Rezone Lake Merritt

The View Corridor Study Moves Forward

2010-03-19T01:02:00.000-07:00

Two City meetings took place recently to review progress of the view corridor study - at the Landmarks Board and at the Zoning Update Committee. Presentations included photographs of significant views and discussion of basic mapping methodologies in view corridor studies, specifically the mathematics-based methodologies used to calculate building heights on a “rising line of sight” between the view point and the object. These meetings provided the first glimpse of the study and how it might operate to allow for adequate project sizes while preserving views of the Tribune Tower or City Hall from across Lake Merritt, among others. Here’s the staff report, http://bit.ly/9yYE8J, scroll to the links at the end of the report to see pictures and diagrams of view corridors.

The study recommends five views of downtown Oakland from Lakeside Park along Lakeshore Avenue. The Landmark Board endorsed the five views and forwarded their recommendation to the Zoning Update Committee (ZUC).

At the ZUC the following week, the same presentation was given along with the same recommendations regarding the five views. For this meeting, CALM submitted a supplemental set of photos since it was our sense that the photographs in the staff report did not accurately represent the views. Here are the photographs CALM submitted: http://bit.ly/bMGUjy

Rejected View of City Hall

After the staff presentation and public comments, however, the ZUC endorsed only two of the five views. The views are both from the same viewpoint: the East 18th Street Pier, with the ZUC calling the view of the Tribune Tower and of City Hall “separate views.” The esthetic value of the other three views, the commissioners said, is “too subjective” with regard to whether the views are truly unique, and they refused to recommend the other three views for preservation.

Accepted Views

The commissioners also expressed concern about the legality of view corridors relating to private property. This is somewhat puzzling since numerous California cities have successfully designated view corridors. It really seems the legal argument is more of way to obstruct the designation of view corridors by the pro-development planning commissioners. The ZUC members mentioned the possible loss of "tax revenues" because view corridors will limit project sizes. This, too, appeared to be an obstructing tactic, particularly so since deliberations on tax revenues are outside the mandate of the Planning Commission.

Naturally, CALM strenuously objects to the limited approach of the ZUC and will continue to advocate for the designation of all five views.

Rejected View of Tribune Tower

In separate development, City staff indicates they will recommend building heights of 400 feet along the 14th Street corridor. This is significant since, in 2009, the City Council set a temporary 85 foot building height limit along 14th Street between Madison and Harrison Streets. The 85 foot height will remain until the view corridor study is complete. The reason the council did this is two-fold. The first is the same reason as for the view study generally in ensuring views of downtown aren’t blocked. The second is that the City Council expressed concern that the Gold Coast neighborhood, the well-established, low-rise neighborhood abutting 14th Street to the north, would be adversely affected by such tall buildings. The exact expression by one council member was that she did not want the area to end up in a “canyon” surrounded by tall buildings.

The difficulty with staff’s pending 400 foot recommendation is that there is no analysis or discussion of conditions along 14th Street to support such a recommendation. No models, images, or drawings exist depicting 400 foot structures along the 14th Street corridor or how the area would be affected. Closely related to height and bulk considerations will be the shadows created by 400 foot buildings. No analysis exists in either case and no discussion took place at the ZUC or Landmarks Board.

Gold Coast Neighborhood

The unsupported 400 foot building height recommendation is the exact opposite of the very purpose of the view study, which is to reach a studied understanding of the effect of new high-rise construction in the downtown. It also directly contravenes City Council direction on the matter. As a matter of fact, it was the same 400 foot recommendation by staff in 2009 that spurred the council to enact the interim height limits. Staff is proposing the same 400 foot height without any study or new information. CALM has asked, and will continue to ask, staff to provide visual representations and a rationale for the 400 foot recommendation.

Report on the First Two Meetings for the View Corridor Study

2010-02-15T22:37:00.000-08:00

Two preliminary meetings for the View Corridor study took place recently attended by representatives of CALM, Oakland Heritage Alliance, Oakland Builders Alliance, and a representative from the City’s Landmarks Board. Both meetings were conducted by Laura Kaminski, a planner with the City of Oakland.

