Cheap Thrills

Cheap Thrills: Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics

Serving Berkeley sewers and quilters for 30 years, Stonemountain Fabrics is a storehouse of delights.

In a burgundy bunker building in Downtown Berkeley, on an inauspicious block of Shattuck Avenue, sits a marvelous treasure trove, a jewel box of colorful fabrics, buttons, and notions. Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics, established in 1981, is a hive of activity, serving Bay Area sewers and quilters for over 30 years. Boasting an incredible inventory of fabrics — bolts of everything from brightly patterned Mexican oilcloth and faux gorilla fur to delicate silks and sturdy cottons — Stonemountain is packed floor to ceiling with colorful cloth. The button wall, tucked into a corner near the entrance, is a practical delight. Mini drawers, stacked floor to ceiling, house every imaginable color, size, and shape of button desired. Streamers of …

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Cheap Thrills

Cheap Thrills: Flashback Features at the UA Berkeley Theater

Enjoy classic movies as they were meant to be seen — on the big screen — every Thursday night.

Remember the anticipatory pleasure of entering a darkened theater, with a bucket of buttery popcorn cradled in the crook of your arm, a coke in one hand and a box of Red Vines in the other? Sounds nostalgic in this age of Netflix and live streaming, doesn't it? Well, if you hanker for the good old days — at good old prices — come check out the UA Theater’s Flashback Features. Every Thursday night at 8 p.m., the UA Berkeley7 Theater on Shattuck Avenue is offering audiences a rare treat: a trip back in time, which allows viewers to watch classic movies on the big screen. For a mere 5 bucks a ticket, you can revisit classics like Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Godfather, or Monty Python & The Holy Grail, and watch them as they were …

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City Council Hikes Downtown Parking Rates

Berkeley city council raised downtown meter rates by 25 cents to $1.75 per hour at yesterday's meeting.

Shopping downtown’s about to get more expensive for those who drive there. At Tuesday night’s meeting, a divided city council voted a quarter per hour meter rate hike in the downtown area, bringing the public’s parking costs to $1.75 per hour. Opponents to the increase pointed to a downtown shopping area that’s already struggling. But those in favor said there’s no other solution. A new property-based business improvement district is being established downtown where property owners are assessed according to the amount of property they own. Since the city owns 11 parcels downtown, it will owe the new business improvement district around $104,000 annually. The new rates will include meters between University Avenue and Bancroft Way, and …

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