Oakland’s Design Review Committee is scheduled to review updated designs for what could become the tallest skyscraper in the Bay Area outside of San Francisco. The 623-foot office tower will rise at 415 20th Street, two hundred feet higher than the current tallest building in Downtown Oakland, the Ordway Building. Hines is the project developer.
The San Francisco Arts Commission has attended the first of at least four presentations to review plans to reimagine the South Ocean Beach Waterfront. The project will add new community amenities, increase accessibility, and promote habitat restoration as part of the Ocean Beach Climate Change Adaptation Project in the Lakeshore neighborhood, San Francisco. The Ocean beach development is a multi-agency collaboration between the San Francisco Recreation and Parks, Public Utilities Commission, and Public Works, with private-industry involvement from Moffatt & Nichol and MFLA.
Recently published documents by the City of Oakland show that the Oakland Waterfront Ballpark District project could see two 600-foot towers beside the 35,000-person ballpark. If fabricated today, they would be the tallest skyscrapers in California outside of San Francisco and Los Angeles. Hines’ 622-foot proposal for Oakland at 415 20th Street is the only proposal that would be taller. The Oakland A’s are the project developer and sponsor, operating through the Oakland Athletics Investment Group LLC.
Plans for a 622-foot office tower at 415 20th Street are heading to the Oakland Design Review Committee on January 27th. If it is built as proposed, the tower will become the tallest skyscraper in Downtown Oakland and the tallest building in California to not be in Los Angeles or San Francisco. The review requests permit approval for the design, conditional use for a large project, and variance for the maximum setback. Ultimately, the Oakland Planning Commission will make the final decision. Hines is backing the proposal, working through 415 20th Street LLC.
The California State Government is implementing a few new laws to increase housing production, starting as early as tomorrow, January 1st, 2021. The headlining story is that the state density bonus for affordable housing will increase from 35% to 50%. That density bonus is in Assembly Bill 2345, introduced by Assembly Members David Chiu of San Francisco and Lorena Gonzalez of San Diego. While none of the new laws are expected to shift future development across the Bay Area significantly, they allow for a gradual increase in housing production statewide.