The 80 family units at Fox Courts would not have been possible without intensive community advocacy in support of affordable housing in the Uptown Project, one of the first downtown developments under then Mayor Jerry Brown’s “10K” initiative.

PYATOK teamed with Resources for Community Development to enter a competition sponsored by Oakland’s Redevelopment Agency. The winning design brings together families, single adults, supportive services and on-site childcare at the heart of the Uptown development, directly across from the new neighborhood park. A pedestrian mews lined with stoops provides a through-block connection along the west.

Internally, the building is organized around two intimate scaled courtyards lined with open walkways serving two-story stacked townhomes. This arrangement is designed specifically to benefit families - providing the livability of a two-story dwelling, utilizing single-loaded corridors at every other floor, and allowing for natural cross ventilation.

The cultural diversity of the Fox Court households is captured in the terra cotta tiles and wall murals created by local artists.