Both of Lake Merritt’s city council members invite you to a Town Hall meeting to discuss zoning and proposed high-rises around the Lake on Wednesday, January 31, from 6 to 9 PM, at the Lake Merritt Garden Center.

Council member Nadel poses the question:

How do you envision the long-term skyline around our jewel of Lake Merritt? A solid ring of 30-plus story towers? An undulating line of old and new architecture? Gradations of building heights stepping back from the Lake?

As a pedestrian walking the lake, will your walk be mostly in shadow? Will you be blown about by gusts of wind coming from between the towers like walking some streets in San Francisco, New York, and Chicago?

Currently, zoning for this area could allow a solid ring of high-rises around the lake. We want you to help us craft the crown of our jewel with more thoughtful artistry.

Sponsored by District 2 council member Pat Kernighan and District 3 council member Nancy Nadel, the topics discussed will include

  • Blocked view corridors, for pedestrians, autos, and residents
  • Creation of wind corridors
  • Light/glare
  • Shadows on open space and the lake
  • Adverse impacts to existing visual/neighborhood character
  • Community input on standards and alternatives.

Marisa Arrona, policy analyst for Council Member Nadel, further explained that:

The Town Hall meeting will serve as an information exchange. We want the City planning staff to inform community members regarding the high-rise developments that are “in the pipeline,” as well as to inform us of the zoning around the lake, and what height standards may or may not be feasible to mitigate the effects of high-rise developments around the lake.

On the other end of that information exchange, we also want to hear from community members what they do and do not want to see around Lake Merritt, what ideas residents might have to mitigate the effects of high-rise development, etc.

The meeting will be held in the Vista Room of the Lake Merritt Garden Center at 666 Bellevue Avenue. [map] (Bellevue Avenue is one-way at that point, so enter Bellevue at the Fairyland entrance from Grand Avenue. The Garden Center is across Bellevue from the Edoff Memorial Bandstand.)

For more information, contact Marisa Arrona, at 510-238-7031 or ArronaM@oaklandnet.com.