[Note: I recall meeting a woman who had lived in Miramar Beach when, Maymie, the red-haired madam ran the famous Prohibition roadhouse (with “rooms” upstairs) today known as the Miramar Beach Inn. My contact told me she knew Miramar as “Balboa,” and that the street running parallel to the ocean was known as Balboa Blvd and that it ran all the way south to Half Moon Bay. She recalled that Maymie had towels and sheets and matches all emblazoned with the name “Balboa.” And she insisted on calling Miramar “Balboa.” John has found evidence of a possible “powerhouse” to be built in Balboa. Whether it appeared or not, we do not know at this point.]
Below is a snippet from John Vonderlin mentioning the town of Balboa.
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Hi June,
I’ve attached an Uncorrected Text excerpt about the town of Balboa. As usual HMBM is the only place I find any other mention of it with a cursory check. It’s actually a mentioning of the new OSR Power Plant, but talks of the new city on the 1300+ acres just north of that. Is there any sign of the power plant or was it developed as something else later? I think I remember there are other stories about it. Enjoy. John
Picetti, W.F. Burnham, Charles L. Black. SITE FOR POWER-HOUSE“Our work of condemning title to a right of way through the city is about completed,” said Attorney Corbett of the firm of Corbett & Goodwin, representatives of the company yesterday, and “we estimate that the total amount this way within the city limits will cost is $500,000. Work of clearing the route of buildings will begin immediately and but a short time remains before the road will be completed,.” Continuing, Mr. Corbett said, “this ???? the site for the power house of the company, which will furnish electricity to operate the cars from here to Santa Cruz was agree upon. This sit is just as the northern end of Half Moon Bay and in a splendid position. We have entered into a contract with the Standard OH Company for as much oil as we require at reasonable ????. The oil will be delivered at the power house to be used as fuel on barges that will be towed to the company’s pier on Half Moon Bay.
Just north of the powerhouse site the company owns 1300 acres of land and on this land Mr. Burnham of Chicago, the eminent architect, will lay out a model city [El Granada].
The directors of the corporation have agreed to name the new village Balboa in honor of the discoverer of the Pacific, and it is our hope that a splendid watering place, as the site warrants, will soon spring up. We have completed five miles of te railway from the Santa Cruz end of the line and more than twenty miles of grading. Now that the proceedings in eminent domain have been brought to a successful conclusion, we will be able to go to work, build out from the San Francisco terminal and drive things through to a speedy conclusion