Oakland City Center
Encyclopedia
Oakland City Center is an office and shopping
and hotel complex in Downtown Oakland
, California. The complex is the product of a redevelopment project begun in the late 1950s. It covers twelve city block
s between Broadway on the east, Martin Luther King Jr. Way. on the west, 14th Street on the north side of the complex and the Oakland Convention Center and Marriott Hotel extend south to 10th Street. An hourly parking garage is located beneath the complex's shopping mall. The mall features an upscale fitness and racquet club, in addition to numerous take-out
restaurants and other stores.
urban land planning policies which started in the mid to late twentieth century and continue into the present. A large section of ornate Victorian and Italianate style apartment buildings, with ground-floor retail shops in the center of Downtown Oakland, was appropriated by the city through the force of eminent domain
and demolished to make way for what was originally proposed to be an enclosed shopping mall, high-rise office buildings, a hotel, and an aboveground parking structure. In the draft Central District Plan, the Oakland Redevelopment Agency originally had an ambitious goal of razing 70 city blocks, but neighborhood residents and the Downtown Property Owner's Association objected, and the plan was scaled back to only 12 blocks between 10th and 14th Streets on the west side of Broadway. As reported in the archives of the Oakland Tribune, residents were evicted from several residential hotels for purported code enforcement reasons under an aggressive plan called "Opeation Padlock." Several pawnshops
and Oakland's Moulin Rouge Theatre were leveled. According to Dr. Richard A. Walker, professor of geography at the University of California, Berkeley, the much-beloved delicatessen, Ratto's, which had been in business since around the turn of the century, was threatened by demolition before citizen protest saved it.
The first office building, at 14th and Broadway, opened on December 18, 1973. The first skyscraper, the Clorox
Building, opened next door in 1976. However, construction stalled, and by the 1980s the mall still hadn't been built and most of the site was still vacant. The project was redesigned, with a smaller outdoor retail complex and new federal office building replacing the mall, and a partial restoration of the original street grid
. Several new buildings were completed in 1990, including the retail complex, named City Square, and 1111 Broadway, the new headquarters of the global shipping company American President Lines
(APL). Economic recovery of downtown Oakland was stalled by the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake
and a recession
in the early 1990s, and private development at City Center stopped for the next few years. Government payrolls were not affected; the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building
complex was completed in 1994, bringing more pedestrian traffic to the struggling mall.
In December 1996, Oakland City Center, including the development rights to the remaining undeveloped parcels, was sold to the Shorenstein Company
. The company planned to build four high-rise office buildings on the remaining four lots. Only one was built, 555 City Center, which was completed in 2002. The Shorenstein Company sold the development rights for one of the lots back to the city, which in turn sold it to the Olson Company, which is building market-rate condominium
s. The Shorenstein Company is now planning to build market-rate condominiums on one of the two remaining vacant parcels, and an office tower on the other. The latter was approved for construction in late 2007; on October 1, 2008, a groundbreaking gathering occurred for the tower.
In June 2010 the majority of the City Center was sold to CB Richard Ellis Investors
for $360 million.
Shopping
Shopping is the examining of goods or services from retailers with the intent to purchase at that time. Shopping is an activity of selection and/or purchase. In some contexts it is considered a leisure activity as well as an economic one....
and hotel complex in Downtown Oakland
Downtown Oakland
Downtown Oakland is the central business district of Oakland, California; roughly bounded by 6th Street or the Oakland Estuary on the southwest, Interstate 980 on the northwest, Grand Avenue on the northeast, and Lake Merritt on the east....
, California. The complex is the product of a redevelopment project begun in the late 1950s. It covers twelve city block
City block
A city block, urban block or simply block is a central element of urban planning and urban design. A city block is the smallest area that is surrounded by streets. City blocks are the space for buildings within the street pattern of a city, they form the basic unit of a city's urban fabric...
s between Broadway on the east, Martin Luther King Jr. Way. on the west, 14th Street on the north side of the complex and the Oakland Convention Center and Marriott Hotel extend south to 10th Street. An hourly parking garage is located beneath the complex's shopping mall. The mall features an upscale fitness and racquet club, in addition to numerous take-out
Take-out
Take-out or takeout , carry-out , take-away , parcel , or tapau , is food purchased at a...
restaurants and other stores.
History
Though not actually one of Oakland's neighborhoods, and with only newly established condominium residences, City Center in Oakland has a privately-owned outdoor shopping mall at its core. The mall is a textbook example of redevelopmentRedevelopment
Redevelopment is any new construction on a site that has pre-existing uses.-Description:Variations on redevelopment include:* Urban infill on vacant parcels that have no existing activity but were previously developed, especially on Brownfield land, such as the redevelopment of an industrial site...
urban land planning policies which started in the mid to late twentieth century and continue into the present. A large section of ornate Victorian and Italianate style apartment buildings, with ground-floor retail shops in the center of Downtown Oakland, was appropriated by the city through the force of eminent domain
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
and demolished to make way for what was originally proposed to be an enclosed shopping mall, high-rise office buildings, a hotel, and an aboveground parking structure. In the draft Central District Plan, the Oakland Redevelopment Agency originally had an ambitious goal of razing 70 city blocks, but neighborhood residents and the Downtown Property Owner's Association objected, and the plan was scaled back to only 12 blocks between 10th and 14th Streets on the west side of Broadway. As reported in the archives of the Oakland Tribune, residents were evicted from several residential hotels for purported code enforcement reasons under an aggressive plan called "Opeation Padlock." Several pawnshops
Pawnbroker
A pawnbroker is an individual or business that offers secured loans to people, with items of personal property used as collateral...
and Oakland's Moulin Rouge Theatre were leveled. According to Dr. Richard A. Walker, professor of geography at the University of California, Berkeley, the much-beloved delicatessen, Ratto's, which had been in business since around the turn of the century, was threatened by demolition before citizen protest saved it.
