zealand and sold in her stand, Olson said.
She said the new stand, which will be built on the same spot as the old demolished one, at 348 W. El Camino Real, is scheduled to open in the spring.
Photograph by Jacquelyn Ramseyer
A broken cherry crate sits in the rubble of what used to be the historic Olson Cherry Stand, located at El Camino Real near Mathilda Avenue in Sunnyvale for 69 years.
"The soul is still there--it will just get a new shell," Olson said.
Parts of the old stand, including pieces of the wooden floor, the old barn wood and windows, will be incorporated into the new stand, she added.
"It's important that we retain the agricultural nature of the business and the stand," Olson said.
Photograph by Jacquelyn Ramseyer
Sisters (from left) Esther, Noemi, and Lidia Veloz, along with Deborah Olson and Jean-Pierre LaBari, watch the demolition of the 69-year-old Olson Cherry Stand. The Velozes each worked at the stand for more than 40 years.
It will also be a more efficient place of business and will provide a better working environment for employees, she said.
The grand re-opening ceremony of the new C. J. Olson Cherries stand will be held during the annual cherry festival on June 8 and 9, with Sunnyvale Mayor Fred Fowler on hand, she said.
The fruit stand remains open for business at the temporary location and a free catalog can be ordered through their website at www.cjolsoncherries.com.
Sunnyvale, California Since 1994
