Marina Carlson passed away July 12, 2020 at the age of 73 surrounded by her three children and her life partner, Chris Buckley, at her home. The cause of death was complications from lung cancer.
Marina played many different roles over the years, but her constant optimism, her love of beauty in all things, her passion for architecture, zoning and historic preservation, and her desire to make the City of Oakland a better and more beautiful place to live were constants in all that she did—as an artist, activist, community organizer, and a member of city government.
Marina Nikolaevna Carlson was born November 28, 1946 in New York City, to Nikolai M. Grushko, and Elizabeth (Blanoch) Grushko. Her father was a gypsy singer, owning the Balalaika, a cabaret behind Carnegie Hall on 56th Street that offered Russian folk songs and food, instilling a love of art and an ability to recreate beautiful, delicious Russian recipes.
Marina moved to the Bay Area with Peter Carlson in 1968 upon her graduation from Southern Connecticut State with a degree in Mathematics. They were married a year later and eventually made their home in Oakland, California. Marina and Peter came to love the historic homes in Oakland. Determined to make the city a better and more beautiful place, she became involved in the effort to beautify the city and preserve the many Victorian homes in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Oakland, and especially the Clinton and San Antonio areas. She started off working with Peter directly restoring several Victorian homes, including 2100 10th Avenue, and 1717 and 1715 Sixteenth Avenue. The latter two homes were picked up off of their foundations and moved more than a mile, showing her then small children and their friends that nothing was impossible—you could pick up a house and move it somewhere else.
Through her involvement with the Brooklyn Neighborhood Preservation Organization, she worked on numerous issues confronting the city and the neighborhood as an activist while raising her children. Among the early initiatives she led were the rezoning effort for the Brooklyn neighborhood, the designation of 10th Avenue Historic District, and the design of the 16th Avenue overpass, which she worked to beautify and stands in contrast to the 23rd Street Overpass. After divorcing, she began working in the Oakland Planning Department and on the staff of members of the City Council and Mayor Elihu Harris, continuing her advocacy within the government.
After leaving city government she continued to religiously attend Tuesday night city council meetings as she had for decades, courageously, sincerely and eloquently speaking her mind in front of large, often bitterly divided, crowds on numerous issues related to zoning and the built space that the city occupied, advocating for tree planting and forcing trees to be relocated rather than cut down. She also travelled extensively, visiting her far flung children and exploring the world with Chris.
Throughout her life she was also an artist, creating numerous original stained-glass windows that dot the neighborhood and are a constant reminder of her desire to bring beauty and originality to the work that she did. These can be seen in her home, as well as the homes she restored and are not entrusted to others who may not know their source.
Marina is survived by her three children, M. Jesse Carlson, W. Alexander Carlson, and Katherine E. Kamoshita, her five grandchildren, two nephews and a niece, Marina I. Mitchell, and her partner, Chris Buckley. She is predeceased by her brother, Nicholas N. Grushko, and sister, Alexandra N. Merkham.
Throughout her life, Marina displayed great patience in developing beauty, and was still improving upon the Queen Anne home at 2100 10th Avenue through various efforts to install original elements or create art. Among the visible traces of her efforts is the landscape design of the large backyard in the house, punctuated by three towering redwoods, the world’s most productive lemon tree, and two twenty-foot avocado trees. When her children were all still in grade school, there was only a lemon tree. But she planted and nurtured Redwood seedlings started by Chris, and took avocado seeds and hoped one day for fruit. The dozens of avocados, and redwood trees that started smaller than her children and which are now taller than her home are a testament to her perseverance and her optimism, and will be a constant reminder of her