The first meeting took place on site along Lakeshore Avenue during which all possible views the Tribune Tower and City Hall were considered. As the first step, this inventory of views does not attempt to eliminate views or make final decisions. It was a modest kick-off allowing us to meet and to photograph and document the views.

The second meeting took place at City offices on February 10th. Ms. Kaminski had made considerable progress on the study and it was apparent to all of us that the City is taking the study seriously.

The 14th Street Corridor Will Be Included in the View Corridor Study

We reviewed several documents including aerial photos and parcel maps with the corridors plotted across them. The photos and maps clearly show the corridors as they traverse parcels in downtown Oakland. We then reviewed a preliminary inventory of views based on the Lakeshore walk which includes eight separate view points in a series of 24 photographs. The commentary for the inventory discusses the factors which contribute to the uniqueness of a given view, the positive/negative aspects of each view, and the quality of each view taking into account whether views are partial or full views of the building being view, i.e., Tribune Tower or City Hall.

We also reviewed preliminary building height limits within the identified view corridors the Central Business District. The preliminary heights were obtained using methodologies similar to Portland and Austin’s height calculation formulas. Both of those cities designated view corridors and building heights using triangulation methods to calculate maximum heights of new buildings while retaining desired views of existing ones.

The high quality of the planning work was evident and everyone was generally pleased with the progress. There was discussion about whether to expand the study more broadly to all parts of Lake Merritt or to the greater central business district. The consensus was, however, because of the on-going budget constraints, especially the spending cuts approved by the City
Council on February 16, and that this is a new type of planning for the City, the limited study is a better approach and will achieve a desired result more quickly.

The first public draft of the study will be presented at the next Landmarks Board meeting on March 8 and then at the Zoning Update Committee on March 18.

Notes on the View Corridor Study

2010-01-19T22:07:00.000-08:00

The City of Oakland will soon begin a view corridor study in order to preserve scenic views of downtown. This is occurring at the direction of the City Council in July, 2009. During the downtown rezoning at that time, there was wide spread community support for a view corridor study. Much of that support came from a growing awareness that views of downtown from Lake Merritt were being lost behind the slow but persistent development of high-rise buildings at the edge of Lake Merritt. This was especially true for views of City Hall and the Tribune Tower which could easily be lost forever with the addition of only two or three more high-rises.

Even though view corridors are new to Oakland, they are well known elsewhere. And, because a number of cities, such as Cincinnati,OH (whose study has a number of sections), Austin, TX, and even Sacramento, have conducted them, Oakland won’t need to start from scratch. I think the study that Seattle did for the Space Needle is pretty interesting, too. A review of these studies of other cities is helpful to quickly understand what a view corridor study entails and how such a study is undertaken. Some of the views at Lake Merritt can be seen on Flickr

There are some interesting themes across the studies that are worth mentioning. First, cities often start view studies with a common sense of agreement among constituencies – government, preservation, and development - that preserving views of historic buildings, architecturally-significant structures, and natural features, is worthwhile and has tangible positive benefits for a city. At the same time, the studies typically demonstrate an explicit understanding of the need to strike a balance between view preservation and the development goals of a city.

A second striking feature is how seriously cities approached the task of conducting a view corridor study. Each undertook open processes to ensure that objective criteria were used. From there, they identified and analyzed views, cataloguing the strengths and weakness of specific views, and then producing final reports and recommendations. The use of such objective standards and a public process resulted in high-quality and credible policy and implementation documents. There is a lot that Oakland can learn from the efforts of other cities in this regard.

For example, cities typically conducted an inventory of all possible scenic views with no attempt to eliminate views at the beginning. Views were later evaluated using a set of criteria such as: quality of the object being viewed (historic, or otherwise); the characteristics of the view point (pedestrian oriented, or otherwise); the amenities available at view point (benches, pedestrian, or otherwise); whether a view is seasonal, or year-round (or otherwise), etc. These characteristics were assigned values and final judgments were made whether or not to preserve specific views.

