Northbrae, Berkeley, California

Northbrae is a neighborhood in Berkeley, California built as part of the northern expansion of North Berkeley. Its technical border is Solano Avenue to the North, Spruce Street to the East, the Albany city limits to the West, and Hopkins Street, Yolo Avenue, and Eunice Street to the south. Northbrae however broadly refers to the upper half of North Berkeley starting at or around Rose Street but ending before Solano. It's bordered by the two commercial districts on Solano Avenue and Hopkins Street, as well as hilly terrain made up of volcanic rock, rhyolite, and 136 stairways carved into the landscape. The neighborhood is visibly distinct for its pink sidewalks and many stone pillars topped with concrete globes denoting street names. The central hub of Northbrae is the Fountain at the Circle, a water fountain designed by the head architect of the University of California surrounded by terra cotta roundabout and stairwell. Northbrae made it into the American Planning Association's list of Great Places in America in 2011.^[2][3]