OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin is seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
Perfect for these socially-distanced times, Oakland’s new outdoor waterfront living room opened at Brooklyn Basin on Wednesday.
Created from the remains of the 9th Avenue shipping terminal built in 1930, Township Commons park was designed by Oakland-based Einwiller Kuehl Landscape Architecture. Liz Einwiller, Sarah Kuehl and their team managed to transform a once-blighted industrial waterfront into a public outdoor space while keeping key pre-existing features such as the eastern-facing historic terminal front, gigantic metal structural trusses and the skeleton of the triangle-shaped terminus on the western end.
Some retail has opened in what’s left of the 20,0000-square-foot terminal building, including Rocky’s Market, The Kitchen at Rocky’s Market with outdoor dining, and California Canoe & Kayak.
An acre of wooden decking on the pier with bright yellow oversized wooden chaise lounge chairs and benches scattered throughout gives the feel of a boardwalk, and developers plan to install public art in the future. The park also provides a connection to the Bay Trail.
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The Brooklyn Basin development and the new Township Commons park, bottom right, are seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: Brooklyn Basin residents Mike and Genevive Karlberg walk through the Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The Brooklyn Basin development and Interstate 880, upper left, are seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The 65-acre development will also include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: Darren Cockrell and his children Casey Levine, 4, and Marvin, 2, pause to watch the sunset as they bicycle through the Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The new Township Commons park and Brooklyn Basin development are seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: People sit on a grassy knoll at the new Township Commons park is seen at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The Brooklyn Basin development and the new Township Commons park, right, are seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: Brooklyn Basin residents Mike and Genevive Karlberg pause to watch the sunset while walking through the Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin is seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The new Township Commons park is seen at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The Brooklyn Basin development and the new Township Commons park, bottom right, are seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: A view of the new Township Commons park is seen at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The renovated shell of the the 9th Avenue shipping terminal at Brooklyn Basin and a part of the new Township Commons park, bottom, are seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The terminal was built in 1930, and the Einwiller Kuehl landscape architectural firm incorporated parts of it in the new design. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: People check out the new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin is seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: A view of the new Township Commons park is seen at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The Brooklyn Basin development and the new Township Commons park, bottom, are seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: A view of the new Township Commons park is seen at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin is seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The Brooklyn Basin development and the new Township Commons park, bottom, are seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The sun sets as seen from the new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin is seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. A marina, top, is under construction. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The sun sets as seen from the new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The Brooklyn Basin development and the new Township Commons park are seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: A view of the new Township Commons park is seen from the renovated 9th Avenue shipping terminal at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the terminal, which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: The new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin is seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: A view of the new Township Commons park is seen at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: A section of the new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin is seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: People sit outside at Rocky’s Market and take in the view of the sunset from the new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 19: Seats at the new Township Commons park at Brooklyn Basin are seen from this drone view in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. The park replaced the 9th Avenue shipping terminal which was built in 1930, but incorporated parts of it in the new design. The 65-acre development will include 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
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Oakland-based Signature Development Group is spearheading the Brooklyn Basin master plan in a partnership with Beijing-based Zarsion Holdings Group.
“Parks and public spaces are more important now than ever, and I’m happy we can provide a new outdoor space for Oaklanders to enjoy,” said Michael Ghielmetti, Signature’s president and founder.
The 4 1/2-acre public space is the first in the initial phase of the 65-acre development, which will include several marinas and residences in a range of styles including apartments, townhouses, lofts and condominiums. Two high-rise towers are also planned as well as 32 acres of parks along the Oakland Estuary.
“Township Commons is the centerpiece of the new and growing Brooklyn Basin neighborhood and provides a beautiful new community amenity. The space is designed to accommodate small gatherings, performances by local musicians and artists, and other community activities which we plan to offer when it is safe to do so,” Ghielmetti said.