In practice, initial inventories collected baseline information on many more views than were finally selected. For example, Cincinnati began with 93 views, of which 48 were given high ratings. (Note: Cincinnati is older and larger than Oakland, and the topography is hilly with a large river running next to downtown. These features in Cincinnati create views not available within Oakland’s topography.) Likewise, the study for the Space Needle in Seattle began with an initial inventory of 86 separate views. That city eventually designated 10 views for preservation.

We should expect Oakland’s study to unfold in a similar manner, beginning with an inventory of all possible views from Lakeshore Avenue and perhaps other areas at the perimeter of Lake Merritt. While some of the most dramatic views of City Hall and the Tribune Tower are from the park land and walkways along Lakeshore Avenue, there might be other less obvious views to consider. As to finishing the study, no timeline is available yet for the Lake Merritt portion. CALM has suggested that the study might be concluded and forwarded to the City Council for final adoption on or before July, 2010. Keeping to this time table will fulfill the City Council's wish in 2009 to finish the view corridor study in one year.

Next Up - View Corridor Study

2010-01-10T19:50:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everybody and welcome back to Rezone Lake Merritt. As you might recall, when rezoning in the Central Business District last year, the Oakland City Council directed City staff conduct a view corridor study. The study will identify significant views of historic and architecturally significant buildings and determine how views of those buildings might be affected by new-rise development projects. The Council singled out the Tribune Tower and City Hall for special emphasis. You can read more about this on page four, item 12, of the 2009 Rezoning Ordinance. CALM anticipates that a number of well-known and popular view corridors will be designated for preservation, especially between Lakeshore Avenue and the downtown.

The view corridor study will begin soon and CALM will be an active participant. We'll provide details of any meetings, along with reports and graphics as they occur and by way of the "Rezone the Lake" emails from John Klein, similar to last year, and through posts in this blog. The blog will be refomatted slightly soon, also, and will therefore look a little different next time. At that time, in the next week or so, there will be more detailed information regarding the view corridor study.

Please let me know if you'd like to be removed from this email list, or if you know of others who might like to be added to the email list.

On behalf of CALM,
John

Rezoning Moves to the City Council

2009-04-23T21:42:00.000-07:00

On April 15, the Planning Commission gave its final approval to new Central Business District zoning regulations. The commission also voted to send the recommendations to the City Council; the Community and Economic Development Committee will be the first City Council body to consider the rezoning, probably in May.
April 15, 2009 Staff Report

Downtown Rezoning at the Planning Commission

2009-04-05T21:44:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday April 15 at 8:00 pm, the full Planning Commission will consider the CBD rezoning for the first time. With the rezoning now with the full Commission, the rezoning process has moved into a new phase since the full Commission is more closely watched by City Council members and the public. CALM hopes that this greater exposure will help to build more support for limiting the heights of new buildings along Lakeside Drive. Everyone is encouraged to attend the Planning Commission meeting to support the 55-foot proposal. However, if you are not able to attend, the meeting will be broadcast live on KTOP.

January 2009 Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board Recommendations

2009-01-17T12:50:00.000-08:00

On January 12, 2009, the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board finalized major recommendations regarding historic properties and districts in the Central Business District (CBD). While most of the discussion focused on refinements to the Fine-Grain Zoning approach for historic districts and properties, the Landmarks Board did make a recommendation regarding new buildings at the Lake Merritt edge. You can see the staff report here: January 12, 2009, LPAB Staff Report

A significant issue being discussed is the preservation of view corridors into the CBD and views of historic buildings such as the Tribune tower and City Hall. There are numerous policies on preserving views listed in General Plan documents including the 1998 EIR for the General Plan, the Land Use and Transportation Plan, and the Open Space Conservation and Recreation Plan. Each of these documents contains policies promoting the preservation of views and view corridors and each proposes mitigations, including limiting building heights through zoning. The Landmarks Board identified a number of “scenic vistas” to be preserved in the CBD, including views from Lakeshore Ave.

