Behind downtown Oakland's Office and Housing Boom

Categories: Homes Planning Real Estate Residents

Published 12/19/2019

Downtown Oakland’s development has been long coming, but the 2008 recession delivered a critical blow to the proposed plan. Freezing practically all development in Oakland until around 2015, as high priced rents were driving the residents and organizations out of San Francisco eastbound.

Now, a flood of relocation from San Francisco alongside nearby business development has made Oakland one of the most sizzling neighborhood economies in the nation. Extra office ventures totaling in excess of 4 million square feet, or space for 20,000 additional workers, are under development or scheduled in Downtown Oakland, which presently has around 80,000 total jobs.

Many new residential projects are in progress with easy BART access and closeness to new eateries and bars. Downtown Oakland is seeing the largest housing development wave in decades, specialists say. “The perception of Oakland is changing drastically, and the Oakland skyline going to be stunning,” said Benjamin Scott, Founder of Advent Properties, Inc.

A draft plan calls for 61,000 new openings and about 30,000 new homes downtown, up to a fourth of them affordable, by 2040. The city could enforce expenses and require progressively affordable housing to help meet those goals. Under 7% of the 9,304 homes being developed citywide are affordable, despite fees on market-rate housing passed in 2016.

While many of the new projects already have full tenant commitments, we’re currently leasing two properties in close proximity of Downtown Oakland, at 3210 Adeline Street & 311 2nd Street.

One of the most notable organizations migrating to Oakland is Kaiser Permanente, who plans to build a $900 million headquarters that would be the largest office building in Oakland. While BART plans to buy a renovated building at 2150 Webster Street for a new headquarters. One of BART’s neighbors will be the Sierra Club, which moved to Oakland in 2016, after 124 years in San Francisco, to save on rent. Which seems to be a high priority for residents and businesses alike. San Francisco tech firms Square and Credit Karma have also signed major Oakland office expansions, following Kaiser Permanente.

“I think we’re right at the tip of the iceberg of the potential of what can happen,” said Morten Jensen, president of Oakland architecture firm JRDV. Jensen views affordable housing as an overwhelming issue, however with BART being the backbone of neighborhood economic development, he additionally needs to see regional lawmakers focus on increasing transit expansion.

“It’s time for Oakland to assume a larger role in the Bay Area. Transportation is really key to this,” Jensen said. “It’s not just Oakland by itself. It’s Oakland linking to the entire region.”

Oakland is thinking greater! Since 2015, the city has been taking a shot at a Downtown Plan that will control development throughout the following 20 years. The arrangement was restarted in 2017 to concentrate more on value and advantages for existing occupants, especially marginalized communities of color.

If you are interested in relocating to Downtown Oakland, 3210 Adeline Street & 311 2nd Street are still available for lease. Please contact Trimaine Eley to schedule a showing at a time of your convenience, call (510) 967-7896 or email leasing2@adventpropertiesinc.com.