More than 50 years after devastating urban renewal and the construction of a BART tunnel, 2.7 acres above the Lake Merritt BART station are being reactivated with mixed uses and reclaimed as part of Oakland’s Chinatown. The seven-story Building B will lead this two-block redevelopment with affordable senior housing above ground-floor, paseo-adjoining amenities and commercial restaurant space.
From a narrow site between 8th Street and the submerged BART line, Building B will establish a new gateway to Chinatown. A civic-scaled entrance facing Laney College will be one of three connectors between senior amenities and the programmed, landscaped paseo. Towards Chinatown, a gable roof caps the top floor lounge and outdoor terrace; below, the restaurant’s storefront transitions to the senior community room with help from richly patterned sunscreens. Transparency is further established at a stack of glazed elevator lobbies overlooking the paseo. The restaurant space is designed to incubate small businesses with local roots, and building exteriors present opportunities for public art. The project targets GreenPoint Rated Gold as an all-electric building, with operable and right-sized windows for natural light and ventilation, plenty of outdoors access, and utilization of its proximity to transit to eliminate on-site parking.
Building B is part of a larger transit-oriented development planned after over 10l years of conversations with hundreds of area residents and stakeholders. Subsequent phases include a market-rate residential tower on the other half of the block, a renovated public plaza, and office and affordable family housing with a daycare center at what is currently a low-rise office building.
Personnel
- Marcial Chao / PIC
- Mikki Asada / PA
- Parisa MirSadeghi / Design
Prpject Team (FDP Submittal)
- EinwillerKuehl / Landscape
- BKF / Civil
- Luma (PAE) / Lighting
- Bright Green Strategies / Sustainability
