Fruitvale Village

Oakland, California

The Fruitvale Village in Oakland, California, is a 257,000-square-foot mixed-use transit village providing mixed-income housing and community services. Built on former Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) parking lots by the nonprofit Unity Council, the village includes a pedestrian street and plaza, a retail-lined connector between a BART station and the neighborhood, 47 units of mixed-income housing, 114,000 square feet of community services, 38,000 square feet of retail shops and restaurants, and a 150-car parking garage. A health clinic offers a variety of medical and dental services, and a public library and senior center round out the village. The project strengthens existing institutions and revitalizes the neighborhood aesthetically, economically, and socially, catalyzing neighborhood revitalization and contributing the local economy by providing a stable source of jobs and income.

The Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence 2005 selection committee stated:

"Fruitvale Village used a familiar California architectural vernacular, based on pedestrian scale massing and bright color to create inviting public spaces."

The village offers a bold vision for transit-oriented development and responsiveness to community needs. It is impressive in the inclusive process conducted by the Unity Council and the creation of a new public outdoor space that celebrates ethnic and community identity.

Top photo: A street-level view of Fruitvale Village. Source: The Unity Council.

Similar Projects

Paseo Verde #thisisCNU

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Once a railway coal siding and more recently a full city block of asphalt surface parking, North Philadelphia’s Paseo Verde now provides affordable, high quality, sustainable housing for a range of income levels.

Willkommen Urban Infill

Cincinnati, Ohio

Over-the-Rhine (OTR) in Cincinnati is one of the nation’s best-known preservation stories, with reoccupied architecture in the last 15 years that rivals the finest historic districts in cities like New Orleans and Charleston—but the dist

Stora Torget

Karlstad, Sweden

In Karlstad, Sweden, a large block overlooking the main square was gutted by a fire. Redevelopment in this historic town center required cultural sensitivity and innovative thinking.