REIMAGINING OAKLAND’S
CENTRAL WATERFRONT
A rare opportunity to unlock Oakland’s next great waterfront neighborhood.
A vision is emerging at Embarcadero Cove — one that aims to breathe new life into aging commercial and industrial lands along Oakland’s Central Waterfront and open the door to a vibrant mixed-use district rooted in Oakland’s history, culture, and working waterfront identity.
The opportunity is significant: reconnecting people with the Estuary, supporting new housing and local business opportunities, expanding public access and recreation, and shaping a dynamic waterfront place that feels distinctly Oakland.
History
For generations, Oakland’s waterfront has been a place of movement, work, innovation, and exchange.
The Central Waterfront and Estuary have supported maritime commerce, industry, warehousing, manufacturing, food production, transportation, and the workforce that forms the backbone of Oakland’s economy and identity.
As shipping, industry, and land use patterns have changed, parts of the waterfront have evolved while others remain underused or difficult for the public to experience. Embarcadero Cove offers an opportunity to honor Oakland’s maritime heritage while imagining a more active, accessible, and inclusive future.
Embarcadero Cove is home to a varied mix of aging office, warehouse, commercial, light industrial, live/work, artist, maker, and adaptive reuse spaces. Its character is eclectic, authentic, and deeply connected to Oakland’s working waterfront.
Much of the area was built for an earlier era of waterfront use. As patterns of work, commerce, and public life continue to evolve, Embarcadero Cove presents an opportunity to rethink how this part of the waterfront can better serve Oakland today.
With thoughtful reinvestment, the area can become more active, accessible, and connected to nearby neighborhoods, the Estuary, and the Central Waterfront.
Today
Vision
A collaborative public-private partnership is central to realizing the opportunity at Embarcadero Cove.
The vision is for a vibrant mixed-use, mixed-income waterfront district with new housing opportunities for a range of Oakland households, neighborhood-serving businesses, public open spaces, improved shoreline access, and places for arts, culture, recreation, and community life.
The project team is working with public agencies, neighboring property owners, and community stakeholders to explore a thoughtful framework for future reinvestment.
The goal is a dynamic waterfront community that is distinctly Oakland: locally rooted, publicly accessible, economically productive, culturally authentic, and connected to the Estuary.
What’s Ahead
The Embarcadero Cove vision may include:
• New housing for a range of Oakland households
• Local, small, and neighborhood-serving businesses
• Arts, culture, maker, and creative spaces
• Improved walking and biking connections
• Bay Trail enhancements
• Public open spaces and community gathering places
• Active waterfront recreation
• Adaptive reuse of existing buildings where appropriate
• Better connections between the waterfront, nearby neighborhoods, and the broader Central Waterfront
Conceptual illustrations of what the future of
Embarcadero Cove may look like.
