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Residents of the Slater neighborhood voted last year to name their home after an old school nearby.

Wagon Wheel is taken by another neighborhood, or they might have chosen that.

"Most duplexes in this neighborhood have brick facades and were built around 1955 with that western motif -- wagon wheels stuck in the bricks," said Robert Rich, a recording artist who has lived in the neighborhood with his wife since 1989.

Diverse housing options offer residents access to commuting arteries and downtown Mountain View lifestyle at much less cost, Rich said. His house is an old farmhouse in the California Bungalow style.

"We were a young couple and we could afford it," he said. At first, they rented out the separate cottage dwelling for some extra income. "You see a lot of that sort of creative financing around here."

Bounded by Hwy. 85, Easy Street, Central Expressway, North Whisman Road and East Middlefield Road, Slater isn't exactly new to the Mountain View scene, apart from its name and a fledgling neighborhood association.

"I wasn't aware of any kind of change in the way the neighborhood was referred to," said Todd Markelz, a manager at Google who has lived in the area for five years and last fall purchased a townhome on Gladys Avenue with his wife and two sons.

For Markelz, Creekside Park remains the social center for the neighborhood, no matter its name.
"We see a lot of families there with kids the same ages as ours," he said.

"There's always a lot going on," Rich agreed.
Other social hubs of the neighborhood include Clocktower Coffee and Roger's Deli, residents said.

Markelz said the neighborhood can be a little slower compared to other parts of Mountain View.
"I don't feel like there are a lot of events in Slater, but Mountain View as a whole has a lot of events we take advantage of, primarily in the downtown area," he said.

"Because the area is very commercial outside the immediate Slater neighborhood, on the weekends places have reduced hours or are closed," he added.

Good thing downtown can be accessed very easily via the Stevens Creek trail.

"In 1999 they connected it under 85, and that's when we could go downtown," Rich said. "That was the big crack in the eggshell to make this neighborhood part of this town. It's the lifeblood of the neighborhood."

Rich grew up in Menlo Park, watching the area transition from orchards to housing.

"You could still see the divisions of farmland between towns," he said. "Those sorts of memories make me a little misty-eyed."

"When we bought our house there were three old plum trees in the backyard that you could tell used to be part of an orchard," he added.

The neighborhood is recognized for its wide variance in the age of residents.

"I run into a lot of young families, people who are relatively recently relocated to the area for tech jobs, similar to us," Markelz said. "It's pretty diverse in that way."

"We're rooted here," Rich countered. "We'll probably be one of those old couples that just lives on."

-- Emily Trotter

FACTS
CHILDCARE AND PRESCHOOLS: German International School of Silicon Valley, 310 Easy St.; Kiddie Academy, 205 E. Middlefield Road; NASA Ames Child Care Center, Moffett Field;Google Daycare
FIRE STATION: No. 4, 229 N. Whisman Road
LOCATION: bounded by Hwy. 85, Easy Street, Central Expressway, North Whisman Road, East Middlefield Road
NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION: Greg Coladonato, gcoladon@gmail.com
PARKS: Whisman Park, Easy Street and Middlefield Road; Devonshire Park, 62 Devonshire Ave.; Creekside Park, 200 Easy St.
POST OFFICE: Mountain View, 211 Hope St.
PRIVATE SCHOOLS: German International School of Silicon Valley, 310 Easy St.
PUBLIC SCHOOLS: Mtn. View-Whisman School District -- Huff, Landels or Monta Loma elementary schools, Crittenden Middle School; Mtn. View-Los Altos Union High School District -- Mountain View High School
SHOPPING: strip mall on Leong Drive; retail centers on Middlefield Road and Whisman Road; downtown
MEDIAN 2012 HOME PRICE: $579,000 ($410,000-$748,000)
HOMES SOLD: 2
MEDIAN 2012 CONDO PRICE: $535,000 ($211,000-$725,000)
CONDOS SOLD: 23

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