GONDOLAS18_071_LH.JPG Oakland's gondolas on Lake Merritt, have become a symbol of the gritty city's effort to buff up it's reputation, are leaving at the end of October. Angelino Sandri, an immigrant who brought his authentic gondolas from Venice

GONDOLAS18_071_LH.JPG Oakland's gondolas on Lake Merritt, have become a symbol of the gritty city's effort to buff up it's reputation, are leaving at the end of October. Angelino Sandri, an immigrant who brought his authentic gondolas from Venice in 1999, said he has better offer from a waterfront restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., that has offered him a free place to live and park his boats in an area with more walkup customers. Photographed by Liz Hafalia on 10/13/05 in Oakland, California. SFC Ran on: 11-02-2005 Gondolier Angelino Sandri takes Paul and Rosemarie Fahey of Scranton, Pa., on a sunset ride on Lake Merritt. Sandri moved his gondolas and business partners from Venice to the Bay Area in 1999. (Photo By Liz Hafalia/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)