Residents rip office tower proposal in Oakland
They say it’s too big for the neighborhood
A proposal to build a 13- story office complex on Forbes Avenue in Oakland came under fire Thursday from community groups and residents.
During a lengthy city zoning board of adjustment hearing, opponents blasted the development as being too tall and detrimental to the character of the neighborhood and the Forbes commercial corridor.
They also maintained the proposal by Wexford Science + Technology could exacerbate already limited parking options in Oakland even though the builder is proposing a 155- space garage as part of its plans.
“This site just seems not to be the appropriate site,” said Wanda Wilson, executive director of the Oakland Planning and Development Corp., which has tried unsuccessfully to negotiate a community benefits agreement with Baltimorebased Wexford.
The developer is seeking to build the new complex at 3440 Forbes. An existing building, which houses a CVS store, would be razed to make way for the new development.
Wexford is proposing streetlevel retail, three floors of parking, and nine floors office and lab space spread over 150,000 to 200,000 square feet of space.
Among its requests, Wexford is seeking a variance to raise the height of the building up to 188.6 feet, far above the maximum of 128 permitted at the site, according to the zoning board agenda.
Opponents, including city council president Bruce Kraus, who represents that part of Oakland, argued that at 188.6 feet, the structure is far too big and not in context with other buildings in that section of Forbes.
At most, the building should be 102 feet high, Ms. Wilson said.
“Really, they’re asking for essentially double the height allowed,” she said.
Ms. Wilson and others contended that Wexford created its own hardships by selecting a site that was too small for such a massive development.
By contrast, Wexford representatives maintained that the proposed complex isn’t much taller than others in that part of the Forbes corridor, pointing to buildings that ranged from 110 feet to 140 feet in height.
Their building needs to be taller than the permitted height to accommodate the type of lab space being planned, which requires more height than a traditional office floor. Because of city requirements, there’s also a need to build higher parking floors, officials insisted.
“We don’t feel it’s a detriment to the neighborhood,” said Abby Mountain, a senior associate with the Strada architectural firm representing Wexford.
As part of its concessions, Wexford set back part of the building 18 feet t o a c c o m m o d a t e t h e n e i g h b o r i n g H i l t o n Garden Inn, whose ownership supports the project.
The company also is planning a “district hall” on the first floor which would feature conference type space open to the public.
Joseph A. Reagan Jr., a Wexford senior vice president, said the proposed complex is in keeping with the Oakland Innovation District that is designed to take advantage of the nearby universities and hospitals.
But Ms. Wilson called that a “false notion,” saying there is no formal innovation district.
Not everyone who testified Thursday was opposed to the project. In addition to the Hilton Garden Inn ownership, the Oakland Business Improvement District supported the project.
The zoning board did not rule Thursday. Members requested additional filings from the various parties.
Member John J. Richardson acknowledged that there were “a lot of issues and code and legal interpretations” the board needed to weigh before rendering a verdict on the variance and two special exceptions.