Fairfax’s Alpine Building, by Scott Fletcher

The corner of Bolinas Road and Broadway has long been the commercial and social hub of the Town of Fairfax. One of the early town landowners, Martin Peterson, built his home on the site in 1900 and when Henry Frustruck bought Fairfax Park in 1905 he converted the home into the town’s second saloon, The Fairfax Park Annex. It lost its liquor license in 1912 and Frustruck opened the Fairfax Park Coffee & Lunch House and a real estate office to sell lots in nearby Fairfax Park. 

The Alpine Building, pictured above was built in 1920 by longtime Fairfax resident Frank Healion for $24,000. Frank Healion’s family owned a ranch where White Hill School is today and some of his early jobs included delivering milk from his family's ranch, taking the 1910 census on horseback, and working as an extra in early westerns filmed in Fairfax. 

The new two-story building housed a grocery store, a 12-stool soda fountain, meat market, tailor and shoe repair on the ground floor and professional offices on the second floor. In 1927 the first branch of the Marin County Free Library opened doors on the Alpine Building’s second floor. The well-dressed family crossing Broadway are heading to the train depot where the present day Parkade sits. Also seen in the photo at right are two early buildings that are still standing. Notice that in this earlier, less-hectic era there are no crosswalks, stop signs or speed limit postings!