Urban Land Institute Hines Competition Finalist
Client: City of Oakland
Collaborators: Chandani Patel, Pranav Thole, Saad Boujane, Siddarth Somana
Just Oakland: Restorative Spatial Justice Framework is a project that prioritizes equity in its design to address the BIPOC community's historical barriers to physical and economic mobility. The project aims to reframe Oakland's divisive Nimitz freeway infrastructure as an urban commons that connects the neighbourhood and activates the site as a resource centre and place for justice. The proposal restores community trust by reclaiming existing law enforcement sites as institutions for restorative justice and community-run resource centres. The mixed-use development is anchored by cultural expression, affordable housing, and health, all of which drive the site's growth as a model for marginalized neighbourhoods. By positioning affordable commercial space and retail spaces for makers at this cultural intersection, the project strengthens the connection between the Black Arts Movement business corridor to the north and the Jack London Maker district to the south. An above-ground BART station is built on the site to mark a pivotal moment in the neighbourhood's access to public transportation networks in the Bay Area. This project promotes mobility, visibility, and a just approach to development that respects the rich cultural landscape and a resilient community.
This 2.6 million-square-foot mixed-use development project will be built in four phases over eight years, with 468 affordable housing units and commercial programs. The project will cost $1.7 billion, with funds coming from equity, senior debt, tax credits, tax-exempt bonds, and federal subsidies. On an unlevered basis, the project will generate a 9.1% IRR and a 1.22 multiple, and on a levered basis, it will generate a 24.6% IRR and a 1.22 multiple. The first phase will include a commuter rail station, Jefferson Park, and the Black Futures Underpass Museum, all of which will drive investment in the neighbourhood.
