The Oakland Board of Port Commissioners wants to redevelop terminal and airport land to boost property values, increase revenue and draw more people to the waterfront.
After requesting proposals from developers last fall to revamp Howard Terminal by Jack London Square, the Port of Oakland commissioners plan to offer three more sites up for redevelopment, the San Francisco Business Times reported, citing a new strategic plan.
On Monday the Board approved a 2025-2030 strategic plan that points to three key areas within the 875-acre port: the Oakland Airport, the Oakland Seaport and nearly 20 miles of waterfront including Jack London Square, plus a publicly owned utility.
Redevelopment sites would include 70 Swan Way, site of a former Hilton that closed last year within a crime-plagued Hegenberger corridor, where businesses have closed.
There’s the 27-acre Seaport Logistics Complex, where the Board is working on a second phase after PCC Logistics leased a new 460,000-square-foot warehouse.
And the Airport North Field, site of the original Oakland airport that now serves corporate and general aviation.
Howard Terminal and the Hilton property would be redeveloped first, while the airport and other waterfront areas are being considered for long-term projects, an unidentified spokesperson for the Port told the Business Times.
According to the plan, the Board plans to do a market study of its real estate holdings to pinpoint “opportunity sites” on Hegenberger, Doolittle Drive and along the Oakland waterfront.
The Board also wants to adopt a land-use plan and update zoning away from offices at the 400-acre Airport Business Park.
The strategic plan also includes goals for the Port’s seaport, airport and publicly owned utility to expand its economic base, modernize and upgrade infrastructure and transition to a zero-emissions facility.
The Board has solicited plans to redevelop the 50-acre Howard Terminal, once poised to become a retail village around a $1 billion ballpark for the A’s. The project collapsed after the A’s moved to Las Vegas.
Nearly a dozen proposals have come in to develop the terminal, including a plan by the Oakland Roots and Soul for a 25,000-seat soccer stadium. Another plan called for a 50-mile laser-blasted tunnel to an “inland port” in Tracy, in the Central Valley, according to the Business Times.
Read more