Clorox
The Clorox Company is a US-based manufacturer of various food and chemical products based in Oakland, California, which is best known for its bleach product, Clorox.- History :...
Building, opened next door in 1976. However, construction stalled, and by the 1980s the mall still hadn't been built and most of the site was still vacant. The project was redesigned, with a smaller outdoor retail complex and new federal office building replacing the mall, and a partial restoration of the original street grid
Grid plan
The grid plan, grid street plan or gridiron plan is a type of city plan in which streets run at right angles to each other, forming a grid...
. Several new buildings were completed in 1990, including the retail complex, named City Square, and 1111 Broadway, the new headquarters of the global shipping company American President Lines
American President Lines
American President Lines Ltd. is the world's seventh-largest container transportation and shipping company, providing services to more than 140 countries through a network combining intermodal freight transport operations with IT and e-commerce...
(APL). Economic recovery of downtown Oakland was stalled by the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake
Loma Prieta earthquake
The Loma Prieta earthquake, also known as the Quake of '89 and the World Series Earthquake, was a major earthquake that struck the San Francisco Bay Area of California on October 17, 1989, at 5:04 p.m. local time...
and a recession
Recession
In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction, a general slowdown in economic activity. During recessions, many macroeconomic indicators vary in a similar way...
in the early 1990s, and private development at City Center stopped for the next few years. Government payrolls were not affected; the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building
Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building
The Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building complex is a federal building complex in Oakland, California, constructed as part of the Oakland City Center redevelopment project. In 1998, the United States Congress passed a bill naming the building for former mayor and Congressman Ronald V. Dellums...
complex was completed in 1994, bringing more pedestrian traffic to the struggling mall.
Shorenstein Company
The Shorenstein Company, LLC, is one of the United States' largest and oldest privately owned real estate firms, owning interests in, or managing, some 20 million square feet of office space...
. The company planned to build four high-rise office buildings on the remaining four lots. Only one was built, 555 City Center, which was completed in 2002. The Shorenstein Company sold the development rights for one of the lots back to the city, which in turn sold it to the Olson Company, which is building market-rate condominium
Condominium
A condominium, or condo, is the form of housing tenure and other real property where a specified part of a piece of real estate is individually owned while use of and access to common facilities in the piece such as hallways, heating system, elevators, exterior areas is executed under legal rights...
s. The Shorenstein Company is now planning to build market-rate condominiums on one of the two remaining vacant parcels, and an office tower on the other. The latter was approved for construction in late 2007; on October 1, 2008, a groundbreaking gathering occurred for the tower.
In June 2010 the majority of the City Center was sold to CB Richard Ellis Investors
CB Richard Ellis
CBRE Group, Inc. , a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in Los Angeles, is the world’s largest commercial real estate services firm . The Company has approximately 31,000 employees , and serves real estate owners, investors and occupiers through more than 300 offices worldwide...
for $360 million.
See also
- ChinatownChinatown, Oakland, CaliforniaThe Chinatown neighborhood in Oakland, California, is a pan-Asian neighborhood which reflects Oakland's diverse Asian American community. It is frequently referred to as "Oakland Chinatown" in order to distinguish it from nearby San Francisco's Chinatown...
- Downtown OaklandDowntown OaklandDowntown Oakland is the central business district of Oakland, California; roughly bounded by 6th Street or the Oakland Estuary on the southwest, Interstate 980 on the northwest, Grand Avenue on the northeast, and Lake Merritt on the east....
- Jack London SquareJack London SquareJack London Square is a popular tourist attraction on the waterfront of Oakland, California. Named after the author Jack London and owned by the Port of Oakland, it is the home of stores, restaurants, hotels, an Amtrak station, a ferry dock, the historic Saloon, the cabin Jack London lived in the...
- Lakeside Apartments DistrictLakeside Apartments District, Oakland, CaliforniaThe Lakeside Apartments District neighborhood, also known as The Gold Coast, and simply as The Lakeside, is one of Oakland, California's historic residential neighborhoods between its Downtown district and Lake Merritt...
- Old OaklandOld OaklandOld Oakland, formally known as the Old Oakland Historic District, is a historic district in downtown Oakland, California. The area is located on the northwest side of Broadway, between the City Center complex and the Jack London Square district, and across Broadway from Chinatown.The Old Oakland...
- OaksterdamOaksterdamOaksterdam is a cultural district on the north end of downtown Oakland, California, where medical cannabis in a variety of competitively priced smokeable and edible preparations is available for purchase in multiple cafes, clubs, and patient dispensaries. Oaksterdam is located on the north end of...
- Uptown OaklandUptown OaklandUptown is a neighborhood in Downtown Oakland, California, located just north of the center of downtown. Its boundaries are ill-defined, but most definitions include the area bounded by Grand Avenue at the north, Telegraph Avenue on the west, City Center plaza on the south, and Harrison Street on...
External links
- Oakland City Center Interactive Map – Oakland Convention and Visitors Bureau
- Oakland City Center – official commercial site for the property