Secondly, because most of the area of Lakeside Drive where building height limits are sought is an Area of Primary Importance, the Landmarks Board addressed the area directly. It should be noted that the Landmarks Board has not made specific height recommendations for any area of the CBD, including along Lakeside Drive. For Lakeside Drive, the Board’s recommendation is to limit the lot area utilized by new buildings. Specifically, new buildings may only cover 50% or 70 feet (whichever is less) of the direction of the lot running parallel to Lakeside Drive. For example, if the portion of a lot paralleling Lakeside is 200 feet long, a new building is limited to 70 feet and must leave the remaining 130 feet open in order to preserve the view corridors into downtown.

The Board’s recommendation does not address building heights which is an issue that still needs to be addressed since ZUC staff is still recommending heights of 170 and 275 feet along Lakeside Drive. We will continue to pursue reduced building heights with the Planning Commission.

Notes on Zoning Update Committee October 29 Meeting

2008-10-31T10:18:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday October 29, several stakeholder groups provided their thoughts and vision for Oakland to the Zoning Update Committee. These groups included the Chinatown Chamber of Commerce, Oakland Builders Alliance, Oakland Heritage Alliance, CALM, and East Bay Housing Coalition.

There appear to be two main areas still requiring resolution: 1) what will be the final and permitted building heights along the downtown edge of Lake Merritt and 2) the final implementation strategy for the Fine Grain approach to zoning as the method for accomplishing historic preservation and economic development downtown.

With regard to building height limits, it is fair to say that the process has reached an impasse. The impasse is the result of the City of Oakland's unjustified position to permit buildings of 170 feet and higher in some areas by the Lake. This is in clear contrast to CALM's proposal for 55 foot height limits. Please see the staff report here: October 29, 2008, ZUC Staff Report

CALM's presentation focused entirely on specific General Plan policies and provisions which require the City to maintain and enhance the Gold Coast neighborhood, respect and preserve the historic properties and districts, and to protect important views into and away from downtown. CALM also pointed out that the General Plan directs new high-density housing away from the Gold Coast and Lake area.

It is clear that City staff has not considered the policies and directives of the General Plan in its height recommendations by Lake Merritt. CALM was please to be the first to bring actual General Plan materials into the rezoning process. The entire rezoning process for the CBD was initiated by the City Council in December, 2007, for the express purpose of bringing the Zoning Code into compliance with Oakland's General Plan. CALM will continue to press for limited building heights at Lake Merritt in compliance with Oakland's General Plan.

October 6 Combined Central Business District Rezoning Meeting

2008-10-05T09:00:00.000-07:00

On Monday October 6, a combined meeting of the Zoning Update Committee (ZUC) and the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board (LPAB) will take place to consider the LPAB's comments and recommendations on potential strategies, regulations, and incentives to retain and protect historic resources in the Central Business District (CBD). The ZUC previously requested the LPAB review proposed amendments to the zoning regulations in the CBD. In response, the LPAB held a series of meetings in July, August, and September which included public input from CALM, Oakland Heritage Alliance, Oakland Builders Alliance, and other interested parties.

The LPAB has now issued its report and recommendations based on those meetings and the combined meeting will consider the LPAB's recommendations on the 6th. You may read the staff report here: October 6 Combined ZUC/LPAB Staff Report

Most notably for CALM, the LPAB has tentatively recommended the 55 foot height limit along Lakeside Drive at the edge of Lake Merritt. The exception in this regard is that the LPAB recommends the somewhat higher building height of 85 feet at 19th Street and in the vicinity of Snow Park. We will continue to advocate the 55 foot limit for the entire area along Lakeside Drive, but we are encouraged by the LPAB recommendations at the Lake.

Additionally, CALM is pleased with many of the recommendations in the report, especially the report's detailed consideration of the effect of building heights on historic properties and areas. The LPAB recommends using a "Fine-Grain" approach to the rezoning with respect to historic resources. This approach identifies sub-areas in the CBD in order to align height with identified historic districts, such as the Lakeside Apartment District by the Lake, in order to maintain the integrity of historic districts and properties.

The October 6 combined meeting of the ZUC and LPAB will take place in Hearing Room 1, City Hall, One Frank H. Ogawa Plaza at 5:30pm.

Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board Considers Lake Merritt Height Limits

2008-09-16T18:20:00.001-07:00

September 15, 2008, LPAB Staff Report

Recap of August ZUC Meetings

2008-09-16T17:53:00.000-07:00

On August 20, the ZUC met to continue the CBD rezoning discussion. CALM made clear its disapproval of the increase in recommended building heights at the Lake since the ZUCs last meeting. Staff had changed its recommendation from 150 feet to 170 feet with no explanation for the increase in either the staff report published before the meeting or from the ZUC during the meeting.

Numerous other speakers expressed their displeasure with the increase. The ZUC took our comments, along with numerous comments from citizen and from Oakland Heritage Alliance.

Happily, without changing the staff recommendation, the ZUC did not adopt or approve the recommendation but instead scheduled additional hearings. This is a long process but CALM is encouraged that the recommnedation was not adopted. It was only two months ago, in July, that CALM made its 55 foot height limit proposal. We feel like we are making progress and we will continue to meet with the ZUC and advocate development controls and height limits at the edge of Lake Merritt.
August 20, 2008 ZUC Staff Report

Two Meetings In August

2008-08-01T07:12:00.000-07:00

There will be two meetings during August at which rezoning at Lake Merritt will be discussed. The first will be the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board (LPAB) on August 11 at 6:00 pm in Hearing Room One at City Hall. Rezoning of the entire Central Business District including Lake Merritt will be discussed. August 11, 2008, LPAB Staff Report

The LPAB has been asked by the Zoning Update Committee to make recommendations regarding historic preservation issues to be considered in the downtown rezoning the CBD. CALM will make a presentation about the history of the park land at Lakeside Drive and also about the historic buildings within the 300' zone where heights should be limited. We will ask the LPAB to recommend adoption of our 55' height limit proposal at Lakeside Drive to the zoning committee.

The second meeting will be walking tour sponosored by City of Oakland for the Zoning Update Committee. This tour will be on Monday, August 18 from 5:30 - 7:30. As part of the rezoning process for the Central Business District, staff will be leading a walking tour of a portion of downtown near Lake Merritt. More information will be circulated including a map and meeting location as things get finalized. The walking tour will discuss issues such as historic buildings, height and bulk regulations, building design, and other subjects related to the proposal. August 18, 2008, ZUC Walking Tour

Zoning Update Committee Meeting-July 16

2008-07-13T23:49:00.000-07:00

The Zoning Update Committee will again consider and take public comments regarding rezoning of the Central Business District on Wednesday July 16 at 4:00 pm at City Hall in Hearing Room One.

CALM will make a detailed presentation at the meeting and we are asking everyone who supports building height limits at Lake Merritt to send messages to the Commissioners. For those who can attend the meeting, you are encouraged to do so, to speak, or to otherwise express your support.

MICHAEL COLBRUNO (Chair)Email: michaelcolbruno@clearchannel.com
DOUGLAS BOXER Email:dboxer@gmail.com
ANNE E. MUDGE Email: amudge@coxcastle.com
Neil Gray, Planner III, City of OaklandEmail: NGray@oaklandnet.com

Proposal for Lake Merritt and the Gold Coast

2008-07-11T22:43:00.001-07:00

CALM's Proposal for Lake Merritt and the Gold Coast

Community Meeting at Snow Park, July 12

2008-07-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

CALM is sponsoring a community meeting at Snow Park near the corner of 19th and Harrison Streets on Saturday July 12 at 1:00 pm. We will be providing further information and updates on our effort to limit building heights at the downtown edge of Lake Merritt. We hope you can join us for this short time so that we can meet one another and build support for this effort.

Staff Reports on Rezoning the Central Business District

2008-06-25T21:20:00.000-07:00

July 16, 2008, Zoning Update Committee Staff Report

June 9, 2008, Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board Staff Report

May 21, 2008, Zoning Update Committee Staff Report

April 16, 2008, Zoning Update Committee Staff Report

March 19, 2008, Zoning Update Committee Staff Report

Contacts for the Next Zoning Update Committee

2008-06-22T12:36:00.000-07:00

For a number of years, it has been apparent to many Oakland residents and Lake-users that building height limits are needed along the edge of Lake Merritt. Because the City of Oakland is currently rezoning the edge of the Lake, now is the time to accomplish this. Tribune Article

On July 16, 2008, the Zoning Update Committee (ZUC) will again discuss rezoning in the Central Business District (CBD). As you know, the Coalition of Advocates for Lake Merritt (CALM) is spear-heading an effort to rezone the edge of Lake Merritt for lower building heights. We are asking for heights to be limited to 55' or 5/6 floors within 300' of Lakeside Drive along the length of Lakeside Drive from 14th Street at the Fire Alarm site to Snow Park. This area is also known as the Gold Coast neighborhood.

WE ARE ASKING EVERYONE WHO SUPPORTS LIMITING BUILDING HEIGHTS AT LAKE MERRITT TO NOW PLEASE EXPRESS THIS TO THE ZONING UPDATE COMMITTEE.

Following are some of the important reasons why CALM is making the proposal for height limits:

-Tall buildings are often out of context with many of the historic buildings in the Gold Coast neighborhood.

-Allowing new tall buildings will encourage the destruction and replacement of lower, historic buildings.

-Views looking toward and away from Lake Merritt are obstructed by tall buildings and create a "wall" at the edge of the Lake.

-Sunlight and solar access are blocked by tall buildings, which also degrade the open space of park lands surrounding the Lake or next to tall buildings.

Below is the contact information for each ZUC member and also for Neil Gray, the City of Oakland planner who works directly on the rezoning.

DOUGLAS BOXER (Chair)
Phone: (510)286-2937, Fax: (510)835-0415
Email: dboxer@gmail.com

MICHAEL COLBRUNO (Vice-Chair)
Phone: (510)835-5900; Fax:(510)663-4662
Email: michaelcolbruno@clearchannel.com

ANNE E. MUDGE
Phone (415) 392-4200; Fax: (415) 392-4250
Email: amudge@coxcastle.com

Neil Gray, Planner III
City of Oakland
Phone: (510)238-3878
Email: NGray@oaklandnet.com

CALM is asking everyone to call, write or email each member of the ZUC and Mr. Gray. This is one of the most important steps to take in getting the height limits: we must let the ZUC and the City know who we are and know what we want for this area of the Lake.

We suggest that you include any or all of the points mentioned above or you may copy from the following short statement (which is from CALM's petition). Of course, feel free to express your own thoughts on the subject to the ZUC as well:

"The Gold Coast is a diverse urban community with an abundance of culturally-significant buildings two to six stories in height which should be preserved and enhanced. High-rise buildings in close proximity to the Lake will have severe and damaging impacts on the character of this community and will also degrade the natural environment and open space of Lake Merritt and its adjacent park lands."

"I/we urge the Zoning Update Committee to adopt CALM's proposal to limit building heights within 300' of Lakeside Drive at Lake Merritt to no more than 55' or 5-6 stories."

Whatever you do in this regard, whether you call, write, or email, will be greatly appreciated.

Finally, CALM is planning a short community meeting on Saturday July 12 in the Lake area to get to know each other and to share information and contacts for the rezoning effort. We will let you know the time and location as soon as possible but please reserve a little time that day, if you can.

Views of the Current Situation

2008-06-21T17:19:00.001-07:00

Looking east toward Lake Merritt from Jackson Street. Although the "wall of buildings" facing the lake on Lakeside Drive is very evident, there are still significant view corridors to be preserved (click on the images for close-up views).

View corridor at the corner of 17th Street & Lakside Drive. Both apartment buildings face Lakeside Park which is immediately across the street.

Looking north along Jackson Street and outward toward Lake Merritt from inside the Gold Coast neighborhood. Note the predominate low-rise character of the area and the row of high-rise structures at the edge which is Lakeside Drive and 19th Street.

Looking east toward Lake Merritt from Madison Street with the Scottish Rite Temple to the far right. Madison Street in this area is comprised almost entirely of low-rise apartment buildings. This picture clearly shows a portion of the "wall of buildings" which block views and access to Lake Merritt.

View corridor along 17th Street looking toward Lake Merritt. Replacing the short, blue building on the lower left of the picture with a 10-12 story structure would create a "street wall" along this section of 17th Street. (See below)

Under the current rezoning proposal for this section of 17th Street, the short pale-blue building on the left (17th & Jackson Streets) could be replaced by a 10-12 story building which is the height of the building immediately behind it. The buildings on this street are all within 300' of Lakeside Drive.

The pictures above and below show view corridors and historic properties which can be preserved by limiting building heights along Lakeside Drive.

Cameron-Stanford House at 14th and Lakeside Drive.

View corridor from Madison Street toward Lake Merritt

Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board, June 9, 2008

2008-06-08T06:59:00.000-07:00

The Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board (LPAB) will receive an Informational Presentation regarding the current rezoning initiative in the CBD. The meeting will be at 6:00 pm in Hearing Room One at City Hall. The LPAB will consider the rezoning more broadly at a future in order to provide recommendations to the Zoning Update Committee and the Planning Commission on the protection of historic resources.

This will be the first public meeting at which CALM will present the plan for lower building heights within 300' of Lakeside Drive in the Gold Coast neighborhood. We urge everyone who supports the 6 story/300' proposal to either attend the meeting on June 9 or to contact the Community and Economic Development Agency contacts regarding the rezoning. They are: Neil Gray at 510-238-3878, ngray@oaklandnet.com and Eric Angstadt, eangstadt@oaklandnet.com.

CALM's Rezoning Proposal for the Gold Coast Neighborhood

2008-06-07T21:25:00.001-07:00

As part of the City of Oakland's current initiative to rezone the Central Business District, CALM proposes that the City adopt zoning regulations specifically for the Gold Coast neighborhood. The zoning proposed by CALM is to limit building heights to 55' or five to six floors within 300' of the Lakeside Drive along the western edge of Lake Merritt. These limitations will apply to the area beginning at 14th Street & Lakeside Drive (including the Fire Alarm site) and follow Lakeside Drive to Snow Park. From this Lakeside Drive line, the zone extends 300' into the Gold Coast neighborhood. May 21, 2008, ZUC Staff Report

CALM

2008-06-07T21:05:00.001-07:00

The Coalition of Advocates for Lake Merritt (CALM) is an all-volunteer group of Oakland residents, professionals, and activists focused on protecting and improving the environs at Lake Merritt and preserving its surrounding parks and historic neighborhoods. CALM has been active in Oakland since 2001 when the City of Oakland offered to sell park land on 12th Street at the south end of Lake Merritt for private development. Cathedral

As an alternative to selling park land, CALM submitted a community-based proposal to remove traffic lanes and reclaim park land at 12th Street. The proposal was eventually accepted by the City and became part of the Lake Merritt Master Plan. Lake Merritt Master Plan Soon after, Measure DD was placed on the ballot by the Oakland City Council and included the CALM plan. Measure DD passed by a margin of 80% - 20% in 2002 and has already funded numerous restoration and reclaimation projects throughout Oakland, and will reclaim park land at Lake Merritt and reconnect it to the Lake. Measure DD

This blog deals with the City of Oakland's 2008 initiative to rezone the Central Business District (CBD). Working within this rezoning process, CALM's membership and supporters are providing specific proposals to preserve the historic buildings, social fabric, park land, and open space of the Gold Coast neighborhood of the CBD. CBD Rezoning Map