American dream fixer in Montclair lists for first time, asks $769K

Oakland’s Montclair Village is a neighborhood so likable that they even elected a cat their official district mayor.

If that’s not enough to warm your heart, consider 2052 Tampa Avenue, a three-bed, two-bath Montclair home that went on the market for the very first time this week, asking $769,000.

This one’s a real beauty, with vaulted ceiling and beams, generous portions of pine paneling, and hilltop yard so thick with greenery there’s a slender chance small children could get lost.

Even the sea foam tile in the bathroom has latter day appeal, although the edges of this old place from 1949 clearly need a little loving care. Realtor David Otero acknowledges that it’s a fixer that will need some work done on the windows and hardwood.

But then, that’s why it’s available for half the price of nearby Montclair homes. The backyard even has a wide-open view of the South Bay.

Just one family lived at 2052 Tampa to date. In fact, this was a post-war love nest, after the former owners met at a USO dance during World War II, a classic wartime romance between a young sailor and his sweetheart.

Courtesy David Otero, Silsdorf family.

After it was all over overseas, the pair settled into the Montclair home they began building themselves in 1946 and never left, raising a family and living what looks as close to the textbook American Dream as anybody can get. There’s even a white picket fence.

(At one point this house also served as the headquarters for the Eggblowers of America, Incorporated, which also sounds incredibly endearing.)

The children of the late original owners are now looking to pass the house to another family. And so there it its: Oakland’s own contribution to the fabric of 20th century Americana, now for sale to whomever will perhaps keep the story going for another 68 years.

• 2052 Tampa Avenue [David Otero]
• Montclair “Mayor” Voting [Today In Montclair]
• Lovene Silddorf Obituary