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Here's how Oakland is planning for massive growth downtown
By Fiona Kelliher – Real estate reporter, San Francisco Business Times
Jan 17, 2019, 5:18pm EST

With a population projected to swell in the coming years, Oakland is bracing for a changing downtown.

That means planning for up to 29,000 new residential units and nearly 14 million square feet of office space in downtown alone, the city said in a new document — all while addressing many Oaklanders’ swirling questions about how Oakland can maintain its racial diversity and affordability . . . .

On Wednesday, the city released a draft plan for its downtown specific plan that laid out the city’s economic development priorities through 2040. The 300-page document tackles affordability, culture, global warming, land use and more. Oakland's new zoning for downtown development would allow for:

- Up to 29,000 new housing units
- 17.2 million square feet of new commercial space, including 13.8 million square feet of office
- 14,062 parking spaces

Those numbers aim to accommodate the projected 49,431 new residents and 59,598 new employees joining downtown before 2040.

The influx of people and new development also raises questions of equity. The city aims for 4,350 to 7,250 of the new units to be affordable and will also consider setting aside some housing for artists who meet "specific income and occupational requirements."

The city also may relax ordinances to make adaptive reuse of buildings easier.

Another stipulation? Adding an impact fee for condominium conversions and limiting the size of buildings that can be converted. Additionally, the city may expand the definition of "displacement."

https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfranc...town-plan